What a waste! What an untimely death!
I began to wonder…how many people are
dying this moment because of drug and alcohol addiction? How many people are
struggling with this problem? How many people would still go this way?
With these thoughts, I decided to
share this with you. The need to start talking, if we are not already doing so
The need to talk more if we are not talking enough. The need to start talking
to our children about this, because they say “charity begins at home”.
We have children, cousins, nieces,
nephews and they see and hear about these celebrities and their struggles. They
equally hear about their deaths caused by these drugs and alcohol addictions.
We need to start discussing addictions
with them. Our children should be informed and know the meaning, causes,
dangers and effects of drugs and alcohol use. They should know why these
substances should be avoided!
So, what is addiction?
Simply put, addiction is the condition
of taking harmful drugs and being unable to stop taking them while an addict is
a person who takes harmful drugs and cannot stop taking them.
In discussing with our children, they
should know that these drugs are not meant to be played with! They are not to
be ‘experimented’ with. They should know they don’t have to ‘belong’ to any
group for them to be complete of fulfilled. We should let them know and
understand the need to be comfortable in their skin. Check out my previous post
on this.
We should tell them they are
beautifully and wonderfully made. The reason is simply because some kids suffer
from body insecurity. They don’t like their body. They think they are not good
enough, beautiful enough or sporty enough.
As parents or guardians, let’s
reassure them and make them realize they can’t be the “best” in every aspect of
life. They are areas of strength and equally areas of weakness. And that its
perfectly fine and ‘normal’.
Watch out if your children are bullied
in school or anywhere else. This can make them seek comfort in drugs or
alcohol. Bully should be discouraged and reported in the school. At home, it should also be
discouraged. Every child is different and so no one has the right to demean or
make fun of the other.
Know their friends. Encourage your
children to bring their friends home. This way, you get to meet them, interact
with them briefly and study their behavior. As parents, you have instincts…trust
your instincts when they speak.
Any of their friends you don’t approve
of, dig in and investigate about that person. Encourage discussion and ask
questions about that friend. Talk to your child about that friend and make your
decision.
Both of you may not be the best of
friends after that decision, but trust me, that is why we are the PARENTS. You
give the rules and they follow. In the long run, it’s for their good.
We should always encourage discussion
around drugs and alcohol. Let them speak and you LISTEN. We should correct any
wrong impression or answers while the discussion is on.
As parents, we should show good
examples. We should practice what we preach. We can’t tell them to stay away
from drugs and alcohol when we use them. It won’t work.
Watch out and pay close attention to
your kids and act fast if you do notice any or most of these symptoms;
aggression, physical changes, alcohol or drug smell, drunkenness, mood swings,
risky behavior, resentful attitudes, weight gain/loss or nervous twitches and
ticks.
Note all these maybe NOT be related to
drugs or alcohol addictions. You should know your children, if you notice a
great change in behavior with some of the above symptoms then, you should act
fast!
If this is helpful, why don’t you tell
somebody about this blog.
Thanks for your time.
" I lift up my eyes to the hills..where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord the Maker of heaven and earth"-Ps. 121:1-2
"There are no secret to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, learning from failure"-Collin Powell
Linda Aliogo
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