You have to take responsibility for your actions and that's an important thing to teach your kids. Recently, Cohen and her 19 year-old son had a conversation in which he told her that he had tried marijuana. I thought it was great that he was open with me about it. But rather than just preaching to her son about the dangers of drugs, Cohen said she talked to him as a friend and as someone who could relate. They know the stuff is bad for them, but at a time when they're trying to fit in and be cool, that doesn't matter.
Some boomers remember their hippie days as a fun time when the whole country was a little reckless.
They may think their teenage children will outgrow drugs just like they did. But experts say that may not be true. While the urge to experiment hasn't dissipated over the past 30 years, the stakes have changed. Before parents discuss drugs with their teenagers, they should know the important differences between the drugs of today and those of yesterday. While marijuana, hashish, cocaine, and heroin are still the drugs of choice among the younger generation, they are far more potent than they were 20 or 30 years ago.