Dear Tatiana,
My son admitted to vaping marijuana a few times. How should we handle?
Signed,
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous,
Your job is to respond unemotionally, non-judgmentally, sticking to the facts and the natural consequences. Start with validating the value of his honesty and how that impacts trust in your relationship with him. If he understands that freedom and trust goes hand in hand, he may be more motivated to continue to be honest. Acknowledge that marijuana use is illegal for recreational use in the State of Georgia. Acknowledge what the value system is for your family. That may sound something like this “we are a drug free family.” Help him understand what the natural consequence of his decision is. That may sound something like this, “because we are a drug free family, we expect you will also be drug free while living here. If we suspect drug use in the future for any reason, we won’t be comfortable with you driving our vehicle (going out with your friends unattended, going without talking to someone who specializes in drug use in teens, whatever fits the needs of your family etc.) These would be things we would have to do because we love you and want to help you stay safe.”
Best,
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