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| Parents gather to prevent drug use |
By: SUZANNE ROOK
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NORTHFIELD - Greg hadn't even started high school when he smoked his first joint.
It took days to find his first bag of pot, the young Northfielder confessed to a roomful of adults. But once it was his, there was literally no turning back.
Greg, now sober and attending college, says his middle school years were plagued by feelings of insecurity. Getting high, he said, made the vulnerability disappear.
"It was like a total release," he said of his drug use. "Everything I was trying to get rid of and trying to cover up, it didn't matter."
From marijuana, Greg said, it was onto alcohol, then harder drugs: cocaine, LSD, pills and heroin. Eventually, he said, he became what he didn't want to be - an out-of-control druggie. But he was powerless to stop using.
"I was in denial about drugs: this can't be the reason why my life is screwed up," he told himself.
For almost 45 minutes Tuesday, Greg recounted the drugs, the drinks and the mistakes he made; sometimes laughing and for a moment, crying when recalling how his choices hurt the people he loved.
His admission and that of former classmates were a part of a program designed to help area parents understand drug and alcohol abuse, learn how to get help and where to find it.
The program - called After the Headlines - was sponsored by Northfield Public Schools, the Healthy Community Initiative, the Rice County Chemical Healthy Coalition, the Mayor's Task Force on Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse and the Parent Communication Network. It was held at Northfield Middle School.
The program, a response to this summer's headlines alleging anywhere from 150 to 250 Northfielders, ages 15 to 23, were using heroin, began with a presentation by Carol Falkowski, a Department of Health drug abuse researcher.
Other sessions led by local law enforcement, school officials, students, a drug abuse counselor and a pastor followed.
During each of the sessions, parents were given information, including local resources for addicts and their families.
"It is our hope that this single event will not only provide information for the community, but also will serve as a springboard for on-going efforts in the community to support our youth and their families," Hannah Puczko, Northfield schools' community education director, said earlier this month.
Communication
Falkowski, who reports on trends in drug use in the Twin Cities, said today's teens are using drugs and alcohol at younger ages and are often nonchalant about illegal drugs, making them less likely to see them as harmful. And drugs, Falkowski said, are easier than ever to get.
Prescription drugs are among the most accessible, she said, with higher numbers of teens reporting that they can quickly find them in their own homes.
But it isn't just drugs that Minnesota teens are abusing. The state has some of the highest rates in the nation for teenage drinking.
More than 45 percent of high school seniors say they've had a drink in the last year.
Sarah Shippy, a drug abuse counselor who works in Northfield, said the area not only has a couple of treatment facilities, but is home to several Alcoholics Anonymous groups as well as a Narcotics Anonymous and a methamphetamine support group.
Shippy, who has often worked with local police, recommended that parents who suspect their children are using drugs contact police.
Local police, she said, are very willing to help parents talk to their teens about the consequences of drug and alcohol use, without resorting to making arrests.
Shippy also recommended parents not make a practice of snooping through their child's belongings - unless they suspect problems.
"Don't go through their things 'just because,'" she said. "But do you need to keep your eyes and ears open? Yeah, talk with your kids."
Keeping the lines of communication open was also a chord Falkowski hit. It's important for parents to talk to their children about expectations - and not just once.
But it's also critical, she said, that the community's message is constant and consistent.
"There is no immunity to drug problems," she said.
- Suzanne Rook can be reached at srook@northfieldnews.com or 645-1113.
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