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In a November, 2005 Maclean’s Magazine article titled “Pass the Weed, Dad” writer Marni Jackson spoke with several families where parents and children smoke or used to smoke pot together.
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The result of this laissez-faire attitude towards drugs and a narcissistic idea that parents should be “cool” and not worry about abdicating their responsibility as parents has coincided with an increase in binge drinking and marijuana use by B.C. students.

In a November, 2005 Maclean’s Magazine article titled “Pass the Weed, Dad” writer Marni Jackson spoke with several families where parents and children smoke or used to smoke pot together. While startling, this revelation should not surprise the millennium generation, (as they prefer to be called) raised on tales of Woodstock and the good times had back in Mommy & Daddy’s day.

The result of this laissez-faire attitude towards drugs and a narcissistic idea that parents should be “cool” and not worry about abdicating their responsibility as parents has coincided with an increase in binge drinking and marijuana use by B.C. students.

According to The McCreary Centre Society, a non-profit organization concerned with the health of young people in British Columbia, the percentage of students in B.C. that smoke weed has risen from 25 per cent to 37 per cent since 1992. The report also highlights that binge drinking is also on the rise as 21 per cent of males and 18 per cent of females admit to binging, up from 16 per cent and 12 per cent respectively since 1992. Alarmingly, kids are also drinking and using at a much younger age, with a full third of B.C. 13 year olds claiming to use alcohol. Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) reports that five per cent of school kids have tried pot before the end of Grade 6.

Drug and alcohol use is entrenched in popular culture and while most parents aren’t waiting to hit the bong once junior gets home from school, it’s apparent that families simply aren’t adequately equipped to deal with the issue of kids, drugs, and healthy choices.

Locally, there is an organization that is helping Whistler’s parents and youth deal with the issues of drug and alcohol use and abuse. Launched in February of 2003, Whistler for Youth’s vision is “to promote a safe community where residents and guests of all ages are comfortable and secure.” Whistler for Youth concerns itself with prevention, and its efforts address the needs of children, families and two youth groups: Whistler’s own youth and the young adults who are part of the permanent and temporary work force in the community. Whistler for Youth is an active coalition of organizations and individuals in the Whistler area. Representatives include parent organizations, community services, communities of faith, Vancouver Coastal Health, service organizations, schools and the RCMP.

The group has identified three risk factors on which to focus current efforts: Community standards that favour drug use; parental attitudes and role modeling; and a party atmosphere with expectations to use illicit substances frequently and at high levels.

Children see children do

Cannabis remains the No. 1 illegal (contrary to what many seem to believe, pot is still illegal) drug in North America. If the common occurrences of smelling weed burning in the village or at Rainbow Park on a sunny day are not enough evidence that marijuana is part of our culture, take the more universal messages, from magazines like High Times to the Showcase TV series, . It’s difficult to decipher what standards Whistler has, if any, when it comes to drug and alcohol, but the media messages are clear: the familiar refrain is “Where the world comes to party” “What you do up here, stays up here.” The constant doling out of these slogans makes healthy choices less clear for young adults and has an impact on local families trying to raise healthy kids.

One of the parents involved in WFY is Deanne Zeidler, the co-chair of Whistler for Youth. Her involvement stems from a concern about the messages Whistler kids get, but also what they see.

“There are really several things that got me involved with WFY four years ago,” says Zeidler. “The first was a growing realization that there was something wrong with the picture of life here in Whistler. More and more, I was aware of people smoking pot and drinking alcohol openly — at Rainbow Beach, in front of Meadow Park, in the village, just about anywhere really. I was concerned that not only was this illegal, it was also a very poor model of ‘normal’ and ‘healthy’ for my own kids and their friends. I wondered what it was about Whistler that made people think that it was okay to do this here when they likely wouldn’t do this in their home town.”

Some of the strategies WFY has adopted to deal with this issue are the Stay on Track & Stay in Tracks social marketing programs. These programs offer parents, youth and the young adults of Whistler ways to educate themselves and support them when they have social choices to make. Stay on Track attempts to correct common misconceptions about alcohol and drug use and promote healthier attitudes and choices through various media. The campaign is directed at families of school-aged youth. A parallel educational campaign called Stay in Tracks was developed for 18-26 year olds.

Whistler For Youth also funded the expansion of the Peer Educator Program offered by Whistler Community Services Society to include service to Whistler-Blackcomb staff housing. As part of this initiative an additional peer educator was trained and in the fall, seven volunteer youth from “House” were trained under the Peer Educator program. After six weeks of intensive training, these youth are able to provide information and support services to their peers, either at work or at play.

Getting high ain’t what it used to be

Some might argue that if it’s part of our culture and (almost) everybody’s doing it, so what’s the harm. Well…

According to TheAntiDrug.com, a drug prevention information centre that works with leading experts in the fields of parenting and substance abuse prevention and designed to serve parents wanting to raise drug-free kids, new research provides better insight into the serious consequences of teen marijuana use, especially how it may impact mental health. Here are some facts according to TheAntiDrug.com: “The short-term effects of marijuana use include problems with memory and learning; distorted perception; difficulty in thinking and problem-solving; loss of coordination; and increased heart rate, anxiety, and panic attacks. Young people who use marijuana weekly have double the risk of depression later in life. Teens aged 12-17 who smoke marijuana weekly are three times more likely than non-users to have suicidal thoughts. There is evidence of increased risk for schizophrenia in later years in some teens who smoke marijuana.”

Once considered safer than tobacco, it’s now apparent that pot can have a dramatic effect on the lungs. “Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers have. These individuals may have daily cough and phlegm, symptoms of chronic bronchitis, and more frequent chest colds. Continuing to smoke marijuana can lead to abnormal functioning of lung tissue injured or destroyed by marijuana smoke.”

Research has dispelled many of the quaint notions of the harmlessness of pot, but what is also clear is that its increasing potency is also cause for alarm. The pot smoked 20 or 30 years ago would be considered “extra mild” by current standards. The sophisticated cannabis cultivation of today produces much higher levels of THC (the main active chemical in marijuana also known as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol).

THC content of marijuana averaged less than 1 per cent in 1974 and rose to an average 4 per cent by 1994. THC content of the more potent varieties averages 7.5 per cent and ranges as high as 24 per cent.

It’s parenting not pestering

One of the problems influencing the issue of drug and alcohol use with today’s kids is the role today’s parents play. Children whose parents use, or used in the past, often have a more accepting attitude toward allowing these substances into their lives. It’s crucial for parents to understand that marijuana is stronger than it used to be in the ’70s and ’80s and that it’s okay to talk to your kids about drugs — even if you use or used to use.

In February 2006 a study titled: Summit County Youth; Excellence on the Horizon , was released. The study was commissioned by the Town of Breckenridge, Colorado to look into the issues effecting youth in Summit County. The 31-page study reveals many parallels to Whistler; from its history — nontraditional lifestyles enjoyed by people who moved to the mountains — to the immediate issues that would seem familiar to many Whistler residents. According to the study, “the substances of choice for youth appear to be alcohol and marijuana.”

In her report to the Breckenridge council, the report’s author, Lynn A. Johnson, highlighted the impact of “immediate-gratification cultures,” and a lack of positive role models among the 20somethings. She also noted: “many parents, but not all, have removed themselves from the universal tasks of parenting that is guiding and shaping the young.”

One of the community services members of Whistler for Youth is Greg McDonnell. Greg is the Whistler Community Services Society (WCSS) Youth Outreach Supervisor. Few people in town would have a better finger on the pulse of Whistler’s young people. When asked what the best route would be to get involved if parents were concerned about their kids using drugs and alcohol, his reply was straightforward. “No matter what, talk to your kids. Do whatever is necessary to re-establish that bond between you and your kids. Experimentation is normal but it will be tempered for a young person by increased dialogue. Know the risks of drug and alcohol use and communicate those with your kids. Make sure they understand that no matter what is going on, they can talk to you about it.”

Another local parent involved in WFY since its inception is Cathy Jewett. Cathy has been involved in the community for many years, most notably as Chair of the Myrtle Philip Elementary School Parent Advisory Committee (PAC). Recently she has assumed the role of Chair of the District PAC. Her advice to parents is similar: “Sometimes parents worry that they don’t want to interfere in their kid’s life too much, but you still need to provide them with a really strong base that will give them the security to go out into that world and be able to come back to a safe place. Gordon Neufeld said it best in Hold on to your Kids when he said that if you let their peers become that base of support you’re dealing with a group that really haven’t been able to form their own values yet, so it’s important to instill a strong set of values in your children and not let their peers do that for you.”

Greg offers a similar perspective as a professional in the field. “As kids get older, the risk is that they get attached to their peer group. The peer group in effect replaces their parents since there is such pressure today to be accepted. I’m not saying prevent your kids from hanging out with their peers but rather ensure your child is attached to you at a young age such that whatever type of experimentation or peer pressure occurs, they will return to you to seek care and mentorship.”

If peer groups make the rules without any parental supervision the cultural outcome might resemble something like Lord of the Flies.

But Whistler’s parents aren’t left in a lurch when it comes to dealing with helping their kids make healthy choices. Whistler for Youth also produces Parenting Program. This program is delivered in six interactive sessions for families and is designed to fit with existing Second Step programs for children who are being exposed to this program in schools in the Sea to Sky corridor. The program integrates accurate information about alcohol and drug abuse with skills development in responding to difficult situations, acting as positive role models and ways to work with teens, other parents and the community to make alcohol and drug use “uncool”.

Talk to your kids

One thing is for sure, drug and alcohol use is not about to be weeded out of our culture anytime soon. According to the Canadian Addiction Survey, 70 per cent of Canadians will have smoked a joint at some point in their teens. Despite the alarming statistics, the good news is that simple actions go a long way to ensure that kids are outfitted to make good choices. Tara Hill is a Whistler mom who suggests that knowledge is key. “Like anything we want to do, we must be educated about it. If I want to be involved in my child's teenage years I need to be in the know.”

Deanne Ziedler also provides meaningful insight into influence that parents have. “I encourage parents to get informed. A recent poll by Health Canada showed that 87 per cent of young people said they would trust their parents for information on marijuana — so get the facts.”

Parental involvement is another fundamental when dealing with kids and simply spending time together can have a huge impact on a kid. Cathy Jewett explains how parent involvement changes as kids get older.

“You’re going to see physical and mental changes, they are gaining a lot more independence, and hopefully you’ve equipped them to deal with that, maintain the lines of communication. Something that is really important is eating meals together, especially dinner, and practising the fine art of conversation. How often do we sit down with our kids and ask what happened at school today and get the reply, ‘nothing.’ You have to get beyond nothing; that’s when things start to come out.”

Cathy, Greg, Tara and Deanne all mentioned getting involved at the school level as a way to help children and the community at large. Cathy suggests that it can have a healthy effect on school life. “Get involved in your PAC, be seen in your children’s school; that’s an important thing. It’s important to normalize the atmosphere in high school by being seen there.”

Tara echoed a similar sentiment that could only be articulated by a mom. “Kids are kids and their job is to discover life and we are here to support them and guide them. I feel that staying involved in the school and close to the issues without being in my child's face all the time is an approach that our family can work with.”

Hillary Rodham Clinton used an old African proverb in naming her book, “It takes a village to raise a child”. She suggested it offered a timeless reminder that children will thrive only if their families thrive and if the whole of society cares enough to provide for them.

A much earlier pioneer of feminism, women's suffrage and an advocate for women's economic independence, Charlotte Perkins Gilman had this to say about youth: “It is the duty of youth to bring its fresh powers to bear on social progress. Each generation of young people should be to the world like a vast reserve force to a tired army. They should lift the world forward. That is what they are for.”

Both of these women (both mothers) offer wisdom on rearing children, and Perkins Gillman’s quote is as relevant today as it was when she said it almost 100 years ago. But today’s influences and pressures will now more than ever require the efforts of everyone to ensure that our youth are supported and prepared to fulfill their duties.



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