Countering Drug Culture

Go To Drug Meeting, Or No Prom!

2009-11-02T13:27:00.003-05:00

Attend a drug meeting or forget the prom. That's an order directed not at students, but at parents in one Suffolk County town taking the aggressive step to battle heroin abuse among teens. Read more...

Educating parents essential to fight heroin addiction

2009-10-29T09:47:00.001-04:00

The Smithtown school district's mandated heroin education-for-prom swap is an idea worth replicating across Long Island.
The premise of the program - which appears to be the first of its kind on Long Island - is deceptively simple.
Parents of seniors must attend a meeting where they hear about everything from what heroin does to adolescent brains to what's being done in the community to combat the growing problem.
And, after some 90 minutes and a take-away informational handout, parents leave better informed about heroin, which is complicating the already difficult job of parenting across the region.
In return for parents' attention, Smithtown seniors are cleared to go to the prom and other senior-class activities, including the senior banquet in January.
"The goal is to get as much information out there as soon as we can," said Edward Ehmann, the district's superintendent. Read more...

Parent Resource Night

2009-10-28T15:39:00.001-04:00

Click here for details.

Smithtown grapples with rise in teenage heroin use

2009-10-06T07:07:00.002-04:00

source: newsday.com

Steps Away From A Detox Program, Addicts Find Drug Dealers And A Place To Get High

2009-07-13T08:44:00.004-04:00

For complete coverage of the heroin scourge read LI Press articles here.

Sunny - and Safe - Summer Days

2009-07-06T08:50:00.001-04:00

click on photo for tips

DA: Suffolk heroin dealers busted

2009-03-30T15:06:00.000-04:00

Three kilos of heroin. Fifty firearms. OxyContin, marijuana, cocaine. Over $200,000 in U.S. currency.March 14 marked the largest heroin drug seizure in county history, Suffolk District Attorney Tom Spota announced at a March 19 press conference. Thirteen people were arrested in what was called Operation Guapo. Read more...

Casting Light on Dark Corners

2009-03-29T15:11:00.001-04:00

Long Island drug enforcement efforts took a dramatic shift this week with the debut of a "drug mapping index" on both the Nassau County Police Department’s website and Suffolk County government’s homepage. Read more...

Drugs in our Town: What's a Parent to Do?

2009-03-12T18:24:00.000-04:00

Monday March 9th the Smithtown Central School District will be hosting a profound and timely Parent University special. Click here for details.

CONVERSATIONS FOR PARENTS

2009-03-11T08:41:00.001-04:00

Do you have a teen in your life? Do you sometimes hesitate to ask questions or monitor your child for fear of smothering him? Do you suspect that your teen is hanging around the wrong crowd or could potentially be engaging in some risky behaviors? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you’d probably benefit from hearing “Conversations for Parents” and reading expert advice based on these specific situations.

1,000 attend Smithtown meeting targeting drugs, kids

2009-03-11T08:28:00.000-04:00

Click here for link to Newsday article.

Please Share Your Feedback

2009-03-10T06:56:00.002-04:00

Please follow-up on the panel discussion by submitting comments to further open the dialogue between all the constituents that are vital in confronting substance abuse in our town.

Time To Act!

2009-02-26T15:06:00.006-05:00

How to tell if your teen is using and taking action to intervene.

2008-12-17T08:42:00.000-05:00

2008-10-08T22:18:00.001-04:00

Heroin Facts & Figures

2008-10-08T22:16:00.000-04:00

Heroin is a highly addictive drug and is the most widely abused and most rapidly acting of the opiates. Heroin is processed from morphine, a naturally occurring substance extracted from the seed pod of certain varieties of poppy plants.
Pure heroin, which is a white powder with a bitter taste, is rarely sold on the streets. Most illicit heroin is a powder varying in color from white to dark brown. The differences in color are due to impurities left from the manufacturing process or the presence of additives. Another form of heroin, "black tar" heroin, is primarily available in the western and southwestern U.S. This heroin, which is produced in Mexico, may be sticky like roofing tar or hard like coal, with its color varying from dark brown to black.
Heroin can be injected, smoked, or sniffed/snorted. Injection is the most efficient way to administer low-purity heroin. The availability of high-purity heroin, however, and the fear of infection by sharing needles has made snorting and smoking the drug more common. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) researchers have confirmed that all forms of heroin administration are addictive. Read more...

Not In My House

2008-10-08T21:57:00.007-04:00

Every day, 2,500 teenagers use a prescription drug to get high for the first time. They're accessing these drugs in the comfort of home; it can be as easy as opening a cupboard, drawer, or medicine cabinet. The good news - there are steps you can take to help protect your kids from prescription drug abuse: monitor, secure and dispose. This site, created by Abbott and The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, shows you how.

It is strongly recommended that you watch the 'What The Experts Say' video on this site. Not only does it tell a powerful story, it is extremely instructive in pointing our ways to deal with issues and the steps of where and how to get help.

Does your "don't do drugs" talk include the ones in the
medicine cabinet? Gary and Jordan Neal, a family who lost a son to teen prescription drug abuse, nationally-renown addiction specialist Dr. Kathleen Brady, noted teen psychologist Dr. Anthony Wolf and founding member of Partnership for a Drug-Free America Tom Hedrick explain the many facets of this problem and what parents can do to help protect their children.

Dying High: Teens in the ER

2008-09-18T18:41:00.009-04:00

This hard hitting, reality-based video gives viewers a chance to see what goes on inside the nation’s emergency rooms as doctors treat teens for some of the most common types of injuries among young people: drug overdose, alcohol poisoning, car wreck traumas and more. Dying High offers a glimpse into the nightmarish reality of what can happen when young people take risks with their health, their safety and even their lives. New federal data indicates a 20% increase in drug–related ER visits for teens under the age of 17. Yet drug-related emergencies are only part of the bigger picture. This video presents a series of episodes which allow viewers to see common life-and-death ER moments. The goal of this video is to remind teens that risk–taking behaviors can often lead to serious injury and death.

Click on the image above to watch a preview in Quicktime.

Click here to buy this video.

Long Highland

2008-09-18T18:41:00.008-04:00

Heroin: It's "This Generation's Drug of Choice"

Click on the image to the right for another gripping article from the Long Island Press which shockingly confronts the notion that parents truely know what their sons and daughters may be taking part in.

According to the Nassau County Medical Examiner, young white males make up the majority of drug deaths. While it is not all heroin, the
majority of the deaths are from opiates.

Save My Child

2008-09-18T18:41:00.007-04:00

This article from the Long Island press graphically illustrates the severe difficulties parents on Long Island are facing as a nascent heroin epidemic ravages their lives.

Parents are desperate to help their heroin-addicted children but they are hitting roadblock after roadblock.

One lesson all the parents tell is this: If you think your child is immune, you are mistaken.