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Is your teenager using cannabis? These are the tell-tale signs…


Is your teenager using cannabis? These are the tell-tale signs…
Nearly 40% of teenagers in the UK said they have tried substances including cannabis and ecstasy, teenagers in Britain are more likely to have taken illegal substances than youngsters anywhere else in Europe.
Most young people try cannabis in teenage years, parents expect it, it is a part of growing up. However, if ‘trying’ turns into regular use, that is causing you to worry about your teenager. Maybe it will help to communicate with your teenager
The following signs could be an indication that your teenager is developing a dependence.
·       He/she becomes not motivated, loses an interest… Always been into sport, cars, playing the guitar, mountain biking etc… but now can’t be bothered doing the activity, instead watches these things on YouTube. Is not motivated to get to college on time, not motivated to earn some pocket money. Generally, turns into someone you would consider lazy (yes, I know, I mean lazy above and beyond the normal teenage limits of lazy).

·       Starts to talk about weed in terms of it being used for good causes, medical marijuana, healing properties etc., tentatively suggests the law is stupid, pointless


·       A change in friendship group – not always an indicator of drug or drink use, but if he suddenly decides his old friends are boring or they have had a falling out over something unexplained then this is an indicator that they no longer share the same interests.

·       Angry outbursts, really out of proportion reactions to things suggested.


·       Increased appetite.

·       Poor time sense, when it hasn’t been an issue previously.


·       Paranoia- with the theme of intrusion. You’re always poking your nose in, stop interrogating me.

·       This may be surprising to you, but research has shown that if your teenager is academically clever then they are at more risk of habitually smoking drugs, here is a link to the article about the study
·       A sudden drop in academic performance.

·       The obvious ones but worth a mention are…finding lighters, papers in pockets, posters/stickers with cannabis leaf, immersing themselves in Bob Marley, grime, cannabis smoking culture.
I am not stereotyping the “weed smoker” characteristics, I understand that some of the things listed are unrelated to cannabis smoking.

So, what to do if you believe your teenager is developing a dependence to cannabis?
·       First of all, educate yourself, gaining knowledge about a subject can make us feel more on top of things and sometimes lessen our anxiety.
·       Make sure before you have the conversation with your teenager, that you are in a calm and responsive mood. Not reactive and oversensitive. If you used cannabis when you were young, think about how much of this you would like to disclose and in what way it will benefit your teenager knowing.
                                             i.            Use open ended questions that encourages reflection and expression of feelings.
                                           ii.            Acknowledge their point of view.
                                         iii.            Be honest and open about your expectation around cannabis use and why you feel that way.
                                         iv.            Exaggerating the negatives of cannabis use and lecturing about it will not counteract the experiences the teenager views as positive.
·       Take the time to learn why your teenager is using cannabis. For the feeling, to escape, manage anxiety, to fit in or to calm hyperactivity.?
·       The most important thing is to keep in mind when communicating with your teenager is that ultimately our aim is to find ways to encourage our teenagers to want to communicate with us. Make sure they have the assurance that they won’t get an overblown reactive response.
Ultimately depending on what the young person says regarding usage, i.e.
Frequency
Smoking at school/college
Need a joint to get to sleep etc.,
Then the aim is to reduce usage. For example, try and help your teenager to not smoke it before activities that require cognitive functioning such as classes, homework, exams, driving. If your teenager is smoking cannabis to alleviant anxiety or escape painful memories then professional help is appropriate in the form of counselling
From my experience (I used to work in a therapeutic community for people with substance misuse) If your teenager says they smoke 3 a day, it more likely they are smoking 6. You need to know the starting point to help your teenager with reduced usage.
The teenager has got to be wanting a change on some level. If you would like to find out more about the topic of change, it is worth researching the cycle of change and also a book titled ‘Freedom from Addiction. The Secret Behind Successful Addiction Busting’ (The Human Givens approach book 2)
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