The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has released a substance use prevention campaign, “Talk. They Hear You” that helps parents and caregivers start talking to their children early about the dangers of alcohol and other drugs. Click on the link below to read about talking with your teen about marijuana.

Talk They Hear You Marijuana

“As we face a mental health crisis alongside the pandemic that we really focus on the emotional management skills that we can teach our children. It’s an effective way to immunize them against emotional difficulties by talking about their emotions, raising their awareness of them, and parents modeling emotional literacy. Lynn discusses the commons trait that most anxious parents have in common in how they raise anxious kids.”

If you are worried about your children and anxiety, Lynn Lyons, Psychotherapist, Anxiety and Children​, provides helpful tips on how to help.

The Anxiety Vaccine Pt. 2: What Parents Can Do Right Now

Tip of the Week: To increase flexibility hold each stretch for at least 45 seconds

Hold each of your stretches for at least 45 seconds and repeat two to three times and remember to breathe through each. Stretching for this period of time will lengthen your muscles therefore increasing your range of motion. Additional benefits also include improved circulation, better posture, stress relief and enhanced coordination.

Tip: Using alcohol and marijuana shuts down 10-11 of the 13 geographic regions of the brain, reaction diminishes significantly.

Using alcohol and marijuana can cause significant negative effects on an individual. Marijuana impacts your coordination, resulting in decreased ability to move, react and stay balanced. The use of alcohol controls the brain in many ways and can result in difficulty walking, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed reaction times and impaired memory. Think about these facts before using alcohol or marijuana.

Tip: Vaping isn’t considered safe for teens because their brain is still developing and can expose them to toxic substances and nicotine.

Exposure to nicotine and toxic substances in vaping devices can cause your breathing to become rapid and shallow, as well as increase heart rate and blood pressure.  The vapor can contain volatile organic compounds, flavoring such as diacetyl which is a chemical linked to a serious lung disease and heavy metals such as nickel, tin and lead. Nicotine use can also rewire the brain, which can impact your concentration, learning and impulse control.