Pubdate: Sat, 29 Dec 2007
Source: Lancaster Eagle-Gazette (OH)
Copyright: 2007 Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
Contact:  http://www.lancastereaglegazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3143
Author: Tierra Palmer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?135 (Drug Education)

PROGRAM TO HELP YOUTH MAKE DRUG-FREE CHOICES

LANCASTER - Drinking and illicit drug use by teens has  continued to 
decline, according to a recent survey of  high school students in 
Fairfield County.

However, parents still have cause for concern,  officials say. But a 
new program at Fairfield Medical  Center is teaching parents how to 
help their children  make healthy choices when it comes to drugs and alcohol.

Results from the 2006 Youth Survey indicate that about  80 percent of 
high school seniors have drank alcohol  and about 40 percent have 
smoked marijuana. Although  fewer teens reported regularly using 
alcohol and  marijuana, most said those substances were easy to 
obtain and not particularly harmful. Trisha Saunders  says that is 
the wrong attitude to have.

"The scariest thing to me is that alcohol and marijuana  can be very 
dangerous to youth," she said.

Saunders sees the effects of drug use firsthand as the  director of 
the Recovery Center, an outpatient  substance abuse treatment 
facility in Lancaster.

Now, FMC is offering a new class, which will make it  easier for 
parents to talk to their children about  drugs and alcohol and 
recognize the signs of abuse.

How to Drug Proof Your Kids is a six-week course  designed to equip 
parents with the tools needed to  effectively steer their children 
away from substance  abuse.

"We need to get to kids before they make the choice (to  use drugs)," 
instructor Marilyn Booze said.

"Many parents think that (because) their children don't  come from a 
fractured home they won't be tempted (to  experiment)."

But even kids from good homes use drugs, she said.

Booze found that out the hard way 15 years ago, when  her son David 
began experimenting with drugs and  alcohol.

"I wondered if he would ever have a life. He lost 10  years (to 
addiction), but he learned some hard  lessons," she said.

Now, David, 30, who has been in recovery for  four-and-a-half years, 
is sharing his experience with  others as a counselor at Teen 
Challenge, a residential  treatment program in Cincinnati, where he 
was once a  student.

That is why it is important for parents to establish  and maintain a 
healthy relationship with their  children. Booze said that good 
communication is  essential to developing that bond.

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sidebar

More Information

Fairfield Medical Center is offering a new class that better enables 
parents to talk about drug use with their children. How to Drug Proof 
Your Kids is a six-week course designed to educate parents on the 
facts about drug use and give them practical techniques and 
strategies to steer their kids away from the temptation of drug use 
before they're tempted.

The class will meet, from 7 to 9 p.m. every Thursday, with the 
exception of Valentine's Day, at Fairfield Medical Center, 401 N. 
Ewing St., Lancaster. There is a $20 registration fee.

For more information or to register, call 740-687-8007.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom