Participants:
Series Code: UBR
Program Code: UBR000269A
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00:01 Substance abuse is a problem
00:02 that's impacting people around the world. 00:05 But how do you identify the signs of substance abuse 00:08 and what should you look for? 00:10 Well, stay tuned to find out. 00:12 My name is Jason Bradley. 00:13 And I'm Yvonne Lewis Shelton, 00:15 and you're watching Urban Report. 00:41 Hello, and welcome to Urban Report. 00:43 I'm your host Jason Bradley, 00:45 and I'm so happy that my lovely co-host, 00:48 my mom, also known as Yvonne Lewis Shelton 00:52 is joining me today. 00:54 It's great to have you. 00:55 Thank you, Jay, it's great to be here. 00:56 And it's wonderful to have our guest, 00:59 Michelle Bertinetti, and we are back for part two 01:02 of Hidden in Plain Sight. 01:04 Welcome, welcome back. 01:06 Thank you so much for having me back. 01:08 Oh, you gave us such great information in part one, 01:12 and if you missed part one, 01:14 make sure you look it up on YouTube, 01:16 we're going to put it up on our YouTube channel. 01:18 And our YouTube channel for those that don't know is 01:21 www.youtube.com/d2dnetworktv. 01:29 Oh, okay, we're going to have that up on the screen. 01:32 Oh, yeah, they will be able to do that. 01:35 But, yeah, part one was so informative 01:38 that we really wanted to have you for part two 01:42 because as a parent, 01:44 I know that when my kids were coming up, 01:47 there were things going on 01:49 that I really did not know about. 01:52 Jason has a very interesting testimony, 01:56 and Jay, just give us a little bit of what happened 01:59 for those who don't know what you... 02:02 A little bit of your journey 02:03 because that really has something to do 02:06 with what we're here for today. 02:07 Okay, well, I'll try and keep it brief. 02:10 Okay, so my mom raised me in the church. 02:13 And then at the age of 14, 02:16 I decided that that didn't really apply to my life 02:19 or at least I didn't think it did, 02:21 I didn't feel like it did, 02:23 you know, the Bible says, 02:24 "By beholding we become change." 02:26 So I started beholding all the wrong things, 02:27 I started listening to the wrong types of music 02:29 that was glorifying drug use 02:31 and the sale of narcotics and all those things. 02:35 I started watching movies 02:36 that dealt with the sale of narcotics, 02:38 and glorifying drug use, and alcohol use, 02:42 just substance abuse across the board. 02:44 And I started hanging out with some of the wrong people, 02:47 but I had to live a double life because I couldn't let her know 02:50 what was going on, you know, 02:52 and so I had to come up with different little ways, 02:55 and some of these things that I see on the table 02:58 are some of the things that I used to use. 03:01 There's, you know, smoker kits, 03:03 and these different types of things 03:05 to try and disguise the use of narcotics, 03:10 and marijuana, and all of these things, 03:12 and so I started using that. 03:14 Anyway I started smoking marijuana as a gateway drug. 03:18 Later on, down the line, got into ecstasy, 03:21 and then I also started selling narcotics 03:23 and stuff for a little while, 03:25 got arrested, and it was facing a potential 15 years in prison, 03:32 and the Lord blessed me to not have to go that route 03:35 as my first offense, 03:37 so I was able to take a plea deal, 03:39 and that was my rock bottom. 03:41 And that was the last time that I touched drugs. 03:45 Shifting gears, a couple years later, 03:47 I accepted Christ as my savior prior to coming to work here, 03:52 and the best decision I ever made. 03:54 Amen. 03:55 And how many years has it been 03:56 since you've dealt with drugs on any level? 03:58 I'm 32 years old right now, it was 20 years old, 04:02 about to turn 21 years. 04:04 So about 12 years? Yeah. 04:05 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. 04:06 That's great. 04:08 Yeah, there's hope through recovery. 04:09 Yes, oh, yes. 04:11 And the Lord, you know, 04:13 we always talk on Dare to Dream about, 04:15 God has a plan for us and Satan has a plan. 04:18 And Satan's plan is to destroy you, 04:20 and to inundate you with all of these drugs 04:24 and things like that, 04:27 and then God wants to give you the abundant life in Him. 04:30 And so now Jason has had a chance to compare 04:35 what life is like on the dark side, 04:37 and what life is like with Jesus, 04:39 and I think... 04:41 It's so much better on this side. 04:42 I mean, if you were to talk to me years ago 04:45 and you would have said, 04:47 "Oh, you're going to be in full-time ministry," 04:49 I wasn't even in the church. 04:50 So I definitely didn't think 04:52 I would be in full-time ministry, 04:54 and then as the general manager of the Dare to Dream network, 04:58 like that wasn't in my future. 05:00 I was managing a sports bar prior too, so it's... 05:04 Yeah, God is amazing. He's amazing. 05:06 Oh, your story gives all those people out there 05:10 that may be suffering from addiction, 05:12 that may be hiding it from their family 05:14 and their friends. 05:15 We've had daddies come through our programs 05:19 that were unintentionally addicted 05:21 because they had, you know, back surgery, maybe pushed it 05:25 going back to work a little early, 05:27 and re-injured, and, you know, 05:29 that starts that cycle of unintentional addiction, 05:32 so they, you know, depend upon their pain pills, 05:35 and taking those things 05:37 in order to make it through their day, 05:38 and then they realize they're addicted, 05:40 and then, you know, they go to their physician, 05:42 the physician's like, "Oh, well, 05:44 then if that's why you're taking them, 05:45 you know, you're kind of done." 05:47 And then that flips the switch for them 05:49 because trying to buy narcotics on the street, 05:51 you were a seller. 05:53 Yeah. 05:54 You know that they're pricey, 05:55 and there's a lot of money in it... 05:57 And it's risky. It's risky. 05:58 Yeah. We're very happy that... 06:01 His story gives us... It gives so many people hope. 06:03 Yes, yes, thank you. 06:06 Yeah, because that... 06:07 I mean, like he's achieved says that, 06:09 you know, anybody that goes through addiction 06:11 can have amazing accomplishments 06:13 in their life as well. 06:14 By the grace of God, that's very true. 06:16 And we're very thankful 06:18 that you've come from your agency 06:20 to talk to us. 06:22 We know you don't have a ministry per se, 06:24 but what you're doing is changing lives and so. 06:27 Just through education, we appreciate the education 06:31 that you gave us in part one, 06:33 and we're looking forward to it in part two. 06:36 So let's talk about some of these items 06:38 that we have here and what they do? 06:41 Okay. 06:43 Again just to go over, these are some of the things 06:45 that I have in my Hidden in Plain Sight education on... 06:50 Through the Gateway Foundation. 06:51 Through the Gateway Foundation on teenage drug trends. 06:55 But I left a couple things out there regard to marijuana, 06:58 that kind of stem from our last show together 07:02 that I hadn't had a chance to go over, 07:04 but if someone wants just to see this, 07:06 I normally have it sitting beside the bed 07:09 and you may be able to relate to this. 07:11 It's a grinder. 07:12 Yes, see, so he can identify it. 07:14 If I as a parent, 07:16 without my experience at Gateway was to see this, 07:19 I would think that it was a makeup container 07:21 or maybe something that somebody put jewellery in. 07:24 So if I was to open I would expect earrings 07:26 or, you know, something else, 07:28 and I wouldn't even think to look in it. 07:30 Yeah, and for a guy, I mean, 07:33 I just probably wouldn't even think about looking at this. 07:37 No, and a lot of times they set it beside their bed, 07:41 so, right, he understands 07:44 a lot of the adolescents in my facility, 07:46 they tell me and share things with me, 07:48 and so that helps me to help educate parents 07:51 and grandparents, 07:53 and anybody that has a role with adolescents. 07:55 But yeah, so this is just a grinder. 07:57 And if I was to see it, 07:59 I wouldn't really recognize that. 08:01 This was donated by Marion police department. 08:05 What is that? What does the grinder do? 08:06 Oh, they put their marijuana in here, the leaves, 08:10 and the buds, and, you know, the parts of the marijuana, 08:13 they place it in here, 08:15 and if you see all that area through here, 08:17 and then the top here is also... 08:21 It's very similar to... 08:22 If you were to think about grinding your own pepper 08:25 or grinding your own salt, but this is a little larger 08:30 because it's used for grinding marijuana. 08:32 So the products are going to be a larger 08:34 that they place in here. 08:36 Okay. 08:37 Saves you from breaking it down with your hands, 08:38 so you put it on there and you just twist. 08:40 Oh, okay. 08:41 Okay, twist and twist and twist, and then... 08:47 Well, I can open it. 08:49 And then the product comes out in the bottom. 08:51 Oh, I see. 08:53 And that actually is marijuana. 08:55 It's a small amount that was just left 08:57 in the grinder from being donated. 08:59 And I left it in here 09:01 because there's a lot of parents 09:02 that have never seen it. 09:03 So it's... 09:05 Can you open that up for parents to... 09:07 Can we get a close up of that there? 09:10 If you'd like to hold it, just don't spill it. 09:12 All right. All right. 09:14 But yeah, so I left it in there just so... 09:19 There's so many parents that come through 09:20 and they have no idea what it even looks like, 09:24 you know, what is the difference. 09:26 And so I left it in there to be able to show those 09:29 that don't know what it looks like, 09:32 and so it's been in there for over a year. 09:35 But it gives the parents 09:37 or anybody that doesn't know what it looks like an idea. 09:39 Right, right. 09:41 And again, and I think I mentioned this in part one. 09:47 We are not trying to teach young people what to do, 09:52 they already have all this stuff. 09:55 Yeah. 09:56 We're trying to show you parents and grandparents 09:59 what your young people are doing. 10:01 And what to look for. And what to look for. 10:02 Because how can you help prevent the use 10:06 of narcotics or the sale of narcotics 10:08 if you have no idea what to even look for. 10:11 So this hopefully will help you and provide you with the tools 10:15 and resources that you need 10:16 to be of assistance to that young person 10:19 that is struggling with the use of narcotics. 10:22 Yeah, that's such a very good point 10:23 because that's the purpose of this. 10:26 Yes, absolutely. 10:28 If somebody can catch their adolescent 10:30 or their teenager at the beginning stages 10:33 or the experimental stages, 10:35 they can totally change that direction 10:38 and help guide them in the right way 10:40 so they don't continue on that negative path. 10:42 That's right. That's right. 10:44 So... 10:45 What are some more things we've got here? 10:47 Well, I always talk to parents too about... 10:50 I set up a mock teenage girl bedroom, 10:53 so I have a lot of girl things in here, 10:55 but I can also reference different things for guys. 10:59 But these are rolling papers, 11:01 so, you know, they're just sitting there, 11:03 and if nonchalantly amongst other things... 11:06 So you could think they're end papers, right? 11:08 I mean, you know, like for the ends of your hair. 11:10 Oh, yeah, for whenever you... Yes, whenever you... 11:13 Yeah, roll your hair. 11:14 Roll your hair with the end papers. 11:16 But there... Different references. 11:18 Yeah, different uses. 11:21 But these are actually used to smoke marijuana, 11:24 they'll pull out a paper 11:26 and they will line it with the marijuana, 11:28 and roll it up just like they were a cigarette 11:30 or somebody was making their own cigarette. 11:32 So rolling papers are a sign of possible drug use. 11:35 Okay. 11:36 Another thing too that I talk to parents about 11:39 is checking the makeup containers. 11:42 So they'll use whatever they currently have 11:46 a lot of times, 11:47 you know, whatever's easily at their disposal. 11:50 So here's a makeup container, if you look in this direction, 11:52 it looks like makeup if you flip it over 11:55 that looks like marijuana. 11:58 So... 11:59 And then for girls, they'll use makeup containers, 12:02 but boys hide things in things that boys use 12:05 like deodorant and things like that, 12:07 so they may hide things in deodorant containers. 12:11 So I just talk to parents to, 12:12 you know, if they start seeing little signs 12:15 whenever they're looking 12:16 to check their regular used things, 12:19 they can be used as containers as well. 12:22 And then in here I have some ping pong balls. 12:27 And I normally talked to parents 12:29 that ping pong balls for teenagers could be a sign. 12:33 So if your child hasn't signed up for, 12:36 you know, the ping pong league at high school... 12:39 Right, right. 12:41 Or, you know, you haven't recently purchased 12:43 the ping pong table for kids to play, 12:46 but all the sudden they've got 12:48 all kinds of ping pong balls laying around. 12:51 They've got them in their backpack, 12:52 they're going to have them in their bags, 12:54 they may have a few just laying around here and there. 12:57 That's a sign that they may be playing 12:59 drinking games. 13:01 Like what? 13:03 And how do you use that to drink? 13:04 Well, a lot of young adults and teenagers 13:10 play drinking games. 13:12 The majority of adolescents, 13:13 if they consume alcohol is normally binge drinking. 13:18 For a grown adult, 13:20 they may go out and have a glass of wine 13:23 or something at dinner 13:24 if they're partaking in alcohol. 13:28 But for an adolescent, 13:29 one they shouldn't be having alcohol whatsoever, 13:31 they're not of age, of legal age, and then two, 13:35 whenever they drink, they typically binge drink, 13:37 and that's multiple drinks within an hour. 13:40 And so why pong long balls are a sign of that 13:43 is because they play drinking games. 13:45 They set up cups like Red Solo cups 13:48 or things like that, and they all do shots. 13:52 So they'll bounce the ping pong ball, 13:54 and if they make it, 13:55 they'll make up their own rules. 13:57 So, you know, it could be if they make it is an example 13:59 then they don't have to drink, 14:01 and everybody else at the table has to take a shot. 14:04 Or then you're already passing it 14:05 on to somebody else that fast. 14:07 See where the binge drinking kicks in. 14:10 A long time ago binge drinking has been around, 14:13 and ping pong balls playing the drinking game 14:16 has been around for a long time. 14:17 That was around whenever I was in college. 14:20 But today, it's a concern. 14:24 So the reason why... 14:26 It was a concern back then as well 14:28 but even more so today 14:29 because we have things like energy drinks. 14:32 Like this Monster drink right here. 14:35 So whenever they're playing the drinking game 14:37 and they're taking a shot of, 14:38 you know, whatever it is they're taking a shot of, 14:40 that's alcohol. 14:43 In the past, your body would say 14:45 you've made unwise choices, 14:47 you've continued to make unwise choices for yourself, 14:52 and it will shut down by passing out. 14:54 It says you're done trying to make choices, 14:57 you know, you're going to pass out, 14:58 you're done drinking. 15:01 And that's what would happen. 15:02 But since the induction of these energy drinks 15:06 like this Monster right here, they mix it with alcohol 15:09 so they don't pass out so quickly. 15:12 So they do their shots 15:14 and they take a drink of the Monster, 15:18 and then that goes around the table. 15:20 And maybe there's five or six of them 15:21 that are playing this drinking game. 15:23 So whenever their body would normally say, 15:24 "You're done." 15:26 You know, "You're done, you didn't do a good job 15:28 making wise choices for yourself, 15:29 and we're shutting it down, 15:31 and you're passing out for a while," 15:33 the Monster energy drink keeps them awake. 15:37 And this is a huge concern nowadays 15:40 because now we're looking at alcohol poisoning 15:43 and alcohol toxicity in the body 15:46 because your body isn't able to shut down 15:48 because the energy drink keeps them awake. 15:51 Well, so it's almost as though you have one foot on the brake 15:55 and one foot on the gas 15:57 because alcohol's a depressant, 15:59 that's a stimulant, 16:00 the energy drinks are stimulants, 16:03 and so your body doesn't know what to do, 16:06 like, "What am I supposed to do?" 16:09 And this is a terrible... 16:12 This is terrible 16:13 what's going on with our kids today. 16:16 Well, and they have no idea... The danger that they were in. 16:18 The danger, yeah they have no idea. 16:21 They feel like the untouchable at a certain age too, 16:23 they feel like you know I'm young, 16:26 I'm going to living forever, you know. 16:27 Yeah, yeah, yeah. 16:29 And one thing I hear from the teenagers 16:31 at my facility all the time is 16:35 they thought that would never happen to them. 16:38 That they would never get addicted. 16:40 They would never get addicted. 16:41 "I'm just going to smoke a little marijuana," 16:43 but as we talked about that being a gateway drug 16:45 for adolescents, you know, they never... 16:49 That was never their intention. 16:52 Not one of them said, 16:54 "I want to suffer from addiction 16:55 and steal things from my mom and dad, 16:57 and make my family upset with me, 17:00 and, you know, upset my friends, 17:03 and, you know, cause turmoil in my life." 17:05 Not one of them said that they wanted all of that. 17:07 Yeah. Do you see... 17:09 Do you come across people 17:11 that they're clearly addicted to marijuana, 17:14 but they say, "Oh, I'm not addicted to marijuana, 17:15 I can quit." 17:18 And if they say that, "Why don't you quit then?" 17:21 Oh, the aspect of addiction to marijuana, 17:24 marijuana is different, 17:26 there's a couple different things 17:27 that your question brings to light to me. 17:30 One, marijuana is different than it was 20 years ago. 17:33 There is a much higher level of concentration of THC 17:38 than marijuana today. 17:41 Is it grown that way or is it added to it? 17:44 Well, actually it's just like 17:46 if you think about all of our vegetables, 17:49 you know, there's additives to the growing, 17:51 so you've got this, you know, 17:53 instead of the tomato plant now, 17:54 making a couple of tomatoes here and there, 17:57 now we add miracle grow, 17:58 and now my tomato plant makes a whole lot of tomatoes, 18:03 and it is still producing 18:04 all the way up through September 18:06 because I miracle growing once a week. 18:09 And, you know, 18:10 so it's the same thing with the marijuana. 18:11 So they've done things 18:14 to alter its growth over the years, 18:17 and so there's a much higher level of THC 18:22 in marijuana today. 18:24 And sometimes, we've had people come through 18:26 adolescence, come through our program 18:29 that their addiction to marijuana 18:31 took them in some really negative pathway 18:34 similar to some of the more, 18:37 you know, more, maybe more serious drugs. 18:43 So we've had teenage girl that shared her story with me, 18:48 and she was actually gone from her parents' home 18:51 for three weeks smoking marijuana. 18:55 She was absent from school, her parents were afraid, 18:58 they didn't know where their child was. 19:01 And then whenever she surfaced, 19:03 she said, well, this is what I was doing. 19:04 Well, they didn't... 19:06 They couldn't possibly imagine that 19:07 that be addiction or a problem, you know, 19:09 because they didn't understand addiction and the changes, 19:12 and the things that are different from, 19:14 you know, whenever they were kids to now... 19:16 Back in the day. 19:18 Yeah, so they were just, you know, they grounded her 19:21 and told her to, you know, make sure that she, 19:24 you know, they worked with the teachers, 19:26 they got her caught up on school, 19:28 and six months later, a very similar experience. 19:32 And so the parents, 19:34 they couldn't understand this at all. 19:36 But this teenage girl, she was 15, 19:39 and she went through our residential treatment program 19:42 for her addiction to marijuana, so that is possible nowadays. 19:47 It's not as common or is easily to get addicted to 19:50 as say heroin 19:52 or some of our more serious like meth, 19:55 you know, some of our serious things 19:56 that takes more use, 19:58 but it also depends upon the individual. 20:00 And there are genetic backgrounds 20:04 whether addiction runs in their family. 20:06 There are so many factors, 20:07 adolescents and kids don't think about this. 20:09 And myself, as a parent, I wouldn't either 20:13 without my experience at Gateway. 20:14 Yeah, yeah. 20:16 So... But there is... 20:17 But with that road to addiction that just... 20:20 Yeah, and people don't understand. 20:21 So the parents were like, "I just don't understand, 20:23 I told her many times to stop smoking marijuana." 20:27 You know, "I am just at my wits end, 20:29 she says she's going to, and then here we are again," 20:32 and they're upset, and they don't understand 20:36 the aspect of addiction. 20:38 Now you mentioned meth, 20:40 what are some signs of meth use? 20:43 Ah, that's very good question. 20:46 Meth in southern Illinois is actually increased 20:49 over the last year. 20:51 So we have a lot more meth coming through. 20:54 It's referred to as ice, it's coming from Mexico. 20:58 And people aren't making meth anymore, 21:00 majority of the time. 21:01 Oh, they're not, 21:03 so they don't have a lot of meth labs around. 21:04 Meth labs had decreased, not that no one does, 21:07 but that's majorly decreased, 21:09 and it's actually rare now in southern Illinois, 21:14 and they're buying the meth that's coming up from Mexico, 21:18 and it's being filtered as other drugs are filtered 21:20 throughout the United States. 21:22 There are larger cities 21:23 and then down through our smaller communities, 21:25 we're not immune. 21:27 Wow! Oh, go ahead, Jay. 21:30 No, I was going to say... You go ahead. 21:32 We have... 21:33 Don't think that we didn't vacuum in here. 21:37 These three little pieces of paper are interesting 21:41 because Michelle wants to explain what... 21:44 How this is a sign of meth use? 21:47 Well, actually 21:48 they're little pieces of tin foil on the floor, 21:51 and why they are sign is 21:54 whenever somebody is using meth, 21:56 there's a couple different ways. 21:57 They may smoke it 21:59 so they wouldn't use the aluminum foil. 22:02 But if they've advanced in their disease state, 22:06 so maybe they're not smoking it or snorting it, 22:09 which is a lot of signs of the, 22:11 you know, hollowed out pins 22:13 and different things that people used to snort, 22:16 and they've advanced to an IV use, 22:19 where they're injecting it with a needle. 22:21 Oh, wow. 22:22 So that addiction advances just like others, 22:26 you know, it's no different. 22:28 And so if they're an IV user, 22:31 they'll use aluminum foil to liquefy it. 22:34 And I have a meth kit that I brought with me, 22:38 and I think it's this one. 22:40 And I'll pull out the aluminum foil. 22:43 But they'll use the aluminum foil, 22:46 and they will... 22:49 They will lace it like this, and they put the product here, 22:52 and they'll heat it underneath with a lighter and liquefy it, 22:55 then they'll pull it up in a syringe and inject it. 22:59 Once they're done injecting it, 23:00 that high goes directly into their bloodstream 23:03 because they're injecting it into a vein, 23:06 that's why I have rubber bands laying around, 23:08 they're signs of possible IV use. 23:10 A lot of times an IV drug user will have a rubber band 23:14 that they wear on their wrist. 23:16 As a tourniquet? 23:17 And they'll use it as a tourniquet, 23:19 or for girls it's the ponytail holders. 23:23 And I always have one on my wrist type thing. 23:27 And that's not always 100% sign, 23:28 some girls just do. 23:30 But if you're noticing a change in their behavior, 23:34 and you're noticing some significant things 23:36 that are making you think something may be going on, 23:38 and then you notice, oh, all of a sudden 23:40 they have this rubber band 23:41 around their wrist or something, 23:42 then maybe worth looking a little closer into. 23:46 But yeah, so they liquefy but at the minute 23:48 that they shoot up and get high, 23:50 the first thing they do 23:51 is crumple up the aluminum foil like this, 23:54 and wherever they are, they drop it. 23:57 So that's why aluminum foil pieces 24:00 on the floor are a sign of possible drug use. 24:04 And it may not be... 24:06 That will be maybe in their bedrooms, 24:08 in their bathroom, 24:10 that may be in the floorboard of their car, 24:13 and may be behind a garage or an old building, 24:18 you'll see all these pieces of aluminum foil, 24:20 like, "I don't know why they're there?" 24:22 What do you do when you first find 24:24 that your child is using 24:27 whether it's marijuana or whether it's, 24:30 you know, as an outreach coordinator 24:34 for a drug program, what would you recommend? 24:37 Well, the first instinct for parents are all different 24:40 because we all respond differently. 24:43 But we talk to parents about taking a minute, 24:47 and if they're upset, calming down 24:49 because the best approach isn't, 24:52 you know, a screaming match with your child. 24:55 The best most effective approach 24:57 that you can take is from a concerned caring parent. 25:03 "I found these things, and I'm concerned, 25:05 and I care about you, let's talk about it." 25:09 Because then the child 25:10 is not going to shut down on you, 25:12 and they're going to be more open 25:14 because my mom cares. 25:15 And as adults, you know, we've already researched it 25:19 and contacted some people, 25:20 and we know things that children don't know 25:23 regarding addiction and things like that. 25:25 And so we can have that effect of meaningful conversation 25:30 and really help steer our children 25:31 if they need help, and, you know, 25:33 we want them to be honest, we don't want them to hide that 25:36 because the faster we can get them in for treatment 25:39 and get them the right tools and education 25:41 to make that life change, the better. 25:44 If they're not, and they're in the experimental phase, 25:46 oh, what a blessing. 25:48 Because, okay, they tried it a couple times, 25:50 yeah, that's, you know, it's kind of upsetting, 25:53 but a lot of kids do. 25:55 Statistics show that high rates of seniors, 25:58 I think, I don't have my information, 26:00 but it's in the upper 60s to 70%. 26:03 High school senior? 26:05 High school seniors have tried something 26:07 at some point in time, at least once. 26:10 So with rates that high, the possibility 26:12 that they may have tried something 26:14 and you caught it at that stage, that's great, 26:16 but it's to remain calm 26:19 and to approach it from a concerned, 26:21 caring perspective. 26:24 Not that, "You're grounded for life, 26:25 I'm going to remove everything, 26:27 you're going to learn not to do this. 26:29 And I'm calling your grandma, and I'm telling people, 26:33 so that they will talk to you too," 26:36 you know, that's not the correct approach 26:39 if you're wanting the result 26:40 that we all want for our children. 26:43 And that's for them to open up, to have that honest discussion, 26:48 and to help them 26:50 hopefully steer them in the right direction. 26:51 Yes. 26:53 You know, because even marijuana, 26:54 smoking marijuana, 26:56 kids perceive it as safe because... 26:59 They misperceive it. 27:00 Yeah, they misperceive it as safe and it's not. 27:05 It may have a municipal purpose to it 27:07 for a certain disease state. 27:10 But whenever I talk to teenagers, 27:12 I say, "You don't go home 27:13 and take, you know, your parents, 27:16 you know, overactive bladder medication 27:19 or you know, you're not searching that out. 27:23 That's because that's intended for a specific disease state. 27:27 Right, right. 27:29 And, you know, if marijuana was prescribed, 27:31 it's for something severe to where the benefit 27:33 would outweigh the risk. 27:35 And for adolescents, it can actually pause 27:37 their frontal lobe development. 27:40 That's something I didn't even know as a teenager, 27:42 no one told me that, you know, 27:44 smoking marijuana could pause the development. 27:46 And the frontal lobe is where you make your judgments. 27:49 I can't believe our time is up. It's up. 27:51 Oh, my, God. 27:53 Michele, thank you so much. What a great information. 27:54 Thank you so much for the opportunity 27:56 to come back. 27:57 Absolutely. I really appreciate it. 27:59 And thank you, thank you for joining us. 28:01 Join us next time, and remember, 28:02 it just wouldn't be the same without you. |
Revised 2018-10-08