I thought this might be a good time to re-post this letter to the editor written last October. Prevention has never been more important to the health and safety of our youth.
October
is National Substance Abuse Prevention Month and the Ohio County Substance
Abuse Prevention Coalition members have asked me to write this letter. In the
field of prevention our goal is to reach all persons before drugs or alcohol
become a problem in their lives or a burden on society. We try to reach those
who don't use or abuse alcohol and drugs as well as those who do. Citizens who
never even touch drugs or alcohol can make changes that could begin to lower
the high levels of use in a community by actively supporting efforts.
We
all have a voice in what happens in our environment. We can make policies that
address advertising, employment, school behavior, business practices, legal
issues and law enforcement. We can ask our lawmakers to support legislation
that keeps our children safe. Those who do use drugs or alcohol can take an
honest look at themselves and be open to understanding that their behavior
affects young people. Changing adult substance use behavior and altering adult
expectations of a child's alcohol or drug use can have a profound effect.
Those
of us in the parent or grandparent generation often view drinking or smoking
pot as a "rite of passage" as something "we all did." But
the truth is our children are not using the drugs or alcohol we used. Marijuana
has increasingly become more potent and the prescription drugs with opiates
available now are more addictive than ever. The first time many of us drank we raided
our parents' liquor and took that terrible first sip of straight liquor or a
mixed concoction that would turn anyone off to drinking alcohol. We did not
have lemonade or sweet cool-aid flavored drinks in pretty packages. The fact is
our children are not doing what "we" did. Even folks who use
substances "responsibly" may want to re-examine their actions and
beliefs; realize the message we are sending to our children is that alcohol and
some drugs are harmless. Change has to occur across the board and sometimes it
means letting go of old habits and ways of thinking which is never easy.
Society
often blames "other" people. Maybe they say it is the decline of
family values, single-parent homes, low-income families and the list goes on.
The fact is alcohol and drugs do not respect morality or socio-economic status.
Research has shown that if a person uses alcohol prior to the age of 21, he or
she is four times more likely to develop alcohol problems. The brain does not
develop fully until age 24 in many adults. Studies show drinking affects school
performance days after alcohol has left the system. Having alcohol in your home
may not be harmful to you, if used in moderation, but it could be dangerous to
your teen's development.
Why
do we have a focus on underage drinking? Alcohol is still considered a gateway
drug and regardless of it leading to other drug use, it still sets children up
for problems. In this day and age, the gateway for many young people or
children has changed to marijuana or prescription pain killers as their first
experience with chemicals. Again, our children are not doing what past
generations did and the problems continue to grow as a result. Adults can
change their expectations of children. It doesn't have to be acceptable to do
something just because "we all did it"
We
all remember the public service announcements showing an egg frying with the
line, "This is your brain on drugs." Though the effectiveness of that
commercial was in question, the effects of drugs and alcohol on the brain and
lives of those who use can be devastating. And even scarier still are the new
"designer" drugs like bath salts, synthetic marijuana and what ever
the newest derivative may be. Kids are spending an evening drinking or using
drugs for "fun" and they don't wake up the next morning safe in their
bed. They don't wake up! Prevention is not trying to stop addiction although
the hope is it could; its aim is to improve and save lives by lowering the use
of harmful substances and this may begin with substances many consider less
harmful.
When
we ask adults to change an age-old behavior that folks have accepted and
believed since colonial times, it is met with denial, blame and stubborn pride.
When we ask them to change they hear, "You are wrong" or "You
are a bad parent." In most cases, we don't believe that! We believe
circumstances are changing and instead of doing what we have always done, let's
try a new open-minded approach. Let's stop the blame game and start working
together to change ourselves.
