Stop Medicine Abuse: New Website

Medicine abuse and teens unfortunate is not new, but this year www.StopMedicineAbuse.org rolled out a new and updated website full of educational tools, downloads, brochures, posters, and other resources to help your and your family and community fight medicine abuse.

About them:

The prevention campaign StopMedicineAbuse.org and its Five Moms initiative is working to alert parents and members of the community about the problem of teen abuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicines containing dextromethorphan (DXM).

In 2004, national surveys began to track abuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine among teens. Experts predicted, “abuse among adolescents most likely will increase, as the drug is relatively easy to obtain and inexpensive.  Moreover, adolescents perceive the risk in abusing the drug as low.”
This was a call to action.

To fight the potential rise of teen DXM use, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) launched the Five Moms: Stopping Cough Medicine Abuse campaign to raise awareness about teen DXM abuse and offer peer-to-peer guidance on how to prevent it. Following the success of the Five Moms campaign, CHPA created StopMedicineAbuse.org to serve as the online home for Five Moms and provide valuable resources for parents and their communities. Together, these initiatives have reached millions of parents to date.

Back to School: Stop Medicine Abuse

StopMedicineAbuse.org was created by the leading makers of OTC cough medicines and their trade association, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA).

CHPA, founded in 1881, is a member-based association representing the leading manufacturers of over-the-counter medicines. CHPA and its members are involved in a multi-pronged effort to curb the abuse of over-the-counter cough medicines containing dextromethorphan with the help of a host of partners. Included in those other concerned organizations are the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America, and D.A.R.E. America.

In addition to preventing the abuse of OTC medicines, CHPA and its members also work to provide information on the safe and responsible use of medications through the nonprofit CHPA Educational Foundation.

Learn about the abuse of OTC:

Recent studies among middle and high school aged kids across the country show a disturbing form of substance abuse among teens: the intentional abuse of otherwise beneficial medications, both prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC), to get high.

Teens who learn a lot about the risks of drugs from their parents are 50 percent less likely to use drugs.

According to data from the 2011 Monitoring the Future Study, teen past-year abuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine has remained at roughly 5 percent.



The ingredient the teens are abusing in OTC cough medicines is dextromethorphan, or DXM. When used according to label directions, DXM is a safe and effective ingredient approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is found in well over 100 brand-name and store-brand over-the-counter cough medicines. When abused in large amounts, DXM can be dangerous.

StopMedicineAbuse.org was developed by the leading makers of OTC cough medicines to build awareness about this type of substance abuse behavior, provide tips to prevent it from happening, and encourage parents to safeguard their medicine cabinets. Substance abuse can touch any family: The key to keeping teens drug-free is education and talking about the dangers of abuse.
 
Join them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Be an educated parent, you will have safer and healthier teens.

Red Ribbon Campaign: Preventing Teen Drug Use

The National Family Partnership organized the first Nationwide Red Ribbon Campaign. NFP provides drug awareness by sponsoring the annual National Red Ribbon Celebration. Since its beginning in 1985, the Red Ribbon has touched the lives of millions of people around the world. In response to the murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena, angered parents and youth in communities across the country began wearing Red Ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to raise awareness of the killing and destruction cause by drugs in America.

Enrique (Kiki) Camarena was a Drug Enforcement Administration Agent who was tortured and killed in Mexico in 1985. When he decided to join the US Drug Enforcement Administration, his mother tried to talk him out of it. "I'm only one person", he told her, "but I want to make a difference."

On Feb. 7, 1985, the 37-year-old Camarena left his office to meet his wife for lunch. Five men appeared at the agent's side and shoved him in a car. One month later, Camarena's body was found. He had been tortured to death.

In honor of Camarena's memory and his battle against illegal drugs, friends and neighbors began to wear red badges of satin. Parents, sick of the destruction of alcohol and other drugs, had begun forming coalitions. Some of these new coalitions took Camarena as their model and embraced his belief that one person can make a difference. These coalitions also adopted the symbol of Camarena's memory, the red ribbon.

In 1988, NFP sponsored the first National Red Ribbon Celebration. Today, the Red Ribbon serves as a catalyst to mobilize communities to educate youth and encourage participation in drug prevention activities. Since that time, the campaign has reached millions of U.S. children and families.

The National Family Partnership (NFP) and its network of individuals and organizations continue to deliver his message of hope to millions of people every year, through the National Red Ribbon Campaign.

Learn more - click here.

Informed Families the Florida Family Partnership

THE NUMBER ONE REASON KIDS GIVE FOR NOT USING DRUGS IS THEIR PARENTS!  

However, 40% of parents believe they have little influence on their children's drug use. Worse, 50% of parents expect their children will use drugs. 

When we ask kids what they would like us to do to help with the drug problem, the surprising answer is "talk to our parents about drugs." 

Informed Families/The Florida Family Partnership, Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is a broad-based, grass roots volunteer/parent organization that is affiliated with the National Family Partnership. Informed Families is an education, training and support center for parents, schools and communities to help raise safe, healthy and drug-free children. 

We teach people how to say no to drugs and how to make healthy choices. To reduce the demand for drugs, Informed Families has focused its efforts on educating and mobilizing the community, parents and young people in order to change attitudes. In this way we counteract the pressures in society that condone and promote drug and alcohol use and abuse. The organization educates thousands of families annually about how to stay drug and alcohol free through networking and a variety of programs and services . 

Informed Families offers children's substance abuse prevention activities in various locations throughout the State of Florida. While the agency is headquartered in Miami, other service locations include the Orlando and Pensacola Regions.

Follow PACT Prevention Coalition on Twitter.

Loved One in Treatment? Now What!

By Lisa Frederiksen

There is a great deal of 21st century brain and addiction-related research now possible thanks to advances in brain imaging technologies. These findings are exploding long-held beliefs about addiction and addiction treatment and the impacts of a loved one’s substance misuse on family members and friends.  

Loved One In Treatment? Now What! simplifies this research and answers questions, such as:

- What causes addiction? Why do some people become alcoholics or drug addicts and others do not?
- What is “effective” treatment? Is there a difference between treatment and recovery?
- Who among family members and friends can help a loved one get treatment? Or can they?
- What does coping with a loved one’s addiction do to family members and friends, and what is available to help them?

Order on Amazon today!

Sue Scheff: ADDICTED LIKE ME - A Mother-Daughter Story of Substance Abuse and Recovery

By Karen Franklin and Lauren King

Told through the voices of a mother-daughter writing team, Addicted Like Me offers a detailed personal account of addiction and how it affects the entire family. Karen Franklin recounts her own past as a young addict, her struggle with the alcoholism of her parents, and ultimately her husband’s and children’s addictions. Lauren King, Franklin’s daughter, tells of her own spiral of addiction—from marijuana and alcohol to crystal meth.

As a valuable complement to their own stories of addiction and recovery, Franklin and King also provide advice and resources for parents dealing with addiction. In this prescriptive section they discuss how to identify the signs of addiction, where to turn for help, and how to understand this disease. Told from the trustworthy perspective of two people who have been there, these hard-won tips are preventative in their efforts to help parents help their kids at an early phase, rather than glossing over what may be calls for help. Addicted Like Me tackles the long-lasting effects of addiction in many shapes, and provides a mother-daughter story of recovery that is sure to resonate with parents and children facing similar issues.

Order on Amazon today!

Sue Scheff: Parenting Teens and Drinking

Under the Influence

Parents need to take the time to be an educated parent and learn more about teens driving under the influence.

This educational website will offer you parenting tips about how to talk to your teens, (starting the conversation), parent resources and more.

Read more: http://www.underyourinfluence.org/under%20YOUR%20influence.html

Sue Scheff: Help Stop Medicine Abuse with Teens

I was asked by caring parents and individuals to give people encouraging news. StopMedicineAbuse is making a difference in creating awareness in parents and helping open up the lines of communication with their teens and tweens today.
Although almost two-thirds parents have talked to their teens about cough medicine abuse, a large number still have not had this critical conversation. To help alert these parents, many OTC cough medicines will now feature the Stop Medicine Abuse educational icon on the packaging. The icon, which also can be viewed online (see above), is a key reminder for parents that teen medicine abuse is an issue that they need to be aware of.

Look for them on Facebook and join their Fan Club Group to stay updated.

How can you help?

More Parents Talking with Their Teens about Cough Medicine Abuse

Posted by Five Mom, Christy Crandell , on Monday, May 11, 2009
Our efforts to educate parents about medicine abuse have reached thousands of families in the United States. With your help, more parents than ever are learning about this risky teen substance abuse behavior and are talking with their teens. According to the Partnership Attitude Tracking Study, released by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, 65 percent of parents have talked to their teens about the dangers of abusing OTC cold and cough medicine to get high-an 18 percent increase in the number of parents who talked to their teens in 2007.
My fellow Five Moms and I are excited to share this promising news with you, but there is still much work ahead. Although nearly two-thirds of parents have talked with their teens, 35 percent of parents said that they have not had this important conversation.

We know that when parents talk to their teens about the risks of substance abuse, their teens are up to fifty percent less likely to abuse substances. If you have not already talked with your teens about the dangers of cough medicine abuse, visit our talk page for some helpful ideas on how to have this discussion.

It is also critical that we share this information with our friends and communities as well. Too many parents are still unaware that some teens are abusing OTC cough medicine to get high, and it is important that we talk with them about this behavior. By talking with other parents, we can make sure that every family has the knowledge and tools to help keep teens safe and healthy.

Sharing information about cough medicine abuse is easy. It only takes a moment to start a conversation, and thanks to Stop Medicine Abuse, you can Tell-A-Friend through e-mail or post the Stop Medicine Abuse widget to your blog or web site. The more parents are aware of cough medicine abuse, the better we can prevent this behavior from happening in our communities.
Have you talked with other parents about cough medicine abuse?

Share your advice about having this conversation at the Stop Medicine Abuse Fan page

Sue Scheff: Teen Substance Abuse (SAMSHA)

The Road to Recovery Update keeps you informed about activities leading up to National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month (Recovery Month) in September. Feel free to forward this information to friends and colleagues, include it in newsletters or listservs, or link to it from your Web site.

Last Call for Questions for May’s Ask the Expert: Thomas A. Kirk, Jr., Ph.D., Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services

Questions for the May Road to Recovery Webcast, Providing a Continuum of Care: Improving Collaboration Among Services, are due by Friday, May 22, 2009.

Submit your questions to Dr. Kirk by contacting us. Answers from Dr. Kirk will be posted on the Recovery Month Web site in early June. Contact information for questions will be kept confidential.



Mark Your Calendars for the June 3, 2009, Road to Recovery Webcast: Recovery and the Health Care/Insurance Systems: Improving Treatment and Increasing Access

On June 3, join host, Ivette Torres, Associate Director for Consumer Affairs, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), for the June 2009 Road to Recovery Webcast.

When the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Act of 2008 becomes effective in 2010, additional options will become available to those seeking addiction and mental health services. The Act will require group health plans to offer coverage for addiction and mental illness and provide benefits on par with those for all other medical and surgical conditions.

This program will examine what impact the Act will have on health care and insurance systems and what it means for individuals and families battling addiction. The show will also explore other issues related to health care's role in recovery, such as proper screening and intervention, prescription drug abuse prevention, and treating co-occurring disorders.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Adminstration

Every day in our schools and communities, children are teased, threatened, or tormented by bullies. To help care for our youth, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) developed webpages and resources (print and online) that serve can as useful tools to parents, educators, and everyone with today’s children, teens and tweens.

• About Bullying http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/15plus/aboutbullying.asp
• Systems of Care http://www.systemsofcare.samhsa.gov/
• National Strategy for Suicide Prevention http://nmhicstore.samhsa.gov/suicideprevention/pubs.aspx
• National Suicide Prevention Initiative http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cmhs/nspi/

These sites offer parents, caregivers, educators, and other professionals a great opportunity to know the facts, recognize signs and symptoms, and access easy to read tips on how to talk to children about mental health. These resources can help caregivers build healthier, safer environments and support anti-bullying initiatives.

For additional information on this topic and more, or to order resources at no cost, please call the SAMHSA hotline at 1-877-SAMHSA-7 or visit http://www.samhsa.gov/shin/.

Sue Scheff: Dying for Acceptance - A Teen's Guide to Drug & Alcohol Related Health Issues

As an adolescent, you'll have to make up your mind about a lot of things. Drugs and alcohol are among the most important.

Using chemicals recreationally is a common aspect of many teen parties.

No one sets out to become addicted. No one plans on any harmful side effects. But these things do happen.You owe it to yourself to find out the facts about drugs and alcohol.

This book will tell you: some of the reasons why teens choose to start using drugs. how chemical substances affect your brain.information about the "gateway" drugs: tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and inhalants. the truth about abusing prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, and steroids.the dangers involved with Ecstasy and other club drugs, as well as heroin.

Don't depend on peer pressure to make up your mind. Drugs and alcohol can permanently damage your life. You don't want to be one of the teens who are literally dying for acceptance!

Visit: http://www.masoncrest.com/book_view.php?bookID=99 for more information.

Sue Scheff: Stop Substance Abuse with Teens Today

Building resilience... Facilitating recovery... A life in the community for everyone

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has established a clear vision for its work -- a life in the community for everyone. To realize this vision, the Agency has sharply focused its mission on building resilience and facilitating recovery for people with or at risk for mental or substance use disorders. SAMHSA is gearing all of its resources -- programs, policies and grants -- toward that outcome.

Sue Scheff: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Building Blocks for a Healthy Future Building Blocks for a Healthy Future is an early childhood substance abuse prevention program developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) that educates parents and caregivers about the basics of prevention in order to promote a healthy lifestyle. Designed for parents and caregivers of children ages 3 to 6, Building Blocks will help you open up the lines of communication with young children—and make it easier to keep those lines of communication open as they grow older.

Sue Scheff: The Dangers of Teen Drinking

More than 10 percent of eighth graders, 22 percent of sophomores, and 26 percent of seniors report recent binge drinking (5+ drinks on the same occasion).

Statistics show that the majority of current teen drinkers got drunk in the previous month. That includes 54 percent of the high school sophomores who drink and 65 percent of the high school seniors who drink.

Visit - http://www.dontserveteens.gov/dangers.html for more valuable information.

Sue Scheff - D.A.R.E. Drug Abuse Resistance Education

D.A.R.E. - Drug Abuse Resistance Education has been known for many years and has helped been part of many schools in helping children learn the dangers of drug abuse. As a parent, take some time to review their newly updated information and website. It is important that parents and educators work together to help prevent drug use.

Source: D.A.R.E. Official Website

This year millions of school children around the world will benefit from D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education), the highly acclaimed program that gives kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs, and violence.

D.A.R.E. was founded in 1983 in Los Angeles and has proven so successful that it is now being implemented in 75 percent of our nation’s school districts and in more than 43 countries around the world.

D.A.R.E. is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons that teaches children from kindergarten through 12th grade how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives.

Dirty: A Search for Answers Inside America's Teenage Drup Epidemic

By Meredith Maran

Meredith Maran’s Dirty: A Search For Answers Inside America’s Teenage Drug Epidemic is a moving study of America’s failure to address teen drug use. The book, which grew out of the author’s struggles with her own son’s addiction, throughout harmonizes a general analysis of America’s War on Drugs and drug treatment programs with a close study of three particular teens.

Sue Scheff - Alliance for Consumer Education - Parents Learn More about Inhalant Abuse

As the new year has started, parents need to become more educated and informed about today's teens and the issues they face.

Many parents know about substance abuse, and teach our kids to say no to drugs - but do you know about Inhalants? Ordinary household items that can be lethal to teens looking for a quick and inexpensive high? More importantly, sometimes deadly high.

Parent learn more about Inhalant Abuse.

Here is a great "talking tips" page from The Alliance for Consumer Education (ACE) - take the time to learn more today. You could save a child's life.

Preventing Addiction by Dr. John C. Fleming

How can concerned parents predict if their kids will become addicted to drugs or alcohol? With the effect of media and the current wide availability of addicting drugs, parents face more challenges raising children than ever before. Opinions vary on the question of who will become addicted. Some think that people become addicted because of their heredity, while others think addiction is not a disease at all, just a weakness of will.

Visit www.johncfleming.com for more information.

Inhalant Abuse - Learn More and Maybe Save A Child

In 2004, the Alliance for Consumer Education launched ITS Inhalant Abuse Prevention Kit at a national press conference at the National Press Club in Washington DC. The kit was successfully tested in 6 pilot states across the country. Currently, ACE’s Inhalant Abuse Prevention Kit is in all 50 states. Furthermore, the Kit is in its third printing due to high demands.

The Kit is intended for presentations to adult audiences. Specifically parents of elementary and middle school children, so they can talk to their children about the dangers and risks associated with Inhalants. We base the program on data from the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. Statistics show that parents talking to their kids about drugs decrease the risk of the kids trying a drug.

The Inhalant Abuse Prevention Kit contains 4 components: the Facilitator’s Guide, a FAQ sheet, an interactive PowerPoint presentation, and a “What Every Parent Needs to Know about Inhalant Abuse” brochure. Additionally, there are 4 printable posters for classroom use, presentations, etc.

Visit www.inhalant.org for this kit.

Sue Scheff: Inhalant Abuse Tool Kit - Parent Listen Up

Inhalant Abuse is a growing problem among teens and pre-teens and a major concern for parents today.

Inhalant Abuse is a lesser-known form of substance abuse, but is no less dangerous than other forms.The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service has reported that more than 2.1 million children in America experiment with some form of an inhalant each year and the Centers for Disease Control lists inhalants as second only to marijuana for illicit drug use among youth.

As a parent advocate, I believe parents need to be aware of this critical issue today. I am extremely grateful to the parent that wrote me and asked me to speak out and spread the awareness. She lost a son from inhaling air freshener. As a parent, she always spoke to her kids about substance abuse, but never knew about Inhalant Abuse.

For more information on this deadly growing epidemic visit http://www.inhalant.org/ - it could save a life today.