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 Parenting Related NewsWhile it was hard to immediately see the outward effects of my pill intake, inside, I was detaching from reality. I always describe the feeling of being on pills as being inside a protective bubble. You feel like nothing can hurt you…and eventually, nothing can, simply because you’ve got no emotions left.
My colleague told me she was having her 10-year-old stepson practice his reading and comprehension skills while reading entries from my personal blog. Effectively, she noted, along the way she discovered that it’s a creative method of early drug prevention too.
I am betting that very few of you have sat through a week’s worth of sex education classes at your teenkid’s school. If your school district offers – or mandates – such classes, you no doubt have received a carefully crafted note listing the topics to be covered. And, if you have somehow managed to raise one of those rare tweens or teens who, in response to “so, what happened at school today?” replies polysyllabically, you might have a general notion of what goes on.
Truth be told, the lessons about alcohol consumption that are the most powerful may just be the ones that are not accompanied by a wagging finger and a tongue lashing. It is the small, accumulated lessons about drinking that add up to make a difference.
Do you know an outstanding youth coach or student athlete who demonstrates a commitment to fair, drug-free play and an overall healthy lifestyle? Does this person inspire others to give it their all, make the team smile after a big defeat, or show exemplary character and integrity on and off the field?
If you answered YES, [...]
She smiled and said she was proud of him. He had come to a 180 degree turn in his life. And with that, he turned to the other teens and thanked them for helping him change his life. His victory became theirs.
Let’s face it. Teens are not that interested in talking to someone whose sole intent is to pepper them with questions, judge their answers, and offer unsolicited advice. In fact, these forms of communication serve to obstruct rather than facilitate communication with our teens. As a matter of fact, they are part of a longer list of communication blocks that parents would do well to avoid if they’d want their teens to talk to them.
Being a responsive parent instead of a reactive parent begins with more matter-of-fact interactions with our kids. This means speaking to them in a calm manner and not freaking out, overreacting and getting extreme with our emotions. Too often, when we see something in our relationship that we don’t like, we try to change everything wholesale. We say things like, “From now on, things are going to be different!”
One in five teenagers has abuse prescription pain medication. Dr. Drew shares some reasons why teens are abusing pills and what parents can do if they suspect their child is using.
As a college student living 5 hours away from my parents, I have the freedom to do pretty much whatever I want. If I got into any real trouble, with the university or the law, only then would the school contact my parents. Otherwise, I can get away with a lot without my parents ever knowing. That’s a scary thought for parents reading this, right?
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HOW TO CRASH PROOF YOUR TEENAGER
Parental Power Can Reduce Grim Teen-Driving Statistics
From Edmunds.com
Getting a driver license is the most eagerly awaited event in most teenagers' lives — and the most dreaded for their parents. After all, while a driver license is a badge of freedom, it brings with it tremendous risk: Car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens. In this first installment of Edmunds' new teen-driving series, we touch on how and why teens are dying and often suffering severe injuries. In subsequent articles, we'll explore:
* Graduated licensing laws — Where are state laws lacking, and how can they be improved upon by parents? * The most important strategies parents (and their teen drivers) can use to prevent teen car crashes * Driver's ed — What's proven to work, how to pick a school and what types of schools not to pick for teens who are learning to drive * The best — and worst — types of vehicles for teens to drive * Low- and high-tech ways to keep tabs on your teen's driving
Teen driving statistics tell this deadly story: About 3,500 U.S. teens die every year in teen-driven vehicles: an average of about 10 a day. Fewer teens were killed in crashes in 2005 than in any year since 1992, even though the teen population is the largest it's been since 1977. But the crash rate per mile driven for 16-to-19-year-olds is still four times the rate for drivers 20 and older, according to a June 2007 report by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The risk is highest for 16-year-old drivers. They also kill others at a rate about five times that of elderly drivers, says IIHS. (For more teen driving statistics, go to IIHS Fatality Facts.) Put simply, teen drivers' lack of experience means they are the least equipped to make quick decisions in a vehicle. Teens usually lose control of their vehicles because they swerve to miss something and then either don't correct enough, or overcorrect and swerve into something else. These often single-vehicle crashes regularly cause vehicles to roll over — particularly if the teens are driving sport-utility vehicles. Rollovers account for about 25 percent of all fatal crashes. One reason rollovers are so deadly for teens: This age group has the lowest rate of seatbelt use and unbelted occupants are often ejected, which can cause life-threatening head injuries. Young drivers are more prone to driver distractions, reducing their ability to react correctly to trouble. Along with carrying several passengers, these include speeding, drinking and playing loud music. Consider this crash in December 2006. A 16-year-old driver and his 13-year-old sister were traveling at about 6 p.m. in a Jeep Wrangler when the boy lost control of the vehicle and it rolled down an embankment. Both were killed instantly. Their parents' grief is hard to imagine, but the reason for the single-vehicle crash isn't difficult to comprehend. The driver had his license just eight months and was making a 25-mile trip from his mother's home in Frederick, Maryland, to his father's home in Leesburg, Virginia. There were no witnesses to say what caused him to swerve. In addition to his youth and inexperience, the crash involved other key risk factors, including one teen driving another teen and a poor vehicle choice. We'll address both in our next installment. Is 16 Too Young for a Full License?
Raising the driving age for a year or more is a proven way to save lives, because the crash rate per mile driven is twice as high for 16-year-olds as it is for 18- and 19-year-olds, according to the IIHS. When graduated licensing laws delay full licensure until 17, some of the crashes and deaths are merely postponed, but research shows that most of these slightly older drivers are better, more mature and simply safer on the road. In February, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reported that 16-year-old drivers were involved in 38 percent fewer fatal crashes in the states with the most stringent graduated licensing laws. This should not be a surprise given that humans' brains aren't fully developed and capable of making informed decisions about risk until they are 25, according to the National Institutes of Health. But it doesn't do much to satisfy teen drivers' yearnings for a car or their lack of perspective on their own abilities. Research released in January 2007 from a Children's Hospital of Philadelphia/State Farm study titled "Driving: Through the Eyes of Teens" illustrates the problems:
* Teens have the lowest seatbelt usage of any age group. * Teens have heard the message about drinking and driving but don't see drowsy driving — which is almost as dangerous at this age — as risky behavior. * Teens define driving 10 miles over the speed limit as speeding, but many acknowledge that they do it anyway.
This is scary information indeed. Here at Edmunds, we're well aware that these are not easy issues to discuss with your teenager. But we're here to provide the tools to make the road a little safer for everyone. Below are links to all of the installments in this series (coming soon). Part II: Laying Down the Law for Your Teen Driver Part III: Finding a Driver's Ed Program That Really Works Part IV: Choosing the Safest Car for Your Teen Part V: How to Keep Tabs on Your Teen Driver Copyright Edmunds.com, Inc. All rights reserved. First published on www.edumunds.com and reprinted with permission. Edmunds and the Edmunds.com car logo are proprietary trademarks of Edmunds.com, Inc. Read more Edmunds.com Automotive Safety Tips |
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