Inside the 'eye-opening' drug course parents must take before kids go to prom | NJ.com

Prom time again and parents should be prepared. what does your school do to help parents understand what the teens are facing? This school makes a course mandatory for parents if they want their kids to participate. I never heard of this before, but think it is a GREAT idea.

Inside the 'eye-opening' drug course parents must take before kids go to prom | NJ.com: "Parents are invited to tour the bedroom set and use their detective skills to seek out likely hiding spots. Sgt. Danielle LoRusso, with the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office, leads the programs. Once she has allowed parents to pull out drawers and examine the scene, she takes them through again to show what they missed."

'via Blog this'

Pay It Forward with Free Books for Your Center, Just fill this out

We have just awarded May and June's Free books for Treatment Centers. They are the House of Grace in Louisville and Hagerstown Treatment Center in Maryland. I know I shouldn't be advertising that we give free books every month (we do but our resources are limited) but we are so happy that God has made it possible to Pay It Forward. Who would have thought? Thank you, everyone for the help you give us. Click the link to see who we give books to and why they need them.

 Maybe you want to help? Even a dollar ($1) goes a long way!

Pay It Forward with Free Books for Your Center, Just fill this out: "June 2017 House of Grace, Louisville, KY Sharon F is a former client of the House of Grace. Her words were simple, "To help the alcoholics and addicts in the household get extra help." A little extra help is on the way. May 2017 Hagerstown Treatment Center, Hagerstown, MD Lynn K, an employee wrote, "I would like the books for Substance Abuse counselors to have more resources to help our patients. I also would like to be able to offer resources to patient as to help them be successful with their recovery." Your pay It Forward Gift includes a first edition workbook and facilitator guide for starting a parent's group--Sober Coaching Your Teen. Thanks for letting us contribute."

'via Blog this'

ASK A PARENT COACH

I found the best website today! It is run by Partnership for Drug-Free Kids and I am so impressed! You can contact this organization if you have concerns about your child and they can help steer the right direction for the help you may need. They also have a volunteer staff (Carla returned my call and explained what they do) who has been through the trials of raising a child in today's drug influenced world--you can call them, fill out a form or do an online chat--whatever works best for you. Check out this great resource--I am also adding a resource link from the SoberCoachingYourTeen.com.

Partnership for Drug-Free Kids | Portal: "Who are Parent Coaches? Parent Coaches are moms and dads just like you who have been personally affected by a child's substance use. They are not therapists – they are parents who have been there and received special training and support from the Partnership and our clinical partner, the Center for Motivation and Change, to help other families through similar struggles. Their answers can help you too. To connect with a counselor experienced in the field of substance use, please call our Helpline at 1-855-DRUGFREE."

'via Blog this'

Parental action is key to fighting teen substance abuse in area |

Yes this is true--parents need to do something, anything to address this issue--just as they address a myriad of issues everyday--they have to address school, futures, manners, puberty, peers, health, drivingect.--but this article begins like so many " But with teen alcohol and drug use on the rise in recent years" NO IT ISN't on the rise! Every few years kids take to opiate, then in a year or so it's meth, then hull eugenics, then back to booze or heroin--and everytime this happens reporters act shocked, "(name your drug) is on the rise!" Help, the world's on fire--kids are taking drugs!

Sorry for the sarcasm. I get so tired of folks screaming fire in a crowded room to garner attention. Use Fear--use guilt, use shame--why don't we stick with facts and education? People use drugs. Kids experiment. That is never going to change.

Parents must address it--but not with scare tactics--let's use common sense. If you are a mom or dad--go to the website, take the awareness test and address drinking and drugging as you do all other growing up issues. You are a good parent--don't get sucked in with the hysterics.

Addiction in the suburbs series: Parental action is key to fighting teen substance abuse in area | mySuburbanLife.com: "Most parents don’t want to think about their child drinking alcohol or using drugs. But with teen alcohol and drug use on the rise in recent years, there are steps parents can take to address these issues before they lead to serious consequences."



'via Blog this'

Lost my step-nephew to drug addiction--

He was only 21. I wasn't close to him. Wasn't even close enough to know he was into meth. Yet I feel a connection. And I am so sad about yet another loss to our family.

This young man is not the first one to be lost in our family to this disease of addiction. I had two step brothers lost to heroin. I had a cousin (who I was close to) fall off a porch drunk and lose her life. I've had numerous friends and an ex husband die from addiction. Alcoholism and addiction is aggressive. It doesn't let go easily.

For all of you who have lost loved ones to this disease, know you are in my heart, just as my young step nephew is. Sometimes I hate this disease--but have to remember that there is another choice. Please support recovery in any manner you can.

This is one of mine   YoungSoberFree.com

Montana favors parents’ rights over kids’ safety, advocates charge

This is a really tough one--sometimes states act more for the rights of parents and often states do the opposite "protecting" the child so much that they actually hurt them. Here these 2 women claim that Montana protects the rights of parents over the child. In Idaho, right beside Montana--I saw the oppositive experience where my friend's daughter lost her innocence because of social services.

Angry at her mother, the girl told social services that her stepdad had abused her. Mom didn't believe it. But social services took custody and placed her in foster care. They took my friend's daughter to a doctor for testing and low and behold, the girl was a virgin. Social services still did not believe Mom so kept the girl for over 6 months. When she was finally returned to the family, she came back no longer a virgin. So how well was this girl protected? She was 13 or 14 at the time.

My friend was furious but there was really nothing she could do. Its a fine line they walk in social services and I just wish they could use common sense! In unsure cases, I support the parents.

Here's the Montana story:

Montana favors parents’ rights over kids’ safety, advocates charge | News | bozemandailychronicle.com: "“Overall, the child abuse and neglect system is failing kids miserably,” said Nancy Mitchell, 76. “There needs to be some major changes to protect kids, and they are not being protected right now.”"

'via Blog this'

Highway Patrol, ODOT: Talk to your kids about drugged driving for Holidays

We hear about Drunk driving all the time and often forget about drugged driving. Same thing actually.

When you talk to your teens this season about drunk driving, don't leave out the "drugged driving" part, either. Your kids are smart--smart enough to say, "I didn't have any drinks" justifying their crash when in fact they had taken 3 downers and smoked  a joint! Just cover your basis in parent/teen drunk/drugged driving talk this year.

Story here: Highway Patrol, ODOT: Talk to your kids about drugged driving: "The signs will show messages outlining the increase in drug related crashes and urging them to talk about the drug abuse epidemic. This is part of the state’s Start Talking Initiative, the release said."

'via Blog this'