Marijuana, legal or illegal, how do I talk to my children about it?

In California, we are about to vote on the legalization of marijuana, not just for medicinal purposes, but for recreational use as well. This has, of course, sparked much debate in various media outlets and homes across the state.
There are the questions of policy: Are we just doing this because we are broke? How much more money will it bring our state? How much money will we spend on programs to regulate marijuana usage? How much do we spend policing marijuana now? How much will usage go up if marijuana is legal? What affect will this have on society as a whole? Will this impose undue stress on an already stressed police force? Will it alleviate some burden of a stressed, clogged legal system? Why, historically, was marijuana made illegal in the first place? What about tobacco, why was tobacco never made illegal? What about alcohol, that was legal, then illegal, then legal again? Do we have the right to tell people which substance they can put into their body, and which they cannot? What about our neighbors in Mexico that are fighting a horrible drug war, presumably over their best customer, the United States of America? Which is harder to police, drug cartels and drug dealers, or recreational drug users?
There are the questions of health: How exactly does marijuana affect a user’s health? What are the short term, long term effects of usage? Is it any worse than cigarette smoke? What about tequila, whiskey, extended use of pain killers? What exactly is the difference between pot and other controlled substances to your health? Can it combat obesity? Is it possible that smoking marijuana can act as an anxiety reducer? Does it increase your risk of cancer? Does it cause mental illness? Does it prevent mental illness? Is it possible to get a “contact high”? Does second hand smoke come into play? Is it a gateway for abuse of harder, stronger drugs?
Then, there are the questions for parents and their children, arguably the most difficult: What is the big deal, anyway? Did you ever try it? Did you ever use it regularly? Do you ever still use it? Will you buy some if it is legal? Am I condoning usage for my own children by voting to legalize it? Do I never want my kids to try it? Do I never want them to take a sip of alcohol? When is it ok to experiment? Where and when does the conversation start between parents and kids?
All of these questions, questions, questions…. And the experts qualified to answer these questions seem better described as advocates, either for or against legalization. Law enforcement, politicians, historians, doctors, researchers, scientists, therapists, advisors, all of them outright contradicts each other. They have a position on whether marijuana should be legal or not, and use that position to answer questions of health and policy. It seems that for every study or projection done, there is another study, budget or projection that counters it, supposedly bigger, more prestigious and less biased than the other. For all of the debate, for all of the questions that have been raised and the answers attempted, the consensus boils down to shockingly few. The only things both sides of the issue regarding policy and health can agree on are the following:
1) Marijuana is the most used narcotic of all Americans and all Californians. That means that even though it is illegal, people use it anyway.
2) Marijuana usage continues to rise, in spite of its illegality.
3) As much as usage has risen and will continue to rise, it will more sharply rise if it is legal. The statistics and projections conflict, but no one disagrees that if legal, more people will use it.
4) Driving under the influence of marijuana is just as dangerous as driving under the influence of alcohol, and should be illegal, same as alcohol, regardless of the drug’s legal status.
5) Long term usage does have ill effects on an individual’s health and well being. The amount of usage and the term of usage that will do harm are not agreed, but the fact that prolonged usage will put your health at risk are not negated.
6) There are some medicinal properties associated with marijuana usage, noted especially for pain management and anxiety control. So much so that currently, marijuana is legal in California for medicinal purposes.
That is it, the only consensus on both sides of the issue. The answers to all of the other questions of policy and health are speculation, estimation and prediction. Where does this leave parents? How can you start a dialog with your kids when you might want marijuana legal for everyone but them?
There is a very real possibility that in our children’s’ lifetime, marijuana will be made legal, even if it does not pass this election. Accordingly, it is a debate that is not going to go away for them. And since people use it now, they will likely be confronted with marijuana sometime in their future, regardless of its legal status. When this happens, the more information they have, the better.
So, start a conversation with them, at an age commiserate with their maturity, life experiences, family and social dynamics, but probably around middle school age, 10 or 11. Start the conversation by asking them what they know about marijuana. Ask them what they have heard about the debate and follow up with the undisputed facts surrounding the debate. Discuss why marijuana is popular with people, why a person might choose to disregard the law for marijuana. People are curious about what it will feel like, looking for something to do, have developed a habit for it and cannot stop.
Talk about what it means to become a habit and the dangers that a habit will become an addiction, which is the danger of all drugs. Talk about what it means to be an addict, not just a drug addict, but a person that cannot stop something, is overtaken, overwhelmed, and hostage to their addiction. This can be food, alcohol, legal drugs, illegal drugs; it is possible to be addicted to many substances and many behaviors. No one wants to be an addict, no one starts out as an addict, no parent wants that for their children and no child wants to become that. So let them know that experimentation puts them at risk for regular usage, and regular usage puts them at risk for addiction, and addiction will upset their lives, sometimes beyond repair. Give them examples and share experiences of family and friends, talk to family physicians, teachers, and other parents that can help your children understand risks associated with experimentation.
When it comes to the legalization debate, explain your position as clearly as you can. Let them know that whether or not marijuana is legal, being responsible and understanding consequences associated with marijuana usage is critical to a person’s well being. With freedom of choice comes greater responsibility.
Your decision, as a parent, to share your own personal experiences with marijuana or other substances is highly personal and likely to depend on your background. Some parents feel that telling children about their youthful experimentations leads to the feeling among children that it is ok and expected for them. Other parents cannot ask their children to be honest, while being dishonest themselves. Either is understandable, but in the long run, it is probably best to be as honest as possible, while maintaining some privacy about the past. At the end of the day, your experience shapes them, like it or not, and whether they are learning from your mistakes or learning from your example, it is almost guaranteed that they will encounter marijuana as youths, legal or illegal, with or without your voice in their head.

eIndividualHealth.com is a full-service insurance agency that offers practical health insurance advice to individuals, families, young adults and small businesses. Eindividualhealth is the sister company of Filice Insurance, one of the largest employee benefits and insurance consulting firms in Northern California, serving large and mid-size business consumers.
We put the best health insurance professionals in the business at your fingertips, helping you navigate, simplify and find the right health insurance plans for you and your family. Now you can browse, compare, analyze, and apply for health insurance that meets your needs and budget, in the privacy of your own home.

Employee Individual Health Insurance Services
Erik Jensen
738 North First Street, San Jose, CA 95112
Corporate License #0G26025
Phone: 888-887-4325

This release was published on openPR.