There are many reasons that teens start using alcohol and drugs. It may be because of acceptance, the way it makes them feel, media, peer pressure, and mostly because of their parental influences in their life. Parents have a big impact on their child’s lives and they are the best people to help prevent or stop substance abuse. “In about 80% of cases, a child’s first exposure to alcohol and drug use is at home” (True Confessions). Many teens turn to alcohol or drugs because of family issues at home like being neglected or abused, and alcohol or drugs take their minds off of their issues. A teen who did drugs admitted, “At the time, my parents were fighting a lot, so when someone at the rave handed me some E, I decided to try it. I just wanted to feel better” (Dying for Acceptance). Teens may try drugs to try and help them forget about things that are stressing them out or troubling things of their lives involving their parents. Also, scientists have come out saying that teen drinking or drug abuse is genetic. If the teen’s parent was or is an alcoholic, then they are, most likely, going to be one too. Some parents might not even be alcoholics or abusive parents but still allow their child to drink alcohol. Another teen, Cindy, explained to a survey, “My father had introduced me to alcohol at age 3…you know, sips of beer at first. Then I got to the point where I would chug down a half a bottle and make the adults laugh when I staggered and fell flat on my face” (On the Rocks). Parents should try to prevent or stop their teen from drinking and doing drugs, not encourage them.
To continue, prevention of drug and alcohol use also starts in the home. Parents should talk to their child early about what they expect of his or her behavior towards alcohol and drugs. If a teen thinks that their parents will allow substance use, he or she is more likely to try drugs or alcohol. Some parents don’t realize how big of an impact they have on their child’s lives and the decisions that the child makes. Another way for parents to try to prevent any substance use from happening is keeping their teens busy with meaningful activities, such as sports, church programs, or other groups. Parents also have to expect their teen to follow the household rules such as having a curfew or making sure that they finish their homework before they go out and do anything. They need to set reasonable consequences for behavior that needs to change, and consistently carry out the consequences. It is also a parent’s job to know their child’s friends. Having friends who avoid cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs is great protection from substance use.
Also, teens keep to themselves most of the time and wouldn’t usually tell their parents about what they are doing, so they should keep an eye out for signs that their child is doing drugs or using alcohol. Parents should keep an eye out for red eyes and health complaints such as being overly tired, or their teen often using over-the-counter eye drops because they are trying to cover up red eyes caused by smoking marijuana, or their teen having less interest in school and then having a drop in their grades or skipping classes and school.
If a parent notices these signs, it is their child’s and their responsibility to get help and try to stop the substance use. They both have to be cooperative and willing to put the effort in for the teen’s sake. They should talk openly with their teen about their problem, see a counselor, a doctor, or both, or they could get detoxification treatment or a treatment that replaces the substance with medicine. Also, “alcohol is known to increase a teen’s depression levels and they may think about, or actually commit suicide more than usual” (Say NO! To Teen Drinking and Drugs). So parents could take their child to a doctor to talk about their issues and get them the help that they need.
As you know, parents have a huge impact on their children’s lives, so they have to realize that they are the people that their children look up to. That’s why they have to prevent bad things from happening to their children. “Alcohol and drugs could permanently damage their teen’s lives by causing memory loss, life time brain, liver, nervous system or digestive system damage, heart gland or muscle disease, and it makes it harder for the brain to complete tasks”(Say NO! To Teen Drinking and Drugs). Parents are supposed to protect their children from harm, so they need to protect their children from drugs and alcohol so none of these bad things happen to them.