Underage Drinking | Drug Use Prevention
Adolescent Cannabis Abuse – Guest Author Dr. Jennifer Golick
Adolescent cannabis abuse is a hot topic given the recent and upcoming state elections to legalize marijuana. There is the perception it is safer than alcohol or other drugs and thus safer for teens to use marijuana than alcohol. Today’s guest author, Dr. Jennifer Golick, explains why this is not true. Dr. Golick is the Clinical…
Read MoreStudy Drugs | Guest Author Allison Kreiger Walsh, J.D.
Parents may have heard their teens and college students mumbling about the power of “study drugs,” but what are they and what do they do? Today’s guest author, Allison Kreiger Walsh, J.D., of Advanced Recovery Systems (ARS), separates fact from fiction in today’s post. ARS is a network of addiction recovery programs, including online educational…
Read MoreChildhood Trauma – Substance Misuse Connection
The childhood trauma – substance misuse connection is one of the most important interactions society as a whole must understand. It is profoundly life changing because it changes a child or teen’s brain circuitry – meaning how their brain wires, thus how it works, thus what that child or teen thinks, feels, says and does,…
Read MoreSecondhand Drinking IS Childhood Trauma
There’s been a great deal of new research about the role childhood trauma plays in changing the neural network wiring of a child’s developing brain. I think Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris does one of the best jobs explaining (in 15 minutes!), “Childhood trauma isn’t something you just get over as you grow up … the repeated stress…
Read MoreSurviving Family Gatherings When a Loved One Has a Substance Use Disorder
When a loved one has a substance use disorder, surviving family holidays can feel like just that, “surviving.” Author, speaker and radio host, Denise Krochta, has created a terrific tool to provide families with strategies and techniques to help them get through ANY family gathering. I contacted Denise to learn more and am sharing her…
Read MoreMy Addicted Child – Author Larry Fritzlan
For the last twenty years, today’s guest, author Larry Fritzlan, has witnessed the transformative power of individuals and families in recovery. His passion is to help teens and young adults escape from the downward spiral of addiction, stemming in large part from his work as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and his belief…
Read MoreDiagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) | Guest Author Lee Harvey-Heath
It is one thing to talk about the facts of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), which refers to a group of conditions that can occur in a person whose mother consumes alcohol during her pregnancy. But it’s quite another to actually hear from a person who has it. Today’s guest author, Lee Harvey-Heath, has courageously…
Read MoreNational Substance Abuse Prevention Month – Where To Start
“The majority of those who have a substance use disorder started using before age 18 and developed their disorder by age 20,” according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) > Principles of Adolescent Substance Use Disorder Treatment: A Research-Based Guide » Introduction. Given this fact, “What does effective substance abuse prevention look like — is…
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