It’s one of the biggest worries of parents in every walk of life – at some point, their offspring will come into contact with drugs. No one can monitor their child around the clock. This is usually a good thing, because overprotection tends to lead to the opposite of what was intended.

At the latest at school or in the sports club, the offspring spends a lot of time without parental supervision. Today, contact with alcohol, cigarettes, cannabis and harder drugs occurs in the early teenage years and is often unavoidable.

In upbringing, children can only be taught framework conditions and given protective mechanisms so that they recognize dangers at an early stage. In any case, affected parents should talk to children about consumption.

Make Your Children Strong

Children can come into contact with drugs for the first time during puberty at the latest. The aim of addiction prevention is to promote the child’s character strengths. Strong self-confidence and a healthy psyche are the keys to responsible drug use. Early parental support is essential in this regard.

It is during puberty that the first conflicts are acted out and negative moments are not uncommon. Sympathy and comfort make it easier for the child to cope with disappointments and indicate that things will get better again.

Love, praise and recognition raise self-esteem. Self-confident children do not need to escape reality. Boredom, loneliness and anxiety often lead to excessive TV consumption, which is a decisive obstacle to the development of a child’s own personality.

Children are often stubborn and dismissive. Nevertheless, it is necessary to maintain emotional attention so that the offspring does not lose its grip. This also includes pointing out boundaries. Often, school pressure in our meritocracy is dangerous. If the demands can’t be met, reaching for a drug could be the result.

Education Is The Key

Therefore, communication is the approach most likely to succeed. A relaxed relationship benefits the child and the parents even apart from the drug problem.

If the child’s problems can be addressed openly, a solution is always within the realm of possibility. In addition, the offspring needs future prospects, because without a goal in mind, the attraction of drugs increases.

How Do I Talk To My Child About Drugs?

In doing so, the parent or guardian is often walking on a razor’s edge. On the one hand, a conversation about drugs must not be thoughtless or trivialized. On the other hand, incapacitation, preferential treatment, moral and control excesses must be avoided. Children want to experience something, to sow their wild oats and have their own experiences. Parents want them to do well.

Therefore, a mutual exchange of fears and needs is crucial, with trust as the basis. Ground rules should be established and followed. Always aware that conflicts arise when needs and also laws are not taken seriously or are ignored.

If the fronts are already hardened, it is possible to ask a family member or an acquaintance with whom the child has a relationship of trust for advice or to let them lead the conversation.

How Do You Explain To A Child What Drugs Are?

When it comes to drugs, there is often a dangerous half-knowledge among children and adolescents. This is also true for a large percentage of adults. That’s why the parent or guardian should be prepared, because no reasonable child can be fobbed off with the standard answer, “Drugs make you sick”.

Anyone who wants to educate a minor about drug use on an equal footing should at least be equally informed. Often, a joint search for information helps. This can be obtained from any drug counseling center.

Safer-Use Rules

So-called “safer-use rules” are a good way to start the conversation. The aim of these rules is not so much to prevent drug use. They are more about minimizing risk. They explain how a child can behave if he or she has already taken drugs and gained initial experience.