Keep your kids from becoming addicts

KEEP YOUR KIDS FROM BECOMING ADDICTS

As parents, some of the key things that we are responsible for monitoring is their safety, their health, and their general wellbeing. Humans are highly curious beings and kids are probably the most prime example of curiosity.

YOUR KIDS ≠ ADDICTION Maybe you were an addict. Or, there’s addiction in your family tree. Maybe you’ve been through rehab or recovery. You’ve suffered the pains of withdrawal and detox, you know what it’s like, and you don’t want your kids to have to go through it. Or worse. So, you want to make sure your kids stay free of drugs and alcohol.

HERE’S WHAT YOU WANT TO HAPPEN:

You can’t prevent your children’s exposure to drugs and alcohol. But, maybe, you don’t even want to. If your child has a predisposition or a long list of risk factors leading them toward addiction, you are limited to what you can do anyway.

Besides, most kids – mentally and psychologically healthy kids – aren’t the ones who’re abstaining from alcohol or drugs completely. Instead, they are experimenting with weed and drinking, albeit in moderation.

For better or worse, this is normal adolescent behavior.

As a parents you are not helpless. You can protect them by providing them with good information. Make your children feel comfortable about talking to you about substances and their effects. This is not just about education – talk about their feelings as well as ideas.

YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO STOP YOUR KIDS FROM EXPERIMENTING WITH DRUGS, BUT…

You can help to make your kids competent and resilient. Make them aware of the risks and consequences of drug and alcohol use

RISK AND PROTECTION Even for kids in this highest risk categories, up to 70 percent do not become substance abusers.5And by building on their strengths, they can prevent the negative factors from taking over their lives.

While these can be risk factors for a child to use and abuse drugs and alcohol, they are not destiny

Through these discussions, your child will understand the principles of healthy behavior. Remember, drugs on their own don’t cause addiction; they are an expression of a problem, not the source.

The reasons for addiction can be complex and the result of many factors. Your job as a parent is to help your child navigate through those factors as best you can.

https://www.blvdcenters.org/