In Vegas this past week, a young athlete lost his life. The stepmother of the young man was distraught, of course, because of his accidental death, but also because he died of an overdose of hydrocodin, a painkiller. She said she had talked to him about drugs and alcohol. His friends confirm that he was "adamant against the use of alcohol and illegal drugs". He would refuse to be with friends who did use.
She was not aware of the threat of another killer. He, like many other teens, must have assumed that because the drugs are prescribed they are safe. She never covered the subject with him.
The Daily Citizen in White County wrote an article that claimed that kids who hear about the dangers of drugs and alcohol at home are up to 50% less likely to use. Yet only 32% of teens report their parents talk to them about the risks of drug use. This is from Partnership Attitude Tracking Studies (PATS).
WISE (White County Invested in Substance Abuse Eradication) through Pat Hambrick, Coordinator says that parents need to talk to their teens about stress management. "In the 2007 PATS, 73% of the teens said that coping with the pressures and stresses of school was the number one factor teens might choose to use drugs, with "the feeling cool" and "feeling better about themselves" being tied for second place. (Both of these issues are stressed in The Rabbit Trap.)
Parents underestimate the stress on their kids in school. And they also underestimate the pressures of family issues have on their kids. Parents also do not understand how their actions stand as a benchmark on their teens.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Self publishing
Just a note about self publishing. I self-published because I wanted to get the word out about the dangers of prescription drugs and I really did fall in love with Lexie. I have asked published friends, and a president of a publishing company (academic) if it will be harder to be published because I crossed the line of traditional methods. Both said it would increase my chances of being published traditionally.
This month's Writer Digest said the opposite. Of course, right? The average sales of a self-published book? 75. If you sell too many the publishers believe you could have gone through your audience. If you sell to few, well you are not really dedicated to
being an author or your book well it is not very good.
Just as in anything else....I think it is hard work and luck. I will keep you posted. By the way, I have sold more than the average.
But fewer than what they say would burn out my book.
This month's Writer Digest said the opposite. Of course, right? The average sales of a self-published book? 75. If you sell too many the publishers believe you could have gone through your audience. If you sell to few, well you are not really dedicated to
being an author or your book well it is not very good.
Just as in anything else....I think it is hard work and luck. I will keep you posted. By the way, I have sold more than the average.
But fewer than what they say would burn out my book.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Bad parenting? I’m not so sure
It is one thing for a parent to offer a child a prescription drug like xanax to sooth the child’s nerves or marijuana just for fun; but it is another for a child to go into a parents’ medicine cabinet - stealth- and remove a pill from a bottle with the parent’s name on it. Then take the pill(s) and place it in his or her mouth without ever asking permission.
I assume (I know what the word means) that we as parents do teach our children early that if their names are not on something it is not theirs to take. At this point the kid knows (s)he is doing wrong. Or they would have asked for permission.
I am watching as articles appear in several newspapers the latest The Newsleader.com from Springfield, Missouri.
I agree that if a teen is out late at any time not just during the week without parents’ knowing where they are; okay we have issues. Quoting the Columbia study is shocking enough, but the blame has to be equally distributed. Teens are not babies. Sure, they do not have total faculties to make all judgement calls, but they do grasp the basics. No stealing, sneaking, and snorting their own meds, I think they can grasp that some of this is wrong.
As to how they were obtained, teens who are admitted prescription-drug abusers said 31 percent got them from friends or classmates; 34 percent got them from their parents or by raiding the parents' medicine cabinet; and only 9 percent said they got them from drug dealers.
The disturbing findings led Joseph Califano, CASA chairman and former U.S. health and education secretary, to complain that "by leaving abusable and addictive medications like OxyContin and Vicodin around the house ... parents become passive pushers."
Knowledge of the study is important. A few reasons are above. We have all not thought of dangers to ourselves and our kids. If we had thought of all the dangers and somehow created prevention for those dangers, we would have quite a few less accidents. We can only call it bad parenting if parents are made aware and then they do not heed the warnings.
I assume (I know what the word means) that we as parents do teach our children early that if their names are not on something it is not theirs to take. At this point the kid knows (s)he is doing wrong. Or they would have asked for permission.
I am watching as articles appear in several newspapers the latest The Newsleader.com from Springfield, Missouri.
I agree that if a teen is out late at any time not just during the week without parents’ knowing where they are; okay we have issues. Quoting the Columbia study is shocking enough, but the blame has to be equally distributed. Teens are not babies. Sure, they do not have total faculties to make all judgement calls, but they do grasp the basics. No stealing, sneaking, and snorting their own meds, I think they can grasp that some of this is wrong.
As to how they were obtained, teens who are admitted prescription-drug abusers said 31 percent got them from friends or classmates; 34 percent got them from their parents or by raiding the parents' medicine cabinet; and only 9 percent said they got them from drug dealers.
The disturbing findings led Joseph Califano, CASA chairman and former U.S. health and education secretary, to complain that "by leaving abusable and addictive medications like OxyContin and Vicodin around the house ... parents become passive pushers."
Knowledge of the study is important. A few reasons are above. We have all not thought of dangers to ourselves and our kids. If we had thought of all the dangers and somehow created prevention for those dangers, we would have quite a few less accidents. We can only call it bad parenting if parents are made aware and then they do not heed the warnings.
ColumbiaUniversity report claims kids can get marijuana in an hour or less.
In its 13th edition, the 73 page report, gleaned form a survey of 1,002 teens and 312 of their parents state that 50% of the kids who come home after 10 p.m. say they are involved with drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, or taking drugs. It also states that 29% of those returning home between 8 and 10 p.m. say they are using such substances, yet only 14% of parents say their teens usually leave the house to hang with friends on school nights.
Here is the clincher:
The report also says that 42% of 12-to 17-year-olds can buy weed in a day or less, while 23% can buy it in an hour or less. It also says that 25% of teens know a parent of a classmate or a friend who smokes it and 10% of parents say this adult smokes marijuana with people the teen’s age.
Here is the clincher:
The report also says that 42% of 12-to 17-year-olds can buy weed in a day or less, while 23% can buy it in an hour or less. It also says that 25% of teens know a parent of a classmate or a friend who smokes it and 10% of parents say this adult smokes marijuana with people the teen’s age.
Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic
My blackberry alert goes off constantly with new articles. From Oakland, California to Connecticut, medical personnel and chapters of DrugFree America are stymied by the all inclusive problem that this trend is extensive.
Oakland’s KTVU reports that addiction specialists say “a disturbing trend has overtaken teenagers, especially those in affluent communities..” Again and again the drugs mentioned in the articles are Vicodin, Percocet and Oxycontin.
The Bulletin out of Philadelphia says that new data out of the federal government suggests younger and younger children are being attracted by the ads on television and the internet.
It quotes the Columbia’s CASA study (mentioned here Aug 14, that many of the “problem parents” whose actions (or not) increase the abuse of illegal and prescription drugs are to blame.
Westport CT
This article is even more specific to parents. It says that parents who have been brought up in the 60s don’t feel this issue important. (I guess their indulging in the 60’s didn’t hurt them much. How about the judgement part of their brains?)
Oakland’s KTVU reports that addiction specialists say “a disturbing trend has overtaken teenagers, especially those in affluent communities..” Again and again the drugs mentioned in the articles are Vicodin, Percocet and Oxycontin.
The Bulletin out of Philadelphia says that new data out of the federal government suggests younger and younger children are being attracted by the ads on television and the internet.
It quotes the Columbia’s CASA study (mentioned here Aug 14, that many of the “problem parents” whose actions (or not) increase the abuse of illegal and prescription drugs are to blame.
Westport CT
This article is even more specific to parents. It says that parents who have been brought up in the 60s don’t feel this issue important. (I guess their indulging in the 60’s didn’t hurt them much. How about the judgement part of their brains?)
Black Tar Heroin on the rise in Central Ohio
CentralOhio.com out of the Lancaster Eagle Gazette from Lancaster, Ohio reported today that The Ohio Substance Abuse Monitoring Network conducted research and found three key drug trends in Ohio - heroin abuse, prescription drug abuse in combination with alcohol among young people plus prescription drug abuse in combination with alcohol abuse among the elderly.
‘Black tar’ heroin use in several OSAM reporting areas have been noted. There has also been a higher rate of treatment admissions for heroin abuse in suburban young adults.
Juni Frey, associate director of the Paint Valley ADAMH has said that there is increased abuse and addiction of black tar heroin in the central Ohio counties particularly along (US) 23.
Paint Valley ADAMH serves as the mental health, alcohol and drug addiction planning agency for Fayette, Highland, Pickaway, Pike and Ross counties.
Law enforcement recognizes that U.S. 23 is a mainline for drug trafficking within Ohio, a fact that led to the creation of the U.S. 23 Pipeline Major Crimes Task Force. In addition to undercover work and search warrants, the task force also has worked in Ross and Pike counties on Multi-Agency Police Saturation operations with a goal of collecting on warrants, specifically secret drug indictments.
http://www.centralohio.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/B8/20080819/NEWS01/808190305/1002
Teens Cite Ease of Access to Drugs
Originally posted August 14, 2008
By Holly Watt Special to The Washington Post Thursday, August 14, 2008; A02
A growing number of teenagers say it's easier to illegally obtain prescription drugs than to buy beer, according to a survey published today.
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University asked: "Which is easiest for someone your age to buy: cigarettes, beer, marijuana, or prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Percocet, Vicodin or Ritalin, without a prescription?" Nineteen percent of teenagers found it easier to purchase prescription drugs than cigarettes, beer or marijuana, compared with 13 percent a year ago. A quarter of the teens said it is easiest to buy marijuana, with 43 percent of 17-year-olds saying they could buy the drug in less than an hour.
The study also found that a large group of parents do not know where their children are in the evening and identified a group of "problem parents" whose actions increased the abuse of illegal and prescription drugs among 12-to-17-year-olds.
Joseph Califano, chairman and president of the center, said there are basic steps parents could take to avoid being "passive pushers." The statistics showed that 34 percent of teenagers abusing prescription drugs, like OxyContin and Vicodin, obtained them at home or from their parents. "Fifty years ago, people would lock up the liquor," he said in a telephone interview. "Maybe there should be a lock on the medicine cabinet now."
Elizabeth Planet, the center's director of special projects, who coordinated the study of 1,002 12-to-17-year-olds from April to June, highlighted the difference in behavior reported by parents and their children. "Half of the teenagers were saying they were out on school nights, but only 14 percent of the parents knew that they were out," she said. "There are lots of factors at play here. Parents are not paying attention. There are parents who are out in the evening themselves. There are parents out at work."
The correlation between allowing teens out late on school nights and the likelihood that people in their presence would be smoking and drinking was dramatic. Half of all teenagers allowed out after 10 p.m. said that they spent time with people smoking and using drugs, while 29 percent of those who returned home between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. reported the same behavior.
Califano recommended family dinners as a simple way of decreasing the chances of drug abuse, noting that 23 percent of teens who ate fewer than three dinners a week with their family had used marijuana, compared with 10 percent when the family ate together five or more times a week.
Stephen Pasierb, the president of Partnership for a Drug-Free America, cited a lack of understanding between the generations, with parents not understanding the risks surrounding prescription drugs, in particular. "This is a very different generation of children," he said. "Prescription drugs are entrenched, and they have not moved for five years, and this generation of parents simply do not understand the problem."
Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said that drug abuse has declined over the last six years, but the abuse of prescription medicine is a serious concern.
"Kids think that because these are medicines that are prescribed, they are safe," she said. "The problem is that there is very little difference between the amount they take for a high and the amount that causes an overdose."
By Holly Watt Special to The Washington Post Thursday, August 14, 2008; A02
A growing number of teenagers say it's easier to illegally obtain prescription drugs than to buy beer, according to a survey published today.
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University asked: "Which is easiest for someone your age to buy: cigarettes, beer, marijuana, or prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Percocet, Vicodin or Ritalin, without a prescription?" Nineteen percent of teenagers found it easier to purchase prescription drugs than cigarettes, beer or marijuana, compared with 13 percent a year ago. A quarter of the teens said it is easiest to buy marijuana, with 43 percent of 17-year-olds saying they could buy the drug in less than an hour.
The study also found that a large group of parents do not know where their children are in the evening and identified a group of "problem parents" whose actions increased the abuse of illegal and prescription drugs among 12-to-17-year-olds.
Joseph Califano, chairman and president of the center, said there are basic steps parents could take to avoid being "passive pushers." The statistics showed that 34 percent of teenagers abusing prescription drugs, like OxyContin and Vicodin, obtained them at home or from their parents. "Fifty years ago, people would lock up the liquor," he said in a telephone interview. "Maybe there should be a lock on the medicine cabinet now."
Elizabeth Planet, the center's director of special projects, who coordinated the study of 1,002 12-to-17-year-olds from April to June, highlighted the difference in behavior reported by parents and their children. "Half of the teenagers were saying they were out on school nights, but only 14 percent of the parents knew that they were out," she said. "There are lots of factors at play here. Parents are not paying attention. There are parents who are out in the evening themselves. There are parents out at work."
The correlation between allowing teens out late on school nights and the likelihood that people in their presence would be smoking and drinking was dramatic. Half of all teenagers allowed out after 10 p.m. said that they spent time with people smoking and using drugs, while 29 percent of those who returned home between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. reported the same behavior.
Califano recommended family dinners as a simple way of decreasing the chances of drug abuse, noting that 23 percent of teens who ate fewer than three dinners a week with their family had used marijuana, compared with 10 percent when the family ate together five or more times a week.
Stephen Pasierb, the president of Partnership for a Drug-Free America, cited a lack of understanding between the generations, with parents not understanding the risks surrounding prescription drugs, in particular. "This is a very different generation of children," he said. "Prescription drugs are entrenched, and they have not moved for five years, and this generation of parents simply do not understand the problem."
Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said that drug abuse has declined over the last six years, but the abuse of prescription medicine is a serious concern.
"Kids think that because these are medicines that are prescribed, they are safe," she said. "The problem is that there is very little difference between the amount they take for a high and the amount that causes an overdose."
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