420, 4:20, or 4/20 is cannabis culture slang for marijuana and hashish consumption, especially smoking around the time 4:20 p.m., and also refers to cannabis-oriented celebrations that take place annually on April 20. At locations in the United States where cannabis is legal, cannabis dispensaries will often offer discounts on their products on April 20. (Credit: Wikipedia)

Today is April 20th – 420 and that makes today a very good day to remind adults who have cannabis in the home (or car) to keep it secure to prevent small children and teens from having access – to keep our youth safe. Like alcohol, some teens may search for cannabis products in the home. Locking it up is an effective way to prevent teen use.

One Prevention Alliance is happy to provide you a FREE lockbox for your cannabis or other medications. Simply email Karen Douglass or give her a call to arrange a time and location for pickup. Karen.douglass@esd112.org 509-952-3330

Parents and caregivers have a significant influence on their children’s decisions about using marijuana (or tobacco or alcohol or other drugs). The most influential factor during adolescence is maintaining a strong, open relationship where conversations (listening and sharing) can take place. When parents create supportive and nurturing environments, kids make better decisions.

BELIEVE THIS: Teens really do hear their parents’ concerns, which is why it’s important that parents discuss the risks of using substances.

This resource might be helpful if you are a parent that needs to begin these conversations: mj_parents_facts_brochure.pdf (nih.gov)

Whether it’s smoked, eaten, vaped, or dabbed, cannabis can have effects on your health. While we understand adults choose to use cannabis for positive reasons, we’re here to share a few of the not so good effects. These effects can be magnified with chronic and persistent use.

Potential Health Effects

Memory

Research shows that heavy cannabis use can impact your memory. Those effects can continue for weeks after you’ve quit. So just remember, the more you use, the greater the risk.

Learn more about how cannabis can affect your memory from the University of Washington’s Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute.

Mood and Mental Health

Because it interacts with your brain chemistry, regular cannabis use may make you feel depressed, anxious, or paranoid. You also could feel unmotivated or lose interest in what you’re doing.

Dependence and Addiction

As an addictive substance, quitting cannabis can be hard. Heavy users may experience cannabis withdrawal in the form of irritability, anxiety, or sleepiness.

If you need help quitting, contact the Washington Recovery Help Line at 1-866-789-1511.

Side Effects

While cannabis can be natural, it’s not free from harm. Too much cannabis can lead to side effects—like impaired judgment and coordination, panic attacks, hallucinations, paranoia, and psychotic episodes.

Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS)

Chronic, or persistent, cannabis users may be at risk of Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS). CHS is an illness that causes recurring vomiting. For people experiencing CHS, frequent hot bathing may help. But researchers have found that CHS tends to continue until people completely abstain from cannabis.

THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST PUBLISHED and can be found here: Your Health | Know This About Cannabis

One Prevention Alliance is a community coalition dedicated to reducing and preventing drug and alcohol abuse.

We use a community and school-based model for delivering prevention programs and strategies to reduce underage use of alcohol, marijuana, opioids, tobacco, and other drugs. This model uses a data-informed, community-level decision making process to determine root social and emotional causes that predict problem behaviors.

OPA has a vision of healthy youth, successful families and a thriving community.

Email: karen.douglass@esd112.org
Website: https://onepreventionalliance.org/
Location: Skamania County
Phone: 360-952-3330
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OnePreventionAlliance