My fifteen year-old-son is going through some substance abuse problems. Simply put, he has been befriended by a group of teenagers who believe that smoking pot and ditching school are about the coolest things that you can do. God bless Nancy Reagan's good intentions with her "Just Say No" campaign but here in the real world it's just not that easy. Once a teen has that peer group, good or bad, the group's influence is stronger than yours will be for years or has been since they were two.
I have fought back. First trying to handle it alone and ultimately involving the courts to force him away from his peers and into a mandated substance abuse program. At the moment I am the enemy even though every move I have made has been based upon my love for him and his welfare. He is such a beautiful person and had I been blessed with his intelligence, who knows? I might have been another Dave Barry. I refuse to let him dismiss his future and potential without a fight.
It's easy to look the other way. I see parents do it all the time. I have met teenage friends of my kids whose parents didn't seem to have a clue or a care regarding where they were or what they were up to. Don't you do it! Don't let the stress of just trying to make it from day to day deaden you inside to the point that you give up. I am learning that there are a number of resources available for parents, on the net and otherwise, to empower us with information to fight back. As I learn more through my own experience I will share it with you.
And one more thing, Dad, throw the rulebook away. To survive as single parents we can't play by the rules anymore.
I don't regret crying. I regret that my son didn't see it.
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