TALK ABOUT MaRIJUANA

Child: “Would you rather me drink alcohol? Marijuana is so much safer.”

• Adult:  “What is going on in your life that makes your feel like to you want to drink alcohol or use marijuana?”

Child: “Marijuana is just a plant. How harmful could it be?”

• Adult: “I would much rather you find healthy ways to cope with difficult feelings that turn to other drugs. Can we brainstorm activities?”

Child: “But it’s legal in some states; why would they make something legal that could hurt me?”

• Adult: “Let’s look at alcohol; it’s legal, but causes damage, including DUIs, car accidents and other behavior that can lead to jail time. Alcohol can also cause major health problems, including liver and heart and problems and is linked to some forms of cancer.”

Child: “But you smoked marijuana when you were younger.”

• Adult: “I’m not going to pretend like I didn’t, and that’s why I’m talking to you about this.  I will tell you that when I did smoke, my  decisions weren’t great and the only thing  that prevented me from getting into some horrible circumstances was luck.”
   
   
   

  or “You may or may not believe this, but I never smoked marijuana when I was a kid. It didn’t  have a place in my life, and would have  interfered with the activities I enjoyed.”