How to Talk to Kids about Drugs, Alcohol and Addiction Inoculation with Jessica Lahey

All children, regardless of their genetics, are at some risk for substance abuse. According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, teen drug addiction is the nation’s largest preventable and costly health problem. Despite the existence of proven preventive strategies, nine out of ten adults with substance use disorder report they began drinking and taking drugs before age eighteen. Some room to grow that particularly refer to us, in relation to this podcast; According to Columbia University’s Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), between 75-87% of parents talk at least a little about nicotine, alcohol, and marijuana, but just 50-60% talk about other drugs such as heroin, amphetamines and abuse of prescription medications—so we can make a difference with bringing this topic to the forefront. What do we say? What can we do to help create a supportive, open environment where substance abuse and the stressors surrounding it are not hidden in a closet where drinking and drug use can be triggered and take hold? For this conversation, we have Jessica Lahey on, who has been with us before when talking about failure—and this time, on addiction and addiction inoculation.