Press Release

Monitoring Your Teens

My name is Jenn Harper and I am the proud mother of two. I coach Minor Girls’ Softball, and believe that parent-child respect and communication is essential to healthy families. As a parent I feel it is an important to be informed about underage drinking issues and I found the following information to be helpful.

Think back to your own teenage years. Many of us made choices that make us cringe today, and we’re thankful that we escaped serious harm. Those experiences should be a potent reminder that it’s always good to trust your teens but also to verify what they’ve told you. This is where monitoring comes in.

Monitoring is keeping tabs on your teenagers. It includes knowing where they are, whom they are with, what they are doing and when they will be home. It means asking questions, having your teens check in with you regularly, and checking up on them as well.

Here are some tips:

• Let your teens know you will be monitoring so they know what to expect.
• If you suspect your teen is getting into trouble, make occasional surprise visits to confirm your teen is where he or she is actually supposed to be. Let your teen know you may do this from time to time.
• Be respectful. Ask, don’t interrogate, your teen about activities and whereabouts.
• Have a standing rule of “no parents, no party” so your teens understand they are not allowed at any party without adult supervision.
• Get involved in your teen’s school and activities.
• Get to know other adults in your teen’s life, including parents of your teen’s friends.
• Check in with teens about their spending and where their money is going.
• Monitor your teen’s physical and mental health and watch for signs of problems.
• Require your teens to check in with you when they get home at night. This serves as a deterrent to alcohol use because your teens know they will have to say goodnight. It also gives you an opportunity to check for signs of use, such as odors on clothing.
• Let teens know that safety is a priority and if they ever feel unsafe, they can call you.

How much monitoring is enough? There are times when you probably need to step up your monitoring. When there are changes in your teen’s friends, behaviors, attitudes, grades or other signs that something is going on. When your teen is going through a transition, such as starting a new school, seems unusually stressed, seems highly susceptible to peer pressure, lacks strong coping skills or suffers from anxiety or depression. If your teen has a high need for stimulation and becomes bored easily, or comes from a family with a history of substance abuse problems.

If you strongly suspect something is going on, you have good reason to do more hands-on monitoring. Talk to your teen, reiterate your rules and expectations and enforce consequences.

Information in this article was found in Navigating the Teen Years, written by the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign. You can also find this entire publication at www.kccn-dfc.com.

The Kittitas County Community Network/Drug Free Communities Coalition and the Community Network agency, through a federal Drug Free Communities grant, are implementing the “Start Talking Before They Start Drinking” campaign as a community service for parents. For more information go to www.kccn-dfc.com.