A real case of success

The issue of drug use and its consequences on health and the environment of those who make use of them, is no longer alien to us; and although at present the front pages of the media are headed by crimes committed by the sale of narcotics, little is said about the importance of preventing use in children and young people.

The solution to many of the problems that we face today in this sense, can be found in an indirect way in the work that parents do with their children, to avoid feeding the figures of victims of addictions.

The first mission is then to provide an environment of confidence and security in which they feel free to expose their doubts and even find refuge when, due to their own inexperience, they have been exposed to the use of some harmful substance.

The family, according to Dr. Leticia Echeverría, specialist in addictions of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, is the main nucleus in which you can do a deep work of prevention and in any case, to prevent the event from going back to repeat. "Parents should be informed about the damage caused by different drugs and expose it to their children.

We can not treat it as a taboo or simply be satisfied with saying 'that is not done because it is bad or you can die', but it is necessary that they know the real risks and that there is not only a clear ban, they must be informed and resolved your doubts about it. "

 

A real case of success

Sofia confirmed her suspicions by causality; there were some activities of her 16-year-old son that did not leave her alone, like the fact that at the least provocation she wanted to accompany some food with a beer or that her friends came to her house very often to live together, and although she was not all agreed that it was better that they were there, than exposed elsewhere to insecurity.

"One day I had to retrieve a file on the computer, which by carelessness I did not notice where I kept it; in the search and I accidentally opened a file that kept conversations of my son Hector's chat with some of his friends and I discovered that they were smoking marijuana. Of course my first reaction was violent, as soon as I had him in front of him I told him that he would not go out again and that he did not want to see his friends around the house ".

The afternoon of that day and the subsequent ones were tense, Hector knew that he had made a mistake and although he tried to deny it, he knew that in his mother he would find understanding and support, that is how he decided to confess with her. "I was very sad and angry because he did not want to let me leave, but I also knew that if he spoke the truth he would understand me," shares the 16-year-old.

If at any time Sofia had doubts about the success of having close communication with her son, of also giving confidence to her friends and talking repeatedly about drugs, they dissipated when he informed her that yes, in He had tried but did not like it and did not intend to do it again.

She is sure that this will be the case: she has significantly improved her behavior with the family, her grades have risen and she even agreed that Sofia had a conversation with him and her group of friends to express their concerns and reaffirm their confidence and the offer of Support them and listen to them whenever they want.

Does it look like a fictional story with a happy ending? Maybe, but it is a fortunate reality. "If they know that what is qualified is the action and not their person, that they can talk about everything without fear and that if there is a problem it will be solved as a family, they will surely be willing to admit that they were wrong and change their behavior because they know the consequences of their actions, this is part of teaching them to mature, "says the expert.

Cases like the previous one are presented every day, the difference is that in many of these there is no support network as happened with Sofía and Héctor, which helps young people to face the great challenges of our times.

The way to prepare them is to reaffirm the love that you have with all the manifestations that must surround you, such as communication and understanding, both will be the strongest reason to not hesitate for a moment to say "no".
"Self-knowledge restrains pride". bojorge@teleton.org.mx