PARENTS KEY TO DRUG USE PREVENTION

Talking about drug issues with today's teenagers may bring back parents'
recollections of their own "experiments" with drugs in the '60s and '70s.

While the subject might seem better left forgotten, a local substance abuse
counsellor suggests parents tell kids the truth, when asked about their own
experiences, as a way to educate and de-mystify drugs for their kids.

"Look for those teachable moments," said Danny Highley, substance abuse
counsellor at Princess Margaret Secondary School. "If a kid brings it up,
answer their questions. Be honest with them about your own drug use- and
emphasize that (you) stopped and why."

Highley - one of three counsellors in local high schools courtesy of
Pathways Addictions Resource Centre - says parents need to answer these
questions not only because the issue is relevant in their children's lives,
but because kids probably already know the answer.

"In my experience, by the time they ask, they know," said Highley. 'They're
checking whether or not you're going to come clean."

As a counsellor, Highley deals with students who have or currently face
substance abuse problems. While schools provide teaching and information
for kids about drugs, he says parents are the most important resource for
their children.

"A lot of people - and wrongly I think - are afraid to talk to
elementary-aged kids," said Highley. "We want to get drug use before it
starts, but really, with most drugs in our society, that means age pre-12."

These drugs include nicotine and alcohol, legal drugs that parents need to
monitor their use of, in order to teach their children responsibility, said
Highley. Aside from the health risks, these prevalent drugs are dangerous
because they are "a portal into the addictive process" that teach the brain
to become addicted.

"The thing to remember is there's no such thing as experimentation," said
Highley. "Every time you use a drug, you're teaching your brain to form a
memory of it. It's reinforcement."

Highley wants to reinforce that society must allow schools to admit that
drug use occurs there, in order to ensure students get help. This can't
happen when they are stigmatized.