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Discovering your child uses drugs can generate fear, confusion, and anger in parents. It’s important to remain calm when confronting your teen, and only do so when everyone is sober. Explain your concerns and make it clear that your concerncomes from a place of love. It’s important that your teen feels you are supportive.

Five steps parents can take:

• Lay down rules and consequences: Your teen should understand that using drugs comes with specific consequences. But don’t make hollow threats or set rules that you cannot enforce. Make sure your spouse agrees with the rules and is prepared to enforce them.
• Monitor your teen’s activity: Know where your teen goes andwho he or she hangs out with. It’s also important to routinely check potential hiding places for drugs—in backpacks, between books on a shelf, in DVD cases or make-up cases, for example.Explain to your teen that this lack of privacy is a consequence of him or her having been caught using drugs.
• Encourage other interests and social activities. Expose your teen to healthy hobbies and activities, such as team sports, Scouts, and afterschool clubs.
• Talk to your child about underlying issues. Drug use can be the result of other problems. Is your child having trouble fitting in? Has there been a recent major change, like a move or divorce, which is causing stress?
• Get Help: Teenagers often rebel against their parents but if they hear the same information from a different authority figure, they may be more inclined to listen. Try a sports coach, family doctor, therapist, or drug counsellor.

Reprinted with permission from Helpguide.org © 2001-2011. All rights reserved. For more information, visit www.Helpguide.org.

At Montrose Place in Cape Town, South Africa, we are committed to preparing our clients for a lifelong voyage of self-sustainable recovery. We provide a safe environment in which to explore, gain insight and reach an understanding of addictive, compulsive and co-morbid disorders and present each individual with the requisite tools, strength and hope to manage, and treasure, their own recovery.

For further information, please contact us directly.