iASK-CAB Notes

December 4, 2017

Holidays

There is always great anticipation about the holiday season as this is a special time for many families. It is a special time with special events, parties when relatives and friends are more likely to gather together to celebrate this time of year. However, this time of year can also be a very challenging for many reasons.

The holidays can also be difficult when there has been the loss of a loved one or there is an ill or absent family member. The gaiety of the holidays can accentuate feelings of loss and pain. The holidays can be very emotional and can create stressful situations where there is the potential for someone to drink too much, relapse, misuse drugs, get overwhelmed, work too hard to have a nice celebration, spend too much money or have unrealistic expectations about the holidays.

In addition, during the holidays, teens and adults have more access to alcohol at intergenerational parties where alcohol is available but not necessarily monitored. Another issue is that students returning home after being at college may “invite” younger siblings to parties where alcohol and or other drugs are available. During this past year there is great concern about the use of marijuana, prescription drugs, and a significant increase in the number of teens vaping nicotine or marijuana.

Also, adults may be so busy, that there is less supervision of their teens and what they are doing. Talking to teens about these issues can be a very positive way to deal with these concerns. It gives a parent the opportunity to restate expectations, set boundaries, and state what the consequences will be if a teen uses alcohol and other drugs. A conversation with your teen can provide a chance to share both their and your concerns and expectations in regards to the holidays. Fears of parent or sibling relapse, car crashes, arrest or other alcohol related behavior can make the holiday season very stressful for teens. A conversation about these concerns can provide an opportunity to explore some strategies to help your teen reduce stress and remain alcohol and drug free.

Source: Parenting for Prevention
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December 1, 2017

Drug & Alcohol Impaired Driving

It is more important than ever to teach your child never to ride with an impaired driver.  The Governors Highway Safety Association and the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility reported in April 2017, that for the first time, drugged driving now surpasses drunken driving among drivers killed in crashes.  And every day, over 27 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver. Learn more.

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November 1, 2017

Vaping Facts

Vaping, e-cigs, hookah sticks, Juul – lots of different names but all are risky for youth.  Young people who “vape” are much more likely to progress to traditional cigarette use.  Many vape products include nicotine and other harmful chemicals.  The batteries in these devices can explode, causing injury. Get educated.

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October 15, 2017

Students Pledge to Make Healthy, Responsible Decisions

Members of the Irvington High School Positive Impact Club held an awareness campaign during homecoming weekend and asked students and teachers to pledge to make healthy and responsible decisions.

“The goal of the project was to demonstrate that many of our teens are choosing to make healthy and responsible choices as well as bring awareness to unhealthy and risky decision-making that can take place,” said Jennifer Nunziato, student assistance counselor and advisor of the Positive Impact Club.

As the student assistance counselor, Nunziato works to enhance positive and healthy decision-making, as well as reduce the factors that put students at risk for alcohol and other drug use. During the campaign, she and her students collected more than 300 pledges from students, who pledged to treat others with compassion, empathy and kindness, to never drink and drive, and to make healthy choices when spending time with their peers.

In exchange for a pledge, the students received a green Irvington bulldog rally towel, sponsored by the Irvington About Safe Kids coalition. iASK is a coalition that represents all sectors of the community — parents, students, educators, law enforcement officials, medical professionals, business people and more — and works to motivate youth to make healthy, happy and responsible decisions.

Source: Irvington UFSD
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October 11, 2017

Drug & Alcohol Use: An Irvington Perspective

iASK-CAB welcomed approximately 125 attendees to its September 27th presentation – Drugs & Alcohol Use: An Irvington Perspective. This event was the first of several community conversations that will be presented this school year. The presentation is now available for viewing and we hope you will add your voice to the important conversation about the health and safety of our youth.

Allyson Felix & Tanya Hunt
iASK-CAB Co-Chairs

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September 13, 2017

Youth 2 Youth Training

Over the summer, seven students from Irvington High School attended a Youth 2 Youth Leadership Conference in New England. One of our students, Natalie K., wanted to share her experience.

I loved my experience at Youth 2 Youth  (Y2Y) and am already looking forward to hopefully attending again next year! Y2Y was a brand new experience for me and at first it was overwhelming seeing how many people had already been coming to the conference for so many years. But the setup of the day and the activities immediately allowed for me to make amazing friends who truly helped make my experience even better. From having family group sessions where we got to know about 13 other kids well, to energizers that helped get the energy flowing in the room for the day. Everything was well planned, fun and happy.

The conference was a great combination of fun and learning without sometimes even realizing it. I had no idea what to expect at first and getting there I immediately felt such a positive feeling. People would just come up and start talking to me or introducing themselves which is something I wasn’t so used to but it gave me such a happy feeling throughout the whole conference. Everyone was there for almost all the same reasons and having that made the experience and environment very positive.

Besides meeting people and having fun, we all sat through some very emotional family group sessions and listened to incredibly powerful and moving speakers throughout the conference. One speaker, Cara Filler, left many in the room in tears and I constantly think about what she had told us relating to the effects of distracted driving and decision making. Her speech was incredibly emotional but also very informative as it made most people realize how much you can learn from others experiences I would love for her to come to Irvington as she was incredibly impactful and an excellent speaker. The other speakers at the conference were also great but I left the conference with different thinking and feelings after Cara and I still think about what she shares with us everyday.

Family group allowed for me to have 13 people that I knew and could always rely on while at the conference and from that I ended up making a good friend who then introduced me to more people. I liked that they had teenagers who were either the same age as some of us or older as youth staff because that gave a more welcoming and understanding feeling for some people when talking in family groups.

We had chosen workshops in the beginning of our arrival and I was so shocked to see how many options there were. All 4 of my workshops (2 each day) were different from each other and I came out of each having a different understanding about the topic. Whether it was talking about the effects of drugs on a person and their options, talking about stress, peer pressure, and being a team leader each had a well thought out plan, activity and/or discussion.

We met up twice with people from Westchester who were also at the conference and all contributed our ideas and listened to what others were hoping to bring back to their school. We came up with some great ideas for the Rivertown’s and also specifically for Irvington.

Everyone there was super nice and friendly and it was truly an awesome experience that I have already shared with some of my friends and family. It was a very busy 4 days and I am so glad I was able to attend and learn so much in that time frame. Thank you so much for all your support and for making it possible for us to go to this amazing conference.

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