Whether you just have some questions about alcohol and drugs, or you or someone you know needs substance abuse help, there are resources available to get you what you need.
What to do if you need help now
For crisis intervention:
Call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
For Hearing and Speech Impaired with TTY Equipment: 1-800-799-4TTY (4889).
Boys Town National Hotline
Boys Town National Hotline is a 24-hour crisis, resource and referral line staffed by highly-trained counselors who can respond to your questions about family and school problems, pregnancy, suicide, chemical dependency, sexual and physical abuse. They also have a chat room staffed with trained counselors. Call 1-800-448-3000, 24 hours a day/7 days a week.
Covenant House "NineLine" Hotline
This is a general hotline for teens with any kind of problem&ndashfrom substance abuse to family and school problems to relationships, The Covenant House's expertise is in dealing with homeless and runaway youth. Call 1-800-999-9999, 24 hours a day/7 days a week.
For treatment:
Call the Substance Abuse and Mental health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) Treatment Referral Routing Service at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or use their online treatment locater at http://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/.
The service is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing substance abuse and mental health issues. It provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations. Callers can also order free publications and other information in print on substance abuse and mental health issues.
For a comprehensive list of hot lines and treatment locators, visit http://www.checkyourself.com/Hotlines.aspx.
Check Yourself
Ever wondered if you or someone you know might have a problem with alcohol or drugs? Have there been a few times where you partied a little too hard and worried that you might not know where to draw the line? You’re not alone. Visit checkyourself.org for an online quiz, videos, drug info, stories, and resources to help you get a handle on where you stand.
Alcohol Screening: Is drinking alcohol harming my health now, or will it be harmful to me later in life? Should I stop drinking alcohol? Am I a binge drinker? If you consume alcoholic beverages, it's important to know whether your drinking patterns are safe, risky or harmful. http://www.alcoholscreening.org/
You are Not Alone
You Are Not Alone is dedicated to helping the families of the 11 million American teens and young adults who need treatment for drug or alcohol abuse — that's 1 in 7 teens and young adults! With your help, we can lower the barriers families face in getting young people the treatment and recovery support they need. Help us transform stigma and isolation into hope and change. Visit the You Are Not Alone web site here.
R U Worried About a Friend?
Does your friend seem like a different person when they drink or get high? Maybe they have been letting you down lately and you think it's connected to drug use. Or maybe some of the things they do when they are drunk or high are just scary. This can be a difficult situation to deal with, and sometimes the situation gets worse before it gets better. Don't make excuses. Talk to your friend. CLICK HERE to help a friend.
Facts Matter: Get the facts about drugs
In a matter of seconds, you can make a secision that will affect the rest of your life. With so many voices and opinions out there, sometimes all you need is the knowledge to make your own decisions. Visit the Above The Influence drug facts web page here.
Live Above the Influence
Above the Influence. It’s a state of mind. It’s about being yourself and not letting negative influence get to you. Pressure to drink, do drugs or do anything that goes against who you are in order to fit in—that’s negative influence. And if you’re one of the teens who want to stay above it, then visit the Above The Influence web site here.
For Teens . . . By Teens
This year CAPA youth coalition members along with the Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School Students Against Destructive Decisions Club (SADD) is sponsoring a new initiative; because the consequences of alcohol abuse and drug addiction are devastating and no age group is more vulnerable that youth ages 15-24.
According the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on average someone is killed in an alcohol-impaired driving crash about every 50 minutes. Every one of these tragic consequences started with one decision.
Rather than merely focusing on asking students to “Resist”, the youth felt it would be more powerful if students were given a decisive goal, to resist for one night. With that objective in mind the students developed their new slogan for the year, “Tonight . . . Resist”.
To market their slogan, student Myles Rapkin has created a t-shirt logo which included a QR code to make it easy for the casual observer to connect using their Smartphone with other individuals who have taken the pledge to “resist” via Facebook.
T-shirts have been handed out for those youth who have taken the initiative to put the pledge into action by "liking" the Community Awareness and Prevention Association facebook page. This page will provide the link through which students and adults alike can connect on topics that are relevant to the health and wellness of our communities.
For additional information about how to participate in this initiative and receive a free t-shirt contact the Community Awareness and Prevention Association CAPA @ 440-740-4750 or email lazark@bbhcsd.org