Teenage use of smokable substances has been on my mind lately, and a bizarre (kismet, some would suggest) sequence of events has led me to compose this post. I am not a drug counselor or expert; I do have frequent conversations with lots of teens and their parents.
Recently, I initiated a search for a substance-use expert to deliver a data-driven talk for parents and kids about teenage use of controlled substances, and came across Dr. Jennifer Golick’s name. Within a week of discovering her work, I learned that tragically, Dr. Golick was one of the three mental health professionals who were killed in the shooting at Pathway Home, a home for veterans in Yountville.
In honor of her life and work, and because the information Dr. Golick delivered in similar talks throughout the Bay Area and beyond, I’m posting the recording of Dr. Golick's 2015 talk at Drake High School titled The Elephant in the Living Room: Having Difficult Conversations with your Teen around Cannabis Use .
I encourage anyone who shares any part of their life with tweens and teens to set aside 40 minutes to watch (or listen) to this straightforward, data-driven talk about the effects of cannabis use on teens’ developing brains (spoiler alert: today’s cannabis (including the preferred method of delivery and the culture around its use) is NOT the same as the marijuana of yesteryear). In fact, while it may produce an eyeroll or two, watching or listening together with your teen can be a helpful catalyst to a deeper, more personal conversation. If you are the teen’s parent, it may even help you to establish or reinforce your family’s limitations on that use.
Here are a couple of teasers to pique your interest and to inspire you to watch:
- The THC content of the marijuana teens have access to today via dab is 50-90%; the THC concentration of marijuana available from the 60’s-90’s was 2-5% and 20-30% in the early 2000’s.
- As a result of that potency, the old adage “You can’t get addicted to pot!” is no longer true.
- The Dunedin Study, an impressive long-term study showed that drug use before the brain reaches maturity between 18-25 causes a permanent drop in IQ not experienced by drug use after the brain reaches maturity.
- Beginning in middle school, and continuing throughout high school, talk with kids about what they know, what they see and what they experience.
- If you sense that there’s a problem, get help early.
I don’t allow fear to drive my actions and decisions, and I have no desire to fan any fearful flames. That said, it’s important for teens (and tweens) and the responsible adults in their lives to be well-informed. These conversations can be challenging and uncomfortable both for teens and adults, but teens can’t accurately guess the boundaries adults hold for them without adults specifically stating what they are, so don't be afraid to state those boundaries explicitly.
Here are a few resources if you’d like to read more:
- A heartbreaking account of one family’s journey and inspiration to access help early
- Guidance for how to influence teens’ choices and access to a community of adults who are making the same choice.
- An upcoming event in Marin County about the effects of legalizing cannabis.
If you’d like help with this, or any other conversation with your teen (or if you’re a teen, and you’d like help with this or any other conversation with the adults in your life), email me at jennifer.labovich@marinteencoach.com