By Noel Federle
It is that wonderful memory-making time of year again and time for Southbury-Middlebury Acting Responsibly Together Inc. (S.M.A.R.T.) to remind families that “Parents Who Host Lose the Most.” You may be wondering what does that actually mean? You may see the black-and-white signs with a gavel around town or you may have received long handouts at S.M.A.R.T. events that you did not read through. To summarize:
There are significant legal ramifications if, with or without your permission, children under the age of 21 consume alcohol anywhere on your property and if anyone, regardless of age, consumes illegal substances.
For some reason, that fact alone has not prevented families from going with the “kids will be kids” mentality and “We did it when we were their age”… so “as long as I take their keys, I know my kid will be safe at home.”
Here’s the thing: You can parent your child however you see fit … but you shouldn’t make decisions for other people’s kids or their parenting choices. My guess is that the parent’s who “host” the party aren’t alerting all the other parents that they will turn the other way if drinking is happening.
I am not sure why any family would actually want to take on the liability of their friend’s kids and the choices they will make, Things are not the same as “when we were kids.” The choices being made are not the same.
What you may not know is what the kids who come to your house have already ingested, smoked or otherwise put in their bodies and how the risks will increase. Here is what happens:
If they smoke marijuana and drink, they will suppress their nausea centers, and the risk of alcohol poisoning will rise significantly.
If they are on medication for depression, anxiety, etc., and drink, an additive effect will occur, and their alcohol levels will rise very quickly.
If they take pain killers and drink, a synergistic effect will occur, and that combination can be lethal.
We want the memories at this time of year to be happy, safe and responsible. If you attended our Parent Survival Guide 2016 this week, you heard from two adults recovering from addiction who were “great kids, from good families and had their whole lives ahead of them” share that they started their alcohol/drug journey with simple experimentation and ended up with addictions that took years to recover from. You also heard that the adolescent brain is growing at a rapid rate, and the longer someone waits to start drinking, the lower are their chances of becoming an alcoholic.
As a community, let’s all commit to keeping ALL the kids safe this prom and graduation season!
