Week 10 Post 2: Binge Drinking

Binge drinking can be treated, and in some cases rehab is needed if the alcohol addiction is serious.

For starters, talk with a parent, other trusted adult or friend for help in getting treatment for the binge drinking.

Avoid situations where drinking is going on and talk with others about the cause of the binge drinking.

Week 10 Post 1: Binge Drinking

For as long as there have been an age limit on drinking, there has been underage drinking, and those who are underage and drink in large amounts. Binge drinking, which drinking alcohol frequently and to excess, is a trend among today's youth.

What binge drinking can lead to:

-alcohol poisoning

-missed schoolwork/missing out on extracurricular activities

-"blacking out"-drinking to the point that one becomes unconcious

Why do youths binge drink?

-the youth might want to feel "older"

-curiosity; what would drinking that amount feel like?

-alcohol may be perceived as a stress-reliever

Week 9 Post 2: Tanning

More and more, youths (mainly girls) think being tan is "beautiful". This has created a nationwide tanning craze.

Indoor tanning can give a person darker skin, but there are risks involved. UVA rays of light penetrate to the skin's inner tissue and can raise the risk for basal cell, squamous cell and melanoma cancer.

Other risks of tanning include:

-skin might age prematurely due to overexposure to ultraviolet light

-overexposure to ultraviolet light can damage the eye's retina

There are alternatives to tanning beds. To get darker skin, try airbrush tanning or sunless tanning lotions or sprays.

Week 9 Post 1: Bullying

If your child is being bullied, here are some tips to help the situation:

-get the facts on when and where and what type of bullying occurred

-do not contact the parents of the bully

-Do contact school officials: report the bullying without getting overly emotional

-emphasize that you want to work with administrators to make the bullying stop

According to tweentrends.suite101.com, the three R's work well in redeeming bullying acts:

-Restitution
-Resolution
-Reconciliation

Week 8 Post 2: Bullying

Why do youths bully others?

There are many reasons a youth might bully someone else:

-low self-esteem

-the need to gain popularity

-negative world view; might view violence in a positive light

-the child might have been bullied and now bullies someone else

-the youth might be jealous of the person he or she is bullying


Several signs that your child may be being bullied are:


-anxious to go to school

-unexplained bruises

-trouble sleeping

-loss of sleep

Week 8 Post 1: Bullying

What is bullying?

Bullying is a form of verbal or physical harrassment a person inflicts on someone else. In youths, bullying can be seen in various forms:

-intentionally leaving a person out of a group

-physically hurting another person; intimidating the person

-sending rude or hurtful text messages or emails to someone

-spreading bad rumors about someone

-calling someone mean names

According to Groundspark.org, in America, nearly 1/3 of youth are teased at least once a month, 60% of American teens see bullying at least once a day and 3.2 million kids in grades 6-10 are bullied each year.

Week 7 Post 2: Bulimia

Bulimia nervosa is a damaging, physically and emotionally stressful disease in which a person eats excessively (sometimes called "binging") and then tries to negate the effects of the eating through several practices (vomiting the food back up-called "purging", over-exercise, fasting or other ways).

There are several ways to treat bulimia:

-counseling (psychotherapy); talking about your condition and talking about what issues might be causing the bulimia

-seeing a dietician to learn healthy eating habits and developing a plan to meet nutritional and weight goals

-antidepressant medications might also help