Parents Urged to Adopt Tough Love Approach to Children Abusing Drugs

Executive Director of the National Council on Drug Abuse (NCDA), Michael Tucker, is appealing to parents to adopt a tough love approach when dealing with children, who are substance abusers.
“You need to be tough and resolute in doing what is necessary,” he urged parents. “You must have an approach of tough love, you need to help the youngster to get over this,” he stated at a recent JIS Think Tank.
According to Mr. Tucker, parents need to be informed about substance abuse and its effects because they too need to be part of the solution and not the problem. He noted that too often, parents support their children’s drug habit by giving them money, even though they know that their child is using drugs.
Information from a National School Survey conducted by the NCDA in 2006 reported significant experimentation with alcohol, ganja, cigarettes and crack cocaine, inhalants and beadies in youngsters between the ages of 11 and 19.
The Executive Director is appealing to parents to get professional help from substance abuse officers attached to the NCDA.
“There is help that is available.contact us at the National Council on Drug Abuse,” he advised. “Our substance abuse or field officers are actually trained in primary treatment; they can engage the youngster and do an evaluation of what is happening.counsel and start the process and they can also recommend the treatment options and make referrals to health professionals that can assist that youngster,” he pointed out.
Meanwhile, Director of Information and Research at the NCDA, Ellen Grizzle is encouraging parents to be positive role models for their children.
“Parents can’t be users themselves and be positive role models for their children,” she pointed out.The National Council on Drug Abuse is located at 2-6 Melmac Avenue, Kingston. They can be contacted at 926-9002-4.