March 2006 Newsletter
Spring Break/College/High School Students
This month I want to share some information, safety tips and strategies for
those of you with teenagers and college-age children regarding Spring Break.
Teenager’s love their independence and revel at the times they are "free"
and can cut lose with little or NO parental supervision – every parent’s
nightmare!
High school teens need guidelines and parameters to help insure their
personal safety during the vacation weeks without having their daily school
schedules to occupy their days. Many have part-time jobs, extra curricular
activities and will stay productive and busy for the most part. Some will
sleep in til noon or later, while others will simply just "hang out". The
malls, multi-plex theatres, Starbucks, etc., will be filled with lots of
bored, loitering teens. Law enforcement steps up their patrols of parking
lots, malls and common "hang-out" areas and is on high alert looking for
suspicious behavior. Teens need to know and understand this. They need not
tempt fate by purposely putting themselves in these places or situations
that could get them in trouble.
It’s important to know (as best as you can) where your teens will be during
the day, who they’re going to be with and in general their daily plans.
There is a greater potential for them to be exposed to someone or a group
they are unfamiliar with or to be in places they normally would not
frequent. This is cause for concern and could lead to some real problems
(being in the wrong place at the wrong time).
It’s a daunting task being a parent, always knowing who your teens are
with and where they are at all times. Actually, almost impossible! But
it’s important, if not critical, that you make every effort to help insure
their personal safety through good communication and clear parameters and
expectations from them.
We were all teenagers once ourselves, so we know first-hand how a teen
thinks! We can help to stack the odds in their favor to help insure their
safety. It’s necessary to talk with (not at) your teens and help them to
understand they must take responsibility for their personal safety. They
need to know, regardless of whatever kind of peer pressure might exist, if
they feel uneasy, uncomfortable, threatened, suspicious or fearful of a
person, a group or place, they need to leave as quickly as possible. If
they are without transportation, they need to know they call you to get
picked up, no questions asked.
They should NEVER ride in a car with people they don’t know or go into
someone’s house they are unfamiliar with (don’t know). They need to be wary
of any place where "older" kids are hanging out that they don’t know. They
should call you to ask permission and inform you of a change of plans to go
someplace other that where they had originally planned to go. They should
use the "buddy system" with at least one (if not more) trusted friends and
watch out for each other. They should NEVER, under any circumstances,
accept any "open" drinks of any kind from anyone (even if they know them in
some capacity). Date rape drugs are easily acquired and undetectable even
in juices and soft drinks. They should ALWAYS trust their "gut feelings"
and intuition. If something feels wrong, it’s wrong. If they have a "bad
feeling" about someone, then something IS wrong, and they should leave as
quickly as possible.
The best safety strategy is open, on-going communication with your teens.
Talk to them about your concerns regarding their safety. Let them know that
you trust them and teach them to be responsible to do the "right" things and
make the best decisions. They need to feel comfortable talking about things
that might have happened to someone they know or even to them. They need to
feel comfortable coming to you to talk about what you would do in certain
situations. Discuss "what if" scenarios and safety action plans and options
(Plan A, Plan B, etc.). It’s also important to create and maintain a strong
bond of trust, letting them know you trust them, but are unable to afford
their friends or acquaintances that same trust level, so they must take
responsible actions.
College Break Hotspots
When your college-age child goes on a Spring Break "fun" vacation to a
beach, mountain or other resort area, these hot spots literally attract
thousands of partygoers and spring-breakers. It becomes a haven for
serious, hard-core party animal types and includes lots of drinking,
drugging partying and sexual activity.
Many kids want to let down and enjoy their week off from college, but there
is also an element that looks to take advantage of the naïve, unsuspecting,
trusting types. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare to have something
happen to their child like what happened to Natalee Holloway last year in
Aruba. It’s important that your children (girls especially) make a pact with
trusted friends to look out for each other. And they need to be vigilant
about looking out for each other. The need to be alert and suspicious of
people or situations that don’t "feel" right. The need to check in with
each other when out partying, dancing, etc. and make sure no one gets
isolated, taken someplace or leaves alone. Remember, 99% of everyone at
these hotspots will be total strangers. Even more important than the
agreement or pact with friends is to stick to it.
Date rape drugs, although illegal, are easily obtained from any one of over
10,000 Internet pharmacies. It takes as little as 3-5 minutes for the drug
to take effect and will put a person into total amnesia for anywhere from
4-12 hours. The drugged person will feel tingly (face and hands), short of
breath, dizzy, almost like being groggy. Date rape drugs like GHB
(gamma hydroxy-butyrate), and rohypnol, etc., have literally been off the
market since the early nineties, yet more girls die each year from GHB
overdose than from crystal meth each year*. If someone looks ill or acts
strange in any way for any reason, the friends should seek medical attention
for them immediately. Waiting or assuming they simply need to sleep it off
could result, literally, in a fatal mistake.
Our children have one foot in adulthood and one still in childhood. You
simply cannot be with them 24/7 and as they step farther forward into
becoming an adult, they need to be educated and armed with the best
information we can give them.
See "Drink Detective" on our Safety Products Page on our website, and consider having your teen carry one or more in their purse at all times.
*Statistics from DEA study
© Copyright 2006 S.A.F.E. All rights reserved.
This month I want to share some information, safety tips and strategies for
those of you with teenagers and college-age children regarding Spring Break.
Teenager’s love their independence and revel at the times they are "free"
and can cut lose with little or NO parental supervision – every parent’s
nightmare!
High school teens need guidelines and parameters to help insure their
personal safety during the vacation weeks without having their daily school
schedules to occupy their days. Many have part-time jobs, extra curricular
activities and will stay productive and busy for the most part. Some will
sleep in til noon or later, while others will simply just "hang out". The
malls, multi-plex theatres, Starbucks, etc., will be filled with lots of
bored, loitering teens. Law enforcement steps up their patrols of parking
lots, malls and common "hang-out" areas and is on high alert looking for
suspicious behavior. Teens need to know and understand this. They need not
tempt fate by purposely putting themselves in these places or situations
that could get them in trouble.
It’s important to know (as best as you can) where your teens will be during
the day, who they’re going to be with and in general their daily plans.
There is a greater potential for them to be exposed to someone or a group
they are unfamiliar with or to be in places they normally would not
frequent. This is cause for concern and could lead to some real problems
(being in the wrong place at the wrong time).
It’s a daunting task being a parent, always knowing who your teens are
with and where they are at all times. Actually, almost impossible! But
it’s important, if not critical, that you make every effort to help insure
their personal safety through good communication and clear parameters and
expectations from them.
We were all teenagers once ourselves, so we know first-hand how a teen
thinks! We can help to stack the odds in their favor to help insure their
safety. It’s necessary to talk with (not at) your teens and help them to
understand they must take responsibility for their personal safety. They
need to know, regardless of whatever kind of peer pressure might exist, if
they feel uneasy, uncomfortable, threatened, suspicious or fearful of a
person, a group or place, they need to leave as quickly as possible. If
they are without transportation, they need to know they call you to get
picked up, no questions asked.
They should NEVER ride in a car with people they don’t know or go into
someone’s house they are unfamiliar with (don’t know). They need to be wary
of any place where "older" kids are hanging out that they don’t know. They
should call you to ask permission and inform you of a change of plans to go
someplace other that where they had originally planned to go. They should
use the "buddy system" with at least one (if not more) trusted friends and
watch out for each other. They should NEVER, under any circumstances,
accept any "open" drinks of any kind from anyone (even if they know them in
some capacity). Date rape drugs are easily acquired and undetectable even
in juices and soft drinks. They should ALWAYS trust their "gut feelings"
and intuition. If something feels wrong, it’s wrong. If they have a "bad
feeling" about someone, then something IS wrong, and they should leave as
quickly as possible.
The best safety strategy is open, on-going communication with your teens.
Talk to them about your concerns regarding their safety. Let them know that
you trust them and teach them to be responsible to do the "right" things and
make the best decisions. They need to feel comfortable talking about things
that might have happened to someone they know or even to them. They need to
feel comfortable coming to you to talk about what you would do in certain
situations. Discuss "what if" scenarios and safety action plans and options
(Plan A, Plan B, etc.). It’s also important to create and maintain a strong
bond of trust, letting them know you trust them, but are unable to afford
their friends or acquaintances that same trust level, so they must take
responsible actions.
College Break Hotspots
When your college-age child goes on a Spring Break "fun" vacation to a
beach, mountain or other resort area, these hot spots literally attract
thousands of partygoers and spring-breakers. It becomes a haven for
serious, hard-core party animal types and includes lots of drinking,
drugging partying and sexual activity.
Many kids want to let down and enjoy their week off from college, but there
is also an element that looks to take advantage of the naïve, unsuspecting,
trusting types. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare to have something
happen to their child like what happened to Natalee Holloway last year in
Aruba. It’s important that your children (girls especially) make a pact with
trusted friends to look out for each other. And they need to be vigilant
about looking out for each other. The need to be alert and suspicious of
people or situations that don’t "feel" right. The need to check in with
each other when out partying, dancing, etc. and make sure no one gets
isolated, taken someplace or leaves alone. Remember, 99% of everyone at
these hotspots will be total strangers. Even more important than the
agreement or pact with friends is to stick to it.
Date rape drugs, although illegal, are easily obtained from any one of over
10,000 Internet pharmacies. It takes as little as 3-5 minutes for the drug
to take effect and will put a person into total amnesia for anywhere from
4-12 hours. The drugged person will feel tingly (face and hands), short of
breath, dizzy, almost like being groggy. Date rape drugs like GHB
(gamma hydroxy-butyrate), and rohypnol, etc., have literally been off the
market since the early nineties, yet more girls die each year from GHB
overdose than from crystal meth each year*. If someone looks ill or acts
strange in any way for any reason, the friends should seek medical attention
for them immediately. Waiting or assuming they simply need to sleep it off
could result, literally, in a fatal mistake.
Our children have one foot in adulthood and one still in childhood. You
simply cannot be with them 24/7 and as they step farther forward into
becoming an adult, they need to be educated and armed with the best
information we can give them.
See "Drink Detective" on our Safety Products Page on our website, and consider having your teen carry one or more in their purse at all times.
*Statistics from DEA study
Have a Safe and Happy Spring/Easter Break!
Mark Spencer, M.A., S.A.F.E© Copyright 2006 S.A.F.E. All rights reserved.
