teenagers and drugs

[wulluff]

14 to be precise and naturally he denies it, but all the signs are there he's taking weed of some kind.

So how to deal with it?

I've just bought a drug testing kit so alll I have to do now is persuade him to pee in a bottle and hey presto.

Or is this something to be expected - rather like smoking when I was his age? Probably fair to say most people try "something" but FFS he's 14.

And they say being a parent gets easier as they get older. A load of bks

[HRG.]

I was spliffing around the age of 14/15 and I'm the most straight laced early to bed company director type these days. I'd say as long as his studies aren't suffering and he's not hanging around with a bad crowd there's not too much to worry about.

The drugs testing kit could backfire though as it signals a breakdown of trust...

I'm sure others will say drugs are the work of the devil, but as with everything a little in moderation shouldn't be a problem.

What are the signs that he's spliffing it?

[Martial Arts Man]

Kids that smoke weed so young (or ciggies for that matter) usually end up like hobbits.

I have a number of friends who started smoking young (younger than 14 admittedly) and are all, without exception, very small in stature.

Perhaps this is a consequence he won't have considered?

[HRG.]

Ah, someone should have told my legs, I'm 6' tall

[Martial Arts Man]

HRG. said:

The drugs testing kit could backfire though as it signals a breakdown of trust...

Agreed.

I guess the usual signals are:

Red/blearly eyes when returning home.

That smell that's sorta like tobacco but not.

Papers of the rolling variety.

Lots of little squares missing from magazine covers.



What leads you to this conclusion OP?

[HRG.]

Rizla packs with the top missing

Oh, and if everything chocolate in the house has gone missing it's a racing cert

Edited by HRG. on Sunday 16th August 11:30

[Martial Arts Man]

HRG. said:

Ah, someone should have told my legs, I'm 6' tall

But how tall would you have been otherwise?

3 brothers I know, all heavy smokers (weed) since 11/12 have a father who is 6'5" and a tall mother.

Each of them is shorter than 5'9".

[Martial Arts Man]

HRG. said:

Rizla packs with the top missing

I remember being at a friend's house once when his dad asked him, totally unaware, "Why do you keep cutting these little squares out of all my magazine covers?"

Can't remember what bullst was told to him, but it still makes me laugh today

[HRG.]

The beauty of having done it all when you were younger is you can see it all through your kids eyes when they start

A social spliff at the weekends isn't a problem, it's when it becomes habitual and other things start to suffer that intervention is needed IMO.

[wulluff]

Martial Arts Man said:

HRG. said:

The drugs testing kit could backfire though as it signals a breakdown of trust...

Agreed.

I guess the usual signals are:

Red/blearly eyes when returning home.

That smell that's sorta like tobacco but not.

Papers of the rolling variety.

Lots of little squares missing from magazine covers.



What leads you to this conclusion OP?

The biggest givaway is dilated pupils

He also smells weird sometimes when I pick him up - not a weed smell I recognise but sweeter - he says herbals cigs

A bong and papers in his school bag - he was keeping them for someone else of course.

And one very useful tool - facebook. I guess I'm fortunate to be a friend of both my kids as you can learn one hell of a lot...

[Marf]

14 is too young to be smoking the funny stuff. Studies are showing that it has an effect on the developing brain that is unique to those who start smoking young(reduction of short term memory, more prone to triggering pre existing mental health issues etc)

It really all depends how much he smokes. My friends and I used to smoke quite alot, but didn't start until we were 17/18.

Out of our group only one of us had any noticeable mental health problems, he spent a few years on anti depressants after giving it up, but out of my peer group, he's one now of the most successful and runs his own gardening/landscaping business turning over £100k+ a year, much to our surprise!

If I were you I'd forget the drug testing kit, you'll just alienate him.

I think all you can really do is try talking to him as an adult and make him aware of the studies which show the damage that it can cause on the developing brain. Ultimately unless you keep him locked up 24/7 you wont be able to stop him smoking the stuff.

[Somewhatfoolish]

Weed at 14 is one of the things I am most glad that I ever did, you never know, you may be pretty pleased with the results

As for stunting growth, rubbish

[Martial Arts Man]

Somewhatfoolish said:

Weed at 14 is one of the things I am most glad that I ever did, you never know, you may be pretty pleased with the results

As for stunting growth, rubbish

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2008/03/24/teen-smoking-study.html

I only tell it as I see it.

[Martial Arts Man]

wulluff said:

Martial Arts Man said:

HRG. said:

The drugs testing kit could backfire though as it signals a breakdown of trust...

Agreed.

I guess the usual signals are:

Red/blearly eyes when returning home.

That smell that's sorta like tobacco but not.

Papers of the rolling variety.

Lots of little squares missing from magazine covers.



What leads you to this conclusion OP?

The biggest givaway is dilated pupils

He also smells weird sometimes when I pick him up - not a weed smell I recognise but sweeter - he says herbals cigs

A bong and papers in his school bag - he was keeping them for someone else of course.

And one very useful tool - facebook. I guess I'm fortunate to be a friend of both my kids as you can learn one hell of a lot...

Sounds pretty conclusive to me.

Now comes the hard part....

[Urban_Ninja]

make him smoke a pure bong pipe when you catch him with any on him.

he wont be doing that again any time soon.

if he has just started up it will make him green out and throw up then go to sleep, and wake up with a banging hangover.

ETA: might not be the greatest of idea's. but still, might scare him to stop if you go to make him do it.

Edited by Urban_Ninja on Sunday 16th August 14:54

[Marf]

Urban_Ninja said:

make him smoke a pure bong pipe when you catch him with any on him.

he wont be doing that again any time soon.

if he has just started up it will make him green out and throw up then go to sleep, and wake up with a banging hangover.

ETA: might not be the greatest of idea's. but still, might scare him to stop if you go to make him do it.

If he's been smoking heavily that will be a normal hit for him

[cs02rm0]

Martial Arts Man said:

Kids that smoke weed so young (or ciggies for that matter) usually end up like hobbits.

I have a number of friends who started smoking young (younger than 14 admittedly) and are all, without exception, very small in stature.

Thank God I did then. I'm 6'5 and overshot the RAF pilot entry requirements as it is!

[Somewhatfoolish]

Martial Arts Man said:

Somewhatfoolish said:

Weed at 14 is one of the things I am most glad that I ever did, you never know, you may be pretty pleased with the results

As for stunting growth, rubbish

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2008/03/24/teen-smoking-study.html

I only tell it as I see it.

I can only see the abstract of that survey, but given it's less than a centimetre and in boys only I suspect it's still total tosh...

Have they controlled for race, for a start?

(Genuine question, I ain't gonna bother registering just to read it and perform internet epidemology...)

Edited by Somewhatfoolish on Sunday 16th August 16:47

[littlegreenfairy]

Very clever of him to be friends with Dad on facebook and then having postings about drugs.

Nice one kid.

[Mattt]

I'd be careful how you approach the subject.

Around the same age my Parents accused me of being on all sorts of drugs, when I wasn't. This backfired, as I then took this as a greenlight to take whatever I wanted - if I was going to be accused, I may as well enjoy myself.