| Q & A: Alcohol |
|
|
|
Q: A student (11th grader) wants to know: If you have not been drinking, but are driving someone home who has been drinking, if you get stopped will you get in trouble? A: It depends on the state, so you should check the law where you live. Be sure that there is no alcohol in the car. We support sober driver programs because they save lives, but the elimination of "designated driver" programs is dangerous. Q: What's the best way to approach a teenager whom I suspect is drinking too much? A: As you know, it is illegal for persons under 21 to drink. Unfortunately, most teens do experiment with alcohol and perhaps 30 percent of 17 or 18 year olds drink heavily on occasion. Most are never arrested, so warnings about illegality tend to fall on deaf ears. It is unfortunate that use of alcohol is so common among youth, but that's the way things are and we have to live in the real world. This is a tough question, partly because the answer depends on your relationship with the teenager and whether you have good reasons for being concerned. That concern must be based on objective facts, not assumptions or guesses. Accusing anyone of "drinking too much" is vague and easy to deny. The second principle is to judge the behavior rather than the person. Teenagers, like adults, do not respond positively to judgmental evaluations from others. They become defensive and the intervention gets sidetracked into self-defense. Thirdly, ask the teen if he or she has had negative experiences associated with drinking and, if so, if there are ways to avoid such experiences in the future. Encourage the teen to take responsibility for identifying problems and solutions as much as possible. If this does not work, be specific about what you already know. Then see if the teen can find and commit to some solutions. Q: What can one do to stop a person from drinking, especially when that person seems to be suffering from alcohol-related health problems and lives with a significant other, who is also a drinker? A: The first rule is that we do not have the power to stop other people from drinking! Sobriety has to be something they want. A rule among members of Alcoholics Anonymous is that one cannot stay sober just to please someone else. Fortunately, we sometimes can have a positive influence. Tell the drinker how her behavior affects YOU. This has to be something stronger than saying it worries you, because she will just dimiss this by saying it’s none of your business or deny her health is compromised. Instead, explain that whatever behavioral changes she shows when drinking make you uncomfortable, embarrassed or in some other way harms you personally. You have the right and obligation to say how YOU are disturbed or harmed. Be careful to distinguish between the behavior and the person, though. You can hate the behavior, but still care about the person! Tell her you care a lot about her before you say anything else. If you are the partner, take a personal inventory to decide whether the relationship is worth it, should the drinking continue? If not, make it clear why you would have to take this step, that you are sorry because you care about her, but that you cannot tolerate the results of the drinking. As for helping resources, try Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) first. It’s free. Besides, most therapists are not equipped to deal with alcoholism and treatment programs can be very expensive. If your friend agrees to go to AA, advise her to strive at the first meeting to find at least one thing that applies to her personally. If she keeps attending, she will soon identify with much more. Q: What kind of diseases can you get from drinking alcohol? A: For most people, moderate use of alcohol is not harmful, physically or mentally. However, heavy use over a significant period of time is associated with damage to mind and body. Cirrhosis of the liver is the best-known killer disease associated with excessive use of alcohol. Cirrhosis is progressive and incurable. Some very severe alcoholics suffer brain damage that can progress to organic psychosis. When alcoholism causes inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) patients face a poor prognosis for recovery. Other forms of neural damage include progressive loss of tactile sensation (peripheral neuropathy). The latter usually subsides if the patient stops drinking. Damage to heart muscles (cardiomyopathy) is sometimes associated with alcoholism. Alcohol can irritate the digestive system, especially when consumed on an empty stomach and in concentrated doses; as in spirits such as whiskey, vodka and gin. In combination with cigarette smoking it is associated with mouth and esophageal cancers that result when alcohol strips protective mucous from mouth and throat tissue, allowing carcinogens from smoke direct contact. Alcohol abusers often suffer from irritation of gastric tissue (gastritis) that may progress to ulcers. Excessive use may contribute to high blood pressure as well. Alcoholism is itself a disease. A relatively small percentage of alcoholics are physically addicted due to prolonged or massive use. Without access to alcohol, these individuals experience very severe withdrawal symptoms known as “delirium tremens” or “DT’s”. The latter include sweating, shaking, agitation, wakefulness, confusion, hallucinations, and often convulsions. What is excessive drinking? There is no clear distinction partly because the damage from alcohol depends on body weight, diet, exercise, etc. However, it is safe to say that people who regularly consume several drinks on a daily, or near daily, basis for several years are entering a danger zone. If they are unable to moderate their drinking, abstinence is recommended. Q: How many teens drink? What are the main influences and causes for teen drinking? In your mind, what are the related problems and possible solutions? A: The national Monitoring the Future Survey for 2004 report finds that 71% of high school seniors had at least one drink in the previous year. Go to the website (www.monitoringthefuture.org) and check “Data Tables and Figures” and you will find lots of information on teen drinking for 8th, 10th and 12th grade students. Problems include occasional deaths from alcohol poisoning as a result of binge drinking (most teens do not know the signs and symptoms or that they should call for help immediately if a friend cannot be roused). Automobile accidents while driving under the influence are the second most frequent cause of death for adolescent males. Alcohol is also associated with date rape and other violence among both teens and adults. This does not mean that most teens who drink do any of these things; just that alcohol abuse is often associated with such behaviors. On the California Student Survey (www.safestate.org), the majority of older teens report that their peers drink (or use other drugs) because they are curious about the effects or want to have fun. Only a minority cites negative reasons such as boredom. Solutions are hard to find, because teen drinking is not likely to go away. We favor strategies that reduce harms associated with drinking including vendor regulation, sober driver programs, honest information about specific dangers, especially driving and binging, the need to be responsible for one another, and parent education on monitoring where there teens go and what they do. There are laws against adults supervising teen drinking, but these laws should be re-examined, because teens can and will find places to drink where there are no adults, and their safety is a serious concern. Q: My daughter is away at college and tells me that she sometimes gets drunk on weekends. I have heard stories about binge drinking on campuses and I am worried about her. She is 18 and I don’t want to come off as being over-protective, but shouldn’t I do something? A: You are right to be concerned, but can also be grateful that your daughter entrusts you with personal information. Whatever you do with the advice that follows, keep those lines of communication open! Binge drinking is a problem on many campuses, but it is not spread equally among all student groups. Most binge drinking occurs in fraternities and sororities where tradition supports heavy use of alcohol on social occasions. Most college students do not binge. Researchers usually define binging as having four or more drinks on a single occasion for females (five for males because of higher average body weight). Saying that one “got drunk” last night does not necessarily imply binging, since the average young woman would feel significant effects from only two drinks in an hour or so, especially if she has not developed tolerance to alcohol. Drinking is perceived by most young people, even in high school, as a normal part of social life. Curiosity about its effects and wanting to have fun are the reasons commonly given by teens for taking their first drink. By “getting drunk” your daughter may just mean feeling the effects and having a good time with her friends. When you talk with your daughter about drinking, be sure to make it clear that you are not panicked, simply concerned about her personal safety. A good starter would be to ask where she and her friends drink. She already knows that it is dangerous to drink and drive, so this question will make sense to her. If she and her friends drive somewhere to do their drinking, ask how she makes sure that she gets back safely. If there is a problem, ask her to think about safer ways to get home. On this topic you can give advice without being perceived as moralistic or a killjoy. After this, ask about any situational factor that seems relevant. Or just ask her if she can think of any other conditions that might pose risk. Or ask how she knows when she has had enough to drink. Stay with safety, be supportive, and put the responsibility on your daughter to come up with ideas before you make suggestions. And be sure to tell her how good her willingness to trust you makes you feel! Q: Friends at school often talk about how they are going to get drunk. Although they are only going to do it every now and again, I know what 'every now and again' can turn into! We have to present this project to the class and I want to put forth a challenge. So, what can happen if you get drunk only a few times? What can it do to your body? Can trying alcohol only a few times turn into a real problem? Basically HELP!!! I want to show my friends the real dangers, and risks with drinking and getting drunk. A: We I want to commend your concern about how drinking, especially getting drunk, can harm your friends. You are right. Even though it is legal for adults to drink, alcohol is a powerful drug and getting drunk is not really funny. There is danger of injury to self or others and doing things that will be regretted later. This is especially true for young people who lack the experience that can help them compensate for the effects of alcohol and who have low tolerance because they are new to drinking. “Low tolerance” means that their nervous systems are more susceptible to the influence of alcohol than those of experienced drinkers. Unfortunately, drinking is very common among young people. The latest California Student Survey reported that half of 9th graders in the state (49.7% to be precise) had at least one drink of alcohol in the previous six months. This does not mean that all of them got drunk. Still, 13% had engaged in “binge” drinking (four or more drinks on the same occasion) in the previous 30 days. These are the teens we should be most worried about. Now for your specific questions. Using a drug like alcohol, that alters one’s sense of self, others, and the environment can lead to dependency in some people. Fortunately, most kids who try alcohol do not progress to alcoholism. They don’t like hangovers or getting sick and may be embarrassed about things they did. It is true that the earlier kids start drinking (or using any other drug), the more likely it is that they will progress to dependency. But we don’t really know whether this is because they started drinking early, or because they started young due to other factors that also predisposed them to alcoholism. Fortunately, only a minority of kids who start drinking when very young will become alcoholics. It is just that the likelihood is greater. Likewise, some people who delay drinking until they are much older can still progress to alcoholism. Most of the life-threatening physical effects of excessive use of alcohol emerge after many years of drinking. This is not the immediate problem for young people. The immediate problem is injury and even death. The first is obvious, but many young people and even adults are unaware that one can die from drinking. How can this happen? Simply by drinking too much too fast. The person passes out quickly and may die either from choking to death by vomiting while unconscious or through suppression of the neural centers that control breathing. This tragic event is not common, but it happens, especially on university campuses when students play drinking games or compete to see who can drink the most the fastest. Young people already know that it is dangerous to drink and drive. But most know nothing about the signs that a person is in danger of dying. The fatal mistake is to leave an unconscious drinker to “sleep it off.” Instead, it is vital to note whether or not the person is breathing very slowly with abnormally long pauses between breaths. Always try to wake up unconscious drinkers rather than let them sleep. If you can wake them up, keep them awake. If you can’t, call for help immediately. Before professional help arrives, artificial respiration may be needed. By no means leave a person who is "passed out" on their back! It would be ideal to delay drinking until one is old enough to do it legally. Even possession of alcohol by a minor can lead to arrest and loss of driving privileges. It is no fun to be arrested and booked. The police don’t like to be bothered with drunks, and they may be less than kind. Unfortunately, it is not realistic to expect that we can put a stop to teen drinking. Alcohol is part of the culture. It is advertised and marketed everywhere. Young people usually know how to obtain it even though it is illegal. Kids are curious and they want to have fun. But we can hope that ways can be found to persuade as many young people who do decide to drink to do so moderately and avoid the serious dangers. Stephanie, you deserve a lot of credit for caring, for wanting to help rather than judging and condemning. More power to you. Q: I am sure you realize alcohol is a drug, probably the most abused in our nation. Yet, whenever drugs are mentioned, the statement always refers to “alcohol and drugs.” Don’t you think if the truth from adults concerning their own drug (alcohol) use was presented as evidence to our youth they might believe our condemnation of drugs? I do not believe that young people will ever take drug use seriously if their parents or the general public haven’t the courage to admit they are drug users also. Alcohol and prescription narcotics account for many tragic incidents in the U.S, yet we as adults pretend we re not drug users while our children watch. We ask of our children something adults can’t admit themselves. As long as we continue to lie to our young people and ourselves we won’t come close to curbing drug use. Yes, I drink wine and I know it is a drug. Are you a drug user also? Do any teachers have a cocktail, beer, glass of wine, and do they admit to their students that they are drug users? Do the students’ parents imbibe and admit they also are drug users or do they lie by silence while pointing an accusing finger at our young people? A: You are right. Alcohol is a drug. That’s why many of us say “alcohol and other drugs,” or “AOD” for short. Most drug education programs also treat alcohol as a drug. Your point is certainly evident in political discourse. Most politicians do not admit that alcohol is a drug. Today’s proponents of the war on drugs have not declared a war on alcohol, and don’t even like to use the word “prohibition” when talking about drugs. The similarities, however, are striking. You are also correct that there is blatant hypocrisy on the question of what is, or is not, a drug. Some mind- and behavior-altering drugs are illegal and users are punished severely. Others are legal if prescribed by a doctor, but are also sold illegally or used openly for other purposes. Some drugs, especially alcohol and tobacco, are not only legal, but also widely marketed and consumed. Finally, these two legal substances (for adults, at least) account for approximately 5 million deaths annually, compared with 100,000 deaths caused by illicit drugs. This does not mean that illicit drugs are harmless, just that our society seems to ignore the inconsistency. You may want to reconsider your point that young people will never “take drug use seriously” unless adults who drink or use mood altering prescription drugs admit that they are drug users too. Rather, teens will never take adults seriously unless they are honest and consistent. Teenagers are highly sensitive to hypocrisy. Unfortunately, admitting that alcohol is a drug is only a first step in gaining the attention of today’s teenagers. Current drug prevention curricula exaggerate dangers and give false or biased information. Widespread experience among teens refutes these kinds of messages. The majority of older teens believe that peers use drugs (including alcohol) because they are curious or just want to “have fun”. They know too much to trust well-meaning adults who do not tell the truth. This is where we have to start. Q: Doesn’t promising kids “no consequences” if they call me for a ride when they are intoxicated send the message that I condone alcohol or other drug use? A: We need to talk with our teens about the consequences of drug and alcohol use, but avoid creating negative consequences when they reach out to us for help. Even though we may not condone their behavior, it is important to convey that their safety is our primary concern. Although it is very difficult not to be disappointed, even aggravated, when we learn our teenagers have acted irresponsibly, it may be unwise to express such feelings in a threatening way. Punishing them after they have confided in you may close off future communication and lead them to lie about what they do with their friends. If we want our teenagers to feel comfortable calling upon us when they need help, we have to be careful about admonishing them when they do so. It is possible to let them know we do not approve of drug or alcohol use, but that we care deeply about their safety and welfare and will always we there to help them when they need us. Q: I am terrified about drunk driving accidents. How can I make sure my kids don’t drink and drive? A: There is no formula for making sure that such an accident will never happen to a young person that we love. But parents can reduce the chances of that occurring. Begin by explaining your deep concern for their safety. Teens have been told many times about the risks of drinking and driving. They already know that this is a genuine danger. Next, ask them to please call home for a ride if the need arises with the assurance that there will be no recriminations, but that there will be a calm discussion later on about how similar situations might be avoided in the future. When teens say they are going to spend the evening at a friend’s house or elsewhere ask whether adults will be present and let them know that you will be calling to make sure that the adults intend to be there the whole evening. Also support sober driver programs. You can take the lead in organizing an informal arrangement with other parents or pressure your school and community to establish such programs. Refuse to be put off by the charge that, by making drinking safer, such programs only increase teen drinking! Reply that most teens will drink anyway and that enhanced safety is exactly what you are promoting. |