Young people at puberty undergo a rapid change of body and mind. While they learn to move away from their parents and learn how to stand on their own feet, they also develop their own personality. But often, there is a problem with the relationship between the child and the parents.
When children are experimenting, it does not mean that it is part of growing up, but it is very tempting to them and sometimes too hard to resist. You need to set boundaries, but leave enough freedom for the child to develop his/her own personality. Things you child might experiment with are, smoking drinking, sex and drugs.
Usually when children are going through their experimental phase, the novice soon wears off and they lose interest. But sometimes this is not the case, and they can move on to harder drugs. They want to fit in with a crowd where drugs are used, and they fall into the trap. The trick is to have a good relationship with your children and let them know that you care enough to keep a close eye on them.
What to do if you find out your kids are using drugs:
Imagine you’re cleaning up your child’s room and you find a bag of weed. What do you do?
The first reaction of a parent is often panic, something that is very understandable, but not the best reaction. If your child is experimenting with drugs, it is important to talk about it. It is the only way to find if your child is at risk and panicking and screaming won’t help you find out the truth. If you simply prohibit your child, you will close the lines of communication and he/she will simply hide it better the next time. An open discussion will lead to a better mutual understanding and strengthen the relationship where you will then be able to find out the motive behind the drug use and work from there.
It’s a good idea to first do some research about the drug your child is using. This will give you an understanding of the risks involved and help you when you decide to talk to your child about his/her drug use.
Clear boundaries need to be set and if it gets dragged out for too long, your child will be the one suffering the consequences.
Once you have established your child’s drug use pattern, you can decide on a course of action. Rehabilitation might be needed. There are various options available including in-house treatment, where they can get better from home.
The most important thing to remember is that you need to take swift action. Your child’s long term health depends on your reaction.