FORUM: Are Drugs Still A Problem At Palm Desert High School?

Last year, had that huge . So many kids were busted for selling or buying drugs on campus. And as a parent, that’s an eye opener.

A million questions run through your mind all at once. Did I teach my child the do’s and don’ts about drug use? What is going on in those children’s lives that they turned to drugs? Are my kids running with the “party” crowd? With the new school year starting, are drugs still a problem on campus?

I know in my home, my kids are well aware of my feelings and consequences regarding drugs. I won’t say that I’m a perfect parent, because I am far from perfect. But I do hope that my past experiences have given my children some insight of what could be if you take the wrong road when it comes to drugs. I was 9 years old when I first began to drink, 10 when I first got high, and 14 when I first tried the “other” stuff.

I always preach to my kids about how many dreams and aspirations I had as a kid and teenager. What I wanted to be when I grew up. As a child, I wanted to be a counselor for kids, and as a teenager, I so desperately wanted to be an author/journalist. I had my whole life planned out. I was going to travel the world and report the news and in between I was going to write romance novels and teen romance books.

But this whole time planning and plotting my life and career, I never once took into consideration of the lifestyle I was living and how it would not allow me to do any of those career plans. I never in my wildest imagination thought that the drugs would control me, so quickly. My parents never knew about it, as they were super strict, so I hid a lot of my extra curricular activities from them.

But I often wonder what would have been had my parents found out of what I was doing. Would it have taken me until the age of 25 to finally get my life together? Would I have actually liven the life that I so wanted? Or would it have caused me to be even more rebellious and found other ways to do what I was doing?

This is why I am so very open with my teens about sex, drugs, and partying. I use my own mistakes as a guide of what not to do. Call me a hypocrite if you’d like, but day in and day out, I warn them about the dangers of using drugs. They have so many hopes and dreams for their future, one of them has hopes of a sports career. I remind them they can’t “mess around” if they want to achieve those goals. And we are constantly talking about what kids are thinking when they take that route.

What do you think leads a child to drugs and alcohol? As a parent, how do you confront your child that has been using or drinking? Are you compassionate and understanding? Or do you blow up? Do you have an open relationship with your children so that they feel comfortable enough to come to you about these situations? I’d love to hear your input on this subject. Especially since this issue is obviously in our schools and lives.