Guarding Your Child Against Underage Drinking

Government data collected in 2005 states that almost 10.8 million Americans ages 12-20 say they consumed alcohol in the past month. 65% of kids who drink claim they get alcohol from family and friends. Make no mistake, your middle school student knows what is going on and knows where to find alcohol if they really want to experiment. So before they are placed in a situation they are not sure how to handle, discuss your thoughts on underage drinking with your child.

Establish your values.

Kids can be very literal and may not know exactly how you feel about under age drinking. Tell them in short sentences exactly how you feel. Tell your child, “I am against underage drinking”. By removing all doubt and setting things straight regularly, your child will hear your voice in their head each time underage drinking becomes an issue. Leave nothing to doubt. State your values up front and often.

Take advantage of everyday opportunities.

Don’t make the mistake of having a long, drawn out conversation of the horrors of underage drinking. They will stop listening after the first three sentences and you will be wasting your breath. Instead of long conversations, use short one or two minute chats several times over the life of your child to discuss the issue. Take advantage of daily opportunities to talk about alcohol effects such as make remarks during a movie where kids are drinking, state your opinion while reading a newspaper article about teens that are not drinking, or talk to your child about the cause of a car accident that is on the television news. Short little bits of chatter will stick in their heads more easily than long lectures.

Help them say no.

Kids don’t need to go into lengthy discussions with their friends about why underage drinking is not acceptable. When someone offers your child alcohol, teach your child to say things such as: “No way! My parents will ground me for a month” or “No, I like to know what I am doing at all times” or “No, I want to keep all my brain cells.”  Sarcasm works well with kids. Allow them to practice their own way of saying no when offered alcohol.

Set consequences before hand.

Kids will make mistakes. Expect them and plan for them. Let your child know before he makes the mistake, what their punishment will be. Setting consequences that fit the mistake will act as a deterrent in many teen situations. If he knows he will be unable to send text messages for a whole week, he might say no more quickly. Setting rules and guidelines, as well as discussing consequences and punishments, are important parts of parenting and child safety.