Educating Teens about drug abuse is so important

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the National Institute on Drug Abuse for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

As a mom of 2 teens, both boys, I have my worries every single day. You try to protect them, you try to do the right thing and keep them around the good people and to protect them from any kind of harm, but even the best parents can’t do it all and know 100% that their kids are safe.

I worry just like any mom. I think I feel safe sending the kids off to camp, to school or their friends because well… I totally checked it out and know everyone there, right? But in reality the best prevention to keep your kids safe is to talk, talk about drugs, prevention and even what could happen if. Don’t ever say to yourself: “My kids will never, ever be in touch with drugs.

To my surprise, after talking to my teen and commenting about a few instances that had happened in the community, he informed me “Mom, I’m 16, you think no one has offered it to me yet?” I really did not know what to say. I was mad, I was upset and I was almost in tears. My baby, my world, I tried so hard to keep him away and could have sworn I did a good job and now … Now, I feel like I failed my child.

BUT… after I had the shock settle in I realized that all the conversations we had and all the information I found year after year on drug and alcohol facts, that actually my Teen WAS safe and listening. He was offered (shudder the thought for me) but thanks to “National Drug & Alcohol Facts Week“ he was educated enough to say NO! I’m one proud mom after I realized that!

I encourage you to grab your teen and take the National Drug & Alcohol IQ Challenge and see how much you and your teen know and can learn. I took the challenge with my teen and we found some interesting facts, a few that stood out are below. Let me know if you would have known that.

• About 9 percent of people who use marijuana become dependent on it. The number increases to about one in six among those who start using it as a teen, and to 25 to 50 percent among daily users.

• It doesn’t always have to be illegal drugs. Did you know that 35 million people who smoke cigarettes want to quit every year, but most who try to quit on their own start smoking again—often within a week?

• People who inhale permanent markers or household products to get “high” can actually be damaging their brain and body, and in rare cases, can die quickly.

WOW is all I can say. The challenge kind of opened my eyes about being addicted in a different way, not just the well known ones you hear on the TV or think about first when you hear drugs or addiction. It was a great refresher course and eye opener for both myself and my teen. I got a 42% score, scary cause I thought I was very well educated. So this shows you even if you think you know about the dangers you may not know all there is to know.

I’m glad I found out about “National Drug & Alcohol Facts WeekSM “(NDAFW), this is an annual, week-long observance that brings together teens and scientific experts to “SHATTER THE MYTHS” about substance use and addiction. The observance will be held January 25-31, 2016, and is sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), both part of the National Institutes of Health.

Incase you know someone that needs help please check out “What to do if your teen has a problem with drugs”, lots of great information and amazing help available.

​Have you had the talk yet? It’s never too late, let’s grab your teen and let’s chat.