You've taught your kids the lessons they need to negotiate life, from how to cross the street safely to not talking to strangers. Now in their teens, they're closer to adulthood than childhood, but there's another hurdle threatening to trip them up before they reach the finish line. In your bid to educate and enlighten your teen, should you share your own experiences with drugs?
A lot of parents would say absolutely not. Just as some believe that birth control education promotes and condones pre-marital sex, so too would many believe that admitting to one's own follies encourages exploration of the drug world. However, in the absence of concrete information, including personal anecdotes, your teen may well seek answers by experimenting.
Other caregivers feel that sharing their own experiences with drugs will foster a more open and honest relationship with their teen. Instead of a “do as I say and not as I do” attitude, they will divulge personal history in an attempt to prevent mistakes of the past from being repeated.
If in fact you tried drugs as a teen, it would be foolhardy to deny it. Should your teen find out you are lying, it will be hard to regain his/her trust. Also, because teens are convinced that they're far smarter than their parents, they'll assume you have no idea what you're talking about, unless you tell them otherwise. Of course, no dialogue at all on the subject would be dangerous and potentially lethal.
Should you decide to impart your mind-altering episodes to your teen, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Firstly, don't glorify the effects of the drug(s) that you took. Recounting how much fun you had ripped on LSD at an Alice Cooper concert won't do much to dissuade your child from following suit. You may understand his curiosity and the drug's appeal, but stick to real-life stories of people you know whose lives were short-changed by the drugs they took. It's important to make the effects as unattractive as possible. If there was a particular reason you stopped using drugs, share that as well. This will reinforce the idea that goals and drugs don't mix.
Secondly, make sure you're up to date on your facts. Your discussions won't hold water if you aren't current on which drugs are available, their effects, and the potencies. For example, marijuana had an average of 4 % THC twenty years ago. Now, the active ingredient is up around 22% or higher, thanks to hydroponics. Consequently, the short and long term effects are going to be much more severe than they used to be. That's the low end of the scale. From there, it's a laundry list of readily accessible synthetic distractions. Crystal methamphetamine, GHP, cocaine, crack, LSD, Ecstasy, ketamine and many others are easier to get than penny candy from a convenience store.
Each child and situation provides individual predicaments and solutions. No matter which way you decide to approach yours, the topic simply must be discussed. Pretending it will never happen to your teen and avoiding the issue won't make it go away. If anything, silence will only bring the problem to your doorstep faster. Keep the lines of communication open and be prepared for anything your teen may want to share or talk about. By being an approachable, honest parent, your teen has a far better chance at not becoming a statistic.
