Ask About our Trust, But Verify Program

Remember the teenage years, when one minute you felt like you were on top of the world and the next a fight with a friend or bad grade felt like the end of the world? Remember when during those years, reputation amongst friends was the most important thing in the universe? Many of us fail to remember that during the teenage years Peer Pressure becomes the main reason why teens sometimes don’t follow their values and common sense.

Kids want to fit in and feel liked by their friends and classmates. Therefore they feel that by doing drugs or drinking alcohol they will receive the approval they are looking for. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association, teens are considerably vulnerable to a roller coaster of emotions due to fundamental changes that take place between ages of 12-25. That is why as children grow, keeping them safe can turn into a complex process where the parent often debates the level of privacy a teen should have. Many parents violate their teen’s privacy and ‘snoop’ around in the child’s absence, then get outraged by what they have found and tend to overreact; others believe it’s a phase they have to go through in order to grow up.

The important thing is to think before deciding to go through the teen’s belongings and private territory. If the teen feels like their parents violated their privacy, communication and trust can be lost. Talking to your teen about the many repercussions of drug and alcohol abuse while letting them know that you care is key to helping your children survive Peer Pressure.

This leaves us with the question, as a parent what should I do to help my teen? Here are a few tips to protect your teen from the endless hazards of Peer Pressure:

  1. Get informed about the different methods in which you can prevent, intervene and possibly get the help your teen needs; organizations like Drugfree.org provide great information for parents.
  2. Listen to your teen’s concerns and maintain an open line of communication. Talk to your teen; let them know that you understand the tremendous amount of temptations out there. That you know they are strong and smart, which is why you expect them to stay drug free regardless of what their friends say.
  3. Consider having random drug tests; help them understand that with our Trust But Verify Program you are helping them confront day-to-day Peer Pressure.

Help your teen without violating their privacy and Trust, But Verify to maintain an open and forthcoming relationship.