iASK-CAB Notes

April 20, 2016

Its 4/20… Have You Talked to Your Children About Marijuana?

Fast Facts About Teen Marijuana Use:

  • 1 in 6 teenagers who try marijuana will become addicted
  • Marijuana use affects attention, memory, coordination, & judgment, which could impact your child’s performance in school & sports
  • Marijuana use during the teenage years can permanently affect brain growth & development
  • Today’s marijuana is much stronger than it was 30 years ago…
    • Its potency has increased from ~4% THC  in the 1980s to ~14.5% THC currently

Teens receive mixed messages about marijuana almost every day. Have a conversation with your son/daughter today about the dangers of teen marijuana use.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Traditi, LMHC

Student Assistance Counselor

Irvington High School & Middle School

Phone: 914-269-5469

in iASK-CAB Notes
April 18, 2016

Marijuana and 4/20

February was Marijuana Awareness Month, and this week is April 20th (also known as “4/20”) which is often associated with marijuana use. Teens receive mixed messages about marijuana almost every day, and it is helpful for them to learn the facts from the adults in their lives. Research shows that teens are less likely to use drugs if they clearly know their parents disapprove. Talk to your children soon & often about the risks of drug use.

Please view the pamphlet “Marijuana: Facts Parents Need to Know” from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. This informative document answers some commonly asked questions among parents, and it addresses how to talk to your kids about the risks of marijuana use.

For more information about this & other topics, please contact the Irvington High School Student Assistance Counselor – Jennifer Traditi, LMHC – Jennifer.Traditi@IrvingtonSchools.org or 914-269-5469.

in iASK-CAB Notes
March 31, 2016

Alcohol Awareness Month

As a young person you are faced with many challenges.  However, very few have the potential to affect your life in a more significant way than the decisions you make about alcohol and drugs.  The decisions you make about alcohol and drugs will influence your health, your grades, your relationships, your job or career, maybe even your freedom.

So, what can you do to protect yourself and reduce the risk of alcohol and drug problems?

Here are Ten Tips for Prevention–Youth:

  1. Don’t Be Afraid to Say No:  Sometimes, our fear of negative reaction from our friends, or others we don’t even know, keeps us from doing what we know is right.  Real simple, it may seem like “everyone is doing it,” but they are not.  Don’t let someone else make your decisions for you.  If someone is pressuring you to do something that’s not right for you, you have the right to say no, the right not to give a reason why, and the right to just walk away.
  1. Connect With Your Friends and Avoid Negative Peer Pressure:  Pay attention to who you are hanging out with.  If you are hanging out with a group in which the majority of kids are drinking alcohol or using drugs to get high, you may want to think about making some new friends.  You may be headed toward an alcohol and drug problem if you continue to hang around others who routinely drink alcohol, smoke marijuana, abuse prescription drugs or use illegal drugs.  You don’t have to go along to get along.
  1. Make Connections With Your Parents or Other Adults:  As you grow up, having people you can rely on, people you can talk to about life, life’s challenges and your decisions about alcohol and drugs is very important.  The opportunity to benefit from someone else’s life experiences can help put things in perspective and can be invaluable.
  1. Enjoy Life and Do What You Love –  Don’t Add Alcohol and Drugs:  Learn how to enjoy life and the people in your life, without adding alcohol or drugs.  Alcohol and drugs can change who you are, limit your potential and complicate your life.  Too often, “I’m bored” is just an excuse.  Get out and get active in school and community activities such as music, sports, arts or a part-time job.  Giving back as a volunteer is a great way to gain perspective on life.
  1. Follow the Family Rules About Alcohol and Drugs:  As you grow up and want to assume more control over your life, having the trust and respect of your parents is very important.  Don’t let alcohol and drugs come between you and your parents.  Talking with mom and dad about alcohol and drugs can be very helpful.
  1. Get Educated About Alcohol and Drugs:  You cannot rely on the myths and misconceptions that are out there among your friends and on the internet.  Your ability to make the right decisions includes getting educated.  Visit Learn About Alcohol and Learn About Drugs.  And, as you learn, share what you are learning with your friends and your family.
  1. Be a Role Model and Set a Positive Example:  Don’t forget, what you do is more important than what you say!  You are setting the foundation and direction for your life; where are you headed?
  1. Plan Ahead:  As you make plans for the party or going out with friends you need to plan ahead.  You need to protect yourself and be smart.  Don’t become a victim of someone else’s alcohol or drug use.  Make sure that there is someone you can call, day or night, no matter what, if you need them.  And, do the same for your friends.
  1. Speak Out/Speak Up/Take Control:  Take responsibility for your life, your health and your safety.  Speak up about what alcohol and drugs are doing to your friends, your community and encourage others to do the same.
  1. Get help!:  If you or someone you know is in trouble with alcohol or drugs, get help. Don’t wait. You don’t have to be alone.

Source: NCADD

in iASK-CAB Notes
March 15, 2016

Kick Butts Day #iKickButts

More than 400,000 people in the United States will die this year from a tobacco-related disease.

On March 16, Kick Butts Day— iASK Irvington is taking a stand to stop youth from getting hooked on deadly tobacco products. We know that 90% of smokers start using tobacco regularly by the time they are 18. Isn’t this astonishing?

So in order to give kids a fighting chance, we plan to join thousands of students across the country who are taking part in Kick Butts Day, a nationwide initiative that makes students leaders in the effort to stop youth tobacco use. As part of the Kick Butts Day celebration, iASK will share messaging across social media (Twitter & Facebook).

There are many effective ways state and local officials can protect young people from tobacco. They can use funds from the states’ 1998 legal settlement with the tobacco companies to pay for tobacco prevention programs; they can increase tobacco taxes; and they can pass smokefree laws to protect us from secondhand smoke.

Consider these facts: Each day, more than 1,000 kids become new regular smokers; roughly one-third of them will die prematurely from a tobacco-related disease. Today’s youth are not just part of the problem; they’re part of the solution. And the students from Irvington want tobacco companies to know that on Kick Butts Day and every day throughout the year, we’re going to fight them every step of the way!

in iASK-CAB Notes
March 7, 2016

The Impacts of Alcohol, Drugs, and Stress: A Must-Attend Parent Program

The Impacts of Alcohol, Drugs, and Stress: A Must-Attend Parent Program

The teen brain… 110 mph on the highway, music blaring, open containers, four teens in the car…why do adolescents find drinking alcohol and engaging in high-risk behaviors so attractive?  What are the reasons that teens are vulnerable to stress?

Michael Nerney, an internationally recognized consultant with over 30 years of experience, will discuss these topics and more! Sponsored by iASK-CAB and the Village of Irvington.

Register now.

Mike Nerney

 

in iASK-CAB Notes
February 29, 2016

Pizza Box Prevention Campaign

Pizza Sticker FinalThe Irvington Middle School Positive Impact Club participated in an event last week to spread messages of prevention to the Irvington community. 

The club advisor, Jennifer Traditi (IMS Student Assistance Counselor), accompanied nine students on an awareness campaign with two local pizzerias- Nick’s Pizza on Main St. and Capri Pizza in Tarrytown.  The activity involved the students placing stickers on over 650 pizza boxes with each sticker promoting a message to Irvington parents about keeping their children safe, healthy, and free from alcohol & other drugs.

This event was sponsored and supported by the iASK-CAB and the Irvington Recreation Department. This was an excellent example of collaboration between the Irvington schools, local business, students, parents, & the Irvington community as a whole.

Research shows that preteens & teens are less likely to drink alcohol or use drugs if they clearly know their parents disapprove. Talk to your children soon & often about the dangers of underage alcohol use & drug use.

in iASK-CAB Notes
October 29, 2015

October is National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month

This informational video was developed by CADCA, in partnership with the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, as part of its efforts to raise awareness about a dangerous trend among teens: the abuse of over-the-counter cold and cough medicine. The video can be used by coalitions at meetings with parents, teachers and other adults, and during community forums or town hall meetings.

Read More›
in iASK-CAB Notes
October 28, 2015

The Developing Brain

Over the last decade, medical research has told us that alcohol can have an adverse effect on  a teen’s brain. But how? This article by Talk2Prevent, an initiative sponsored by New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) will give you that information. Click here to read it.

.

in iASK-CAB Notes
October 27, 2015

A National Response to the Opiate/Heroin Problem

By now, everyone is aware of the problem that prescription drugs, more particularly opiates, have created in our nation. Many communities, through their local community coalitions, have worked tirelessly to get information out through media, forums, workshops and social media. MedReturn boxes are present in many communities but there is still so much work to do. Yesterday, President Obama had a press conference on this issue and set forth a detailed and extensive plan to aid communities in this fight. Click here to read the President’s plan
in iASK-CAB Notes