Teen Portal
Everything we do is aimed at saving youth across America. That includes you!
Take a few minutes and get familiar with the resources we have available on this page to help you in making sound, rational decisions so when it comes to dealing with life’s challenges, you are able to make positive, informed choices. We want you to have the best life you can create!
Teens: Submit Your Story!
Do you have a personal story that might help other kids? Please share it!
Vaping Me Crazy
How to Quit Vaping
Vaping is a NATIONAL CRISIS! We MUST ACT NOW!
IT IS TIME TO EDUCATE AND EMPOWER THE KIDS
We absolutely cannot treat vaping as ONLY a legal issue – even with THC and other illicit drugs in them.
We MUST treat this as a medical issue because IT IS ONE – no different than Smoking Cessation which is considered PRIMARY PREVENTION.
VAPING IS MORE DANGEROUS THAN CIGARETTES. In truth, even 2ND hand vape exhalation is more dangerous to bystanders than 2nd hand cigarette smoke. There are MORE carcinogens and MORE toxins being exhaled from a vaper into the immediate environment.
VAPING IS HARDER TO QUIT THAN CIGARETTES. The reason for this is that the concentration and TYPE of nicotine in vaping devices are MUCH HIGHER than cigarettes. The impact on the brain is more powerful causing a greater risk of dependency and addiction. Most vaping is among adolescents and with their brain not being fully developed, they’re more susceptible to addiction.
Vaping Prevention for Kids
WAYS TO GO ABOUT QUITTING:
- Share your decision to quit vaping.
When you impart your desire and efforts to change a habit, those changes are not only likely to become permanent; they become an inspiration for your entire peer group. We are social beings, and we respond to social cues. TELL YOUR LOVED ONES AND ENLIST SUPPORT! - Believe in Yourself.
Sounds cliché but this is paramount. Kids MUST believe they have the power to quit, and the strength to conquer the addiction. - Break down the nicotine routine.
Write down in a log when vaping occurs and why you do it. Then develop the “how.” - Break the habit by looking at habitual downfalls.
Habits are easier to break with a plan. Developing the tools and utilizing the skills to execute the plan are KEY. Consider a “test run” for a day or two at a time. - Reduce usage and nicotine levels.
Drop the levels of nicotine and the number of times each day. Then adjust the number of days each week until you don’t need it anymore. - Replace it with something else.
Buy gum, hard candies, toothpicks and mints to fight cravings and urges. - Continue to fight the cravings.
Drink HIGH PH+ waters, Gatorade, Powerade, and other high sugar drinks when cravings arise. Eat high cocoa chocolate, high carb and sugar snacks when cravings come on. - Develop coping skills.
Find other things to do. Starting journaling, reading, listen to music, meditate, pray, breathing exercises, yoga, working out, running/walking, or group support. Develop new habits and behaviors. Make a list of things you can do to cope and USE THEM. - Make the Mental Shift.
Focus on the positive and picture the future YOU. Literally imagine yourself VAPE FREE! - Distance yourself from peers who continue vaping.
You must, must, must not hang around people who still vape and won’t stop. Friends who don’t respect your decision to quit, are not your friends. Lean on positive people. Commit and re-commit every day as to WHY you are quitting. Celebrate your WINS! You can do it! Students, parents and educators MUST understand that vaping is harder to quit than cigarettes. For these kids who still have undeveloped brains, the vaping products contain a HIGHER CONCENTRATION level of nicotine (SaltNic). There are no products on the market that have ever been tested on KIDS! This is a medical issue, yet we are not treating it as one. Find out more and what you can do to stop vaping in our youth.
Fentanyl: Fake & Fatal
Is fentanyl dangerous? Yes, fentanyl is dangerous for many reasons:
- It is often impossible to tell if a powder or pill contains fentanyl. You can’t see it, smell it or taste it. Even your dealer, or friend offering you a pill or vape, might not know what they are selling or offering or how strong it is.
- Because fentanyl is so strong, the difference between a dose that will get you high and a dose that can kill you is very small. As small as a few grains of salt.
- You can overdose even if you use someone’s prescription patch and know the dose. Everyone handles fentanyl differently. One person’s dose can kill another person.
- If someone is using other drugs at the same time—for example, other opioids, alcohol or sedatives such as Xanax, Valium or Ativan—the risk of overdose is even higher.
Kids Are Dying
This trailer for the Documentary, “Kids Are Dying” covers the epidemic overdose problem. It was shot in New Jersey but could have been anywhere in the United States as it is prevalent across our country. It probably even exists in your own back yard. Overdose death is now the #1 leading cause of accidental death in America. It is real, and kids are literally dying from drugs in record numbers. We need to unmask this suburban epidemic that affects us all.
Tools For Teens
Sometimes you need help on things that are NOT taught in middle or high school. We want to make sure you have access to some of those tools to help you build a successful life. Learning new things does matter. The choices you make are important. Yes, you can make your dreams come true.