Pubdate: Thu, 06 Nov 2014
Source: Oakville Beaver (CN ON)
Copyright: 2014, Oakville Beaver
Contact:  http://www.insidehalton.com/oakville-on/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1600
Author: Michael Gregory

PROGRAM TO GET TEENS AND PARENTS TALKING ABOUT DRUGS

The federal government estimates 80,000 Canadian youths used
prescription drugs to get high last year and has launched a marketing
campaign to get parents talking to teenagers about the effects of
illicit drugs, including marijuana.

Halton MP Lisa Raitt recently launched the Health Canada campaign in
Oakville as part of the government's $44.9-million, five-year expanded
National Anti-Drug Strategy.

"We know that prescription drug abuse and marijuana use can have
devastating effects on our families and communities," said Raitt, who
made the announcement on behalf of Health Minister Rona Ambrose.

Both television as well as Internet and social media ads will run
through December, illustrating the harms and effects prescription drug
abuse and marijuana can have on teenage brains, and bodies.

"With the launch of this new media campaign, our government is
encouraging parents to talk with their kids about the harmful effects
of marijuana use and prescription drug abuse with new resources to
support these conversations," Raitt said.

Youth Smoking Survey

According to Health Canada's 2012-2013 Youth Smoking Survey, the
average age for those youth trying marijuana for the first time was 14
years old.

A London, Ont., woman attended the media conference and spoke about
her son, who she said was a frequent user of marijuana in high school
and was eventually arrested on drug-related charges.

"He hated school and got high several times a day. He rarely passed a
course at school despite being a very bright kid with potential beyond
belief," she said. "At home he was argumentative, disconnected and
increasingly violent."

The woman said she looked after her son during his teenage years while
he was on house arrest for possession, but they "clashed" and she was
forced to call police to the home.

Hardest decision

" I called the police - it was easily the hardest decision I've made
in my life," she said.

The woman said she found comfort and advice in a parent's support
group. During that time her son was picked up again by police for drug
trafficking and court ordered to live with her again.

The woman said the strategies she learned in the support group to
communicate with her now adult son led to improvements in his
behaviour. He moved on to complete his high school diploma and now
works and lives on his own.

The abuse of prescription drugs in Canadian communities is just as
prevalent and Raitt described it as a "major health and safety issue."

"We now know as well that Canadians are the second largest per capita
consumer of prescription opioids," she said. "Quite frankly, these
numbers are frightening and they're unacceptable, and that's the
reason why the government's taking action,"

A study conducted by Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital and the
Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences found one in every eight
deaths for Ontarians between ages 25 to 34 was related to the use of
pain killers in 2010 - up from one in every 25 in 1999.

"The overarching message here is that too many Canadians are abusing
prescription drugs and too many kids are going to something they call
pill parties," Raitt said.

A recovering Oxycontin addict, Chris Cull, recently returned to his
hometown of Bowmanville, Ont., after a 7,500-kilometre cross-Canada
bike tour last summer as part of a documentary he is filming about
prescription drug abuse.

The 29-year-old described being a "complete vegetable" for the better
part of two years as he started to pop Oxycontin pills to cope with
the suicide of his father, who had suffered from Huntington's disease.

"I lost everything in my life that meant anything to me," he said,
describing how he hit "rock bottom" and went on to successfully
complete a harm-reduction program after trying to quit cold turkey on
three occasions.

The experience inspired Cull to document the stories of addicts, both
current and recovering, and the people who are part of their lives.

"What I found across the country was troubling to say the least - this
problem exists everywhere," he said. "It's not just the one addict
that is really the problem, it's the multiple people that are affected
by it - it's the families, the friends and the connections of that one
person."

Cull hopes his documentary, once released, will play a part in raising
awareness around what he calls an "epidemic."

"I'm thoroughly convinced if we can really work together and create a
dialogue amongst everybody=C2=85. that we cannot only change our country,

but change the world in the process," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Matt