Strategies if You Think Your Teenager is Smoking Marijuana

7. Build their Esteem:

If you cannot prevent them from encountering marijuana, you can empower them to make the right choices. I do believe there is peer pressure to smoke (see video). It is hard to say no when it feels like everyone is doing it and you know that if you smoke, you have the chance to be friends with that jock, who would never talk to you otherwise. So encourage them to do esteem building activities, like running for student council, working out, or doing a hobby and help them be proud of who they are by engaging in their unique qualities.

8. Offer Other Activities:

When you talk to your parent friends, make sure everyone is on the same page with curfews and activities. If there is a semi-formal or prom coming up, offer to host a substance-free after party, host cookouts and movie nights. I think many kids smoke marijuana simply because there is nothing better to do.

9. Offer Other Options:

As horrible as it sounds, if your teenager wants to smoke marijuana, they will find a way. Make sure that they know never to drive high. If you think they are smoking marijuana and you cannot do anything about it (sometimes it happens), then at least tell them to call you if they are ever in a situation and they will not get in trouble. Many, many, teenagers drive high or drunk and this worries me more than anything. If you do not think they would call you, then encourage an aunt, uncle, priest, rabbi, teacher, friend to be their secondary support system if they ever need to be bailed out or get a ride home.

10. Give Other Reasons Not to Smoke:

I constantly talk to teenagers about smoking marijuana and always give them non-health class reasons not to smoke which, I believe, appeal more to their interests. I always stress to girls the aging effects of smoking marijuana. I spoke to a group of 16 year-olds about ˜anti-partying” and gave them my reasons not to smoke (they were shocked, because they were so atypical):

-At a prestigious internship interview, a friend got offered the job and when they asked for a drug test, he knew couldn’t pass it and they took back the offer.
-Gives you lip wrinkles.
-The smoke makes your teeth yellow
-Lowers your sperm count
-Makes you taste bad when you kiss
-Makes allergies worse
-You never know who is going to take an incriminating picture and post it somewhere, or use it against you later.

11. Give Them Excuses

Ok, so maybe they have the self-esteem to say no, and maybe they agree with the reasons above to say no, but sometimes people will not let up with the “Just try it!” So, think of excuses for them to use. Here are some that I have given and tell teenagers to use:

-It makes me really sleepy, and I am no fun when all I want to do is sleep.
-I am on a diet, it gives me uncontrollable munchies and I am not giving up my summer goal for one hit.
-It makes me sneeze.
-My parents/job/school/coach drug test me.
-My parents are waiting for me when I get home, and they will smell it/notice it.
-I have dance class/practice/a run tomorrow and I can never perform as well.
-I hate the taste.

**Offer to be the reason! My parents told me to clearly tell people that they were watching me like hawks and that I would get in big trouble if I smoked marijuana. This almost always works, because everyone understands strict parents. So tell them to use you as the reason . . . after all there is some truth to it!

Stay informed and don’t give up!