Did you know that cough medicine abuse has become a problem with some teens in their efforts to get high?
I know we all love and want to protect our children so that they can have the best life possible.
Of course, with so much pressure to experiment with drugs, sometimes it can be hard for teens to resist.
Have you heard of the
The Five Moms are a group of mothers from all over the country who are working to educate others about over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine abuse in teens.
Meet the Five Moms:
- Becky Dyer, Mother of one, Deputy Sheriff, a Former D.A.R.E officer from Kansas
- Christy Crandell, Mother of two, Author and Drug Awareness Advocate from California
- Blaise Brooks, Mother of one, Cares for two nephews, Accountant, Community Advocate from California
- Peggy McKibbin, Mother of two, School Nurse, from Delaware
- Tammy Walsh, Mother of two, High School Educator, Founder, Northport Community Book Club, from New York
The prevention campaign StopMedicineAbuse.org and its Five Moms initiative is working to alert parents and members of the community about the problem of teen abuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicines containing dextromethorphan (DXM).
How did the Five Moms get started?
In 2004, national surveys began to track abuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine among teens. Experts predicted, “abuse among adolescents most likely will increase, as the drug is relatively easy to obtain and inexpensive. Moreover, adolescents perceive the risk in abusing the drug as low.”
This was a call to action.
To fight the potential rise of teen DXM use, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) launched the Five Moms: Stopping Cough Medicine Abuse campaign to raise awareness about teen DXM abuse and offer peer-to-peer guidance on how to prevent it. Following the success of the Five Moms campaign, CHPA created StopMedicineAbuse.org to serve as the online home for Five Moms and provide valuable resources for parents and their communities. Together, these initiatives have reached millions of parents to date.
Talking to your teenagers about difficult issues such as drug, alcohol, and medicine abuse can be tricky. It should not be a discussion you have just one time, but rather an ongoing dialogue and it’s never too soon to start. Parents can build trust by asking open-ended questions and beginning the conversation early. ~Tammy WalshThe Five Moms Mission Statement:
We are five moms from all over the country who have come together with a common concern: teenagers abusing over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine to get high. Not only do we worry about our own kids, but we are also concerned about those of our friends and neighbors.
Furthermore, we work in our communities to spread the word about cough medicine abuse and to encourage parents to talk to their teens, to monitor their medicines, and to tell other parents and community leaders about this problem.
Parents face challenges in getting through to our teens, and we talk openly about those challenges. The message we send is from-the-heart advice on how we can all work to prevent OTC cough medicine abuse in our homes and communities.
With your help, we can reach parents all over the country.
Together, we can make a difference.
In this video post, Five Mom, Tammy Walsh provides strategies and offers suggestions for parents to talk to their teens about abuse.
Check it out below!
You can read Tammy’s story and learn more about the Five Moms by visiting their website, Facebook, or Twitter.
What are your thoughts about teen cough medicine abuse? Share in comments.
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