ERIK’S CAUSE PREVENTION EDUCATION PROGRAM Judy Rogg, MSW Director and Co-Founder

Erik’s Cause www.erikscause.org

Challenges and Dares your kids can watch Search Date 6-30-2015

Erik’s Cause

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Challenges and Dares your kids can watch

Erik’s Cause

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Creating a Module that … • Avoids material that could expose a school to potential liability

• Avoids all graphic or explicit material

• Minimizes risk of triggering an existing trauma • Provides factual information for students to make healthy choices

• Includes refusal skills to help students act on those choices

• Standardizes the material to allow for uniform, widespread replication by multiple presenters Erik’s Cause

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Context …

Basic Brain Development Window of Tolerance to Process Disturbing Information (Trauma) Erik’s Cause

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Basic Brain Development

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Trauma

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The Brain’s Reaction to Trauma

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Teaching Objectives…

For Kids/Students

For Adults/Parents Erik’s Cause

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Teaching Objectives for Students … • Identify these activities without showing them how to “play” it • Understand the physiological effects on the body • Understand how their brains work • Connect between risks in choking game and other risk behaviors • Identify peer pressure • Learn to say “No” effectively • Make healthy choices

• Recognize that the risk is real • Connect strategies learned in this lesson as refusal skills and strategies to deal with other situations as well Erik’s Cause

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Teaching Objectives for Parents … • Identify the activity and the warning signs • Understand the physiological effects • Understand how the teen brain works as opposed to the adult brain • Understand peer pressure that their children face • Help their children develop strategies to say “No” effectively • Learn new communication skills to talk with their children

• Help their children choose healthier/better options • Build trust with their children

Erik’s Cause

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Erik’s Cause – Help Stop the Choking Game

What Every Student Needs To Know About Pass-Out Games

OUR MISSION Bring awareness of the Deadly “Choking Game” to students, staff, families, and communities to help parents and children understand its true dangers and so lives can be saved. We believe education is the most effective way to combat the rampant popularity of pass-out and fainting activities. Erik’s Cause www.erikscause.org

It goes by many names, including …

Erik’s Cause www.erikscause.org

What can happen when the brain loses oxygen? MEMORY LOSS

HEADACHES

RETINAL HEMORRHAGE

BRAIN DAMAGE BRAIN DEATH

SKULL FRACTURES BRUISING CARDIAC ARREST

STROKE BROKEN BONES

DEATH

LOSE CONTROL OF BODILY FUNCTIONS (urination & defecation) Erik’s Cause www.erikscause.org

AMAZING BRAIN FACTS The brain is not fully developed until we are about 25 years old! The brain generates 25 watts of power – enough to light a bulb.

Neurons send up to 50,000 messages through the brain per minute.

The brain weighs about three pounds. The brain is the

command center of the body.

The brain has about 100 billion nerve cells called neurons. If we want these messages to travel well so our bodies can work well, we must take very good care of our brains. Erik’s Cause

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A simple way to understand what happens Normal flow, like blood through the arteries:

But if you bend it, what happens?

And what happens when you straighten it back out?

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Peer Pressure …

THINK… CONSIDER…

S.T.O.P. Erik’s Cause

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How can we say “NO”?  USE HUMOR: “No, I need all the brain cells I’ve got.”

 GIVE A REASON: “No, it’s stupid and it can kill you.”

 WALK AWAY: If others ask you to try it, just leave.

 CHANGE THE SUBJECT: Talk about something else. Erik’s Cause

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Ask for Help … Ask any responsible adult for HELP.

Telling is not tattling If someone is unconscious …

CALL 911 Erik’s Cause

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Even Smart, strong kids can make dumb choices with deadly consequences …

Some kids tried it only once They didn’t know they were gambling with their lives… Erik’s Cause

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