Opportunity for Friends and Family Members to Learn About a Loved One’s Addiction

Crossroads for Women will be holding it’s last educational series of the year, “The Effects of Addiction on Friends & Family,” starting on November 4th in Portland, ME. The 4-week series is for those friends and family members with a loved one that has a drug or alcohol problem. It is also helpful for those who work with people affected by addiction. Whether the loved one is in recovery, treatment or in active addiction, this series helps people learn more about addiction, how to cope with the loved one and also take care of themselves. The response to the series has been phenomenal all year long. Here are just a few comments from those who attended the series in September:

“All aspects of the program were beneficial. It was just what I needed to understand the disease and its impact on the family and on children. Also, the information learned here will help me to go forward and make changes in my own behavior that will prove helpful, I’m sure, to my new family and to myself. Thank you for a quality, affordable program.”

“Everything was great.I came with two other family members and really saw how we were acting as a unit and our own denial, and how to move from it. I feel the furthest away from the situation compared to other family members, so I was amazed at how much I was able to get out of this class and feel that I will now be able to really contribute to helping get us all back on track! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“I thoroughly enjoyed this series and looked forward to it every week, and I feel better equipped. I’m very thankful to you for starting this for we friends and family and loved ones of addicts.”

The holiday season can be an especially stressful time for those in recovery, in treatment or in active addiction. This stress can also be difficult for friends, family members and everyone around the addicted person. If you or someone you know if affected by drug or alcohol addiction and is in the Portland, ME area, you will find this series helpful. For more information, call Crossroads for Women at 207.773.9931, email or visit the Crossroads for Women website.

technorati tags: friends, family, addiction, Crossroads for Women, education

School Nurses Work to Prevent Prescription Drug Abuse by Teens

The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) has teamed up with PriCara®, Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., on a program called “Smart Moves, Smart Choices.” The national program addresses the rise in prescription drug abuse among middle and high school students.

A national survey of more than 1,300 school nurses showed that almost 60% of school nurses indicated prescription drug abuse is a growing or significant problem in their communities. An announcement on the Join Together website noted that the nurses’ observations are consistent with research showing the explosion of prescription drug abuse among youth:

• From 1995 to 2005, the number of teenagers treated for addiction to prescription pain relievers increased more than 300%
• Nearly one-quarter of 12th graders report that they have abused prescription drugs by the time they graduate from high school
• Every day, 2,500 children age 12 to 17 abuse a prescription pain reliever for the first time

The program includes 4 downloadable videos for teens, focusing on myth busting, the science of addiction, the social impact of addiction and how media portrays drug abuse. The program also includes lesson plans, a video targeted specifically to parents and a parent guide.

“I think this program is a great way for teens to see and hear, firsthand, the consequences of poor choices…choices that they don’t have to make,” said Hayley Norwood, a recovering teen. “Since prescription drugs are given by a doctor, I thought they were okay for me to take, even though they weren’t for me. What I didn’t realize was the serious consequences I faced by taking someone else’s medications.

With girls surpassing boys in the areas of smoking or abusing prescription drugs and women being up to 48 percent more likely than men to be prescribed a narcotic, antianxiety or other potentially abusable drug (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2001), it’s especially important for teenager girls, their parents, school nurses and teachers to know the truth and the consequences of prescription drug abuse.

FMI

Info on “Smart Moves, Smart Choices” / View Videos: the.Medic on the.News

From NASN: National Association of School Nurses Launches Educational Program to Address Surge of Prescription Drug Abuse by America’s Youth (PDF)

From Join Together: School Nurses Helping Prevent Prescription Drug Abuse

From this blog: Entries dealing with prescription drug abuse

Technorati Tags: NASN, school nurses, prescription drug abuse, teenagers, prevention