The vaping conversation with the two teens I parent was so illuminating that I held a similar discussion with a group of teens I teach and who serve on our school’s student council. Three themes emerged that are helpful to parents and other caring adults:
JUUL, vape, pens, mods, tanks, ENDS…no matter what you call e-cigarettes, they are ubiquitous. If I’m aware of vaping everywhere, you can bet our tweens and teens are, too.
Are they able to say No to vaping — over and over again? I did some research and then asked my own teens.
Many years ago after we’d run the gauntlet of infertility diagnoses and treatments, we set out on a new and daunting journey, that of adoption. We thought that meant waiting in a long line until our number came up, when an agency would call us with news that we’d gotten to the top of the list and our baby was available. We’d live happily ever after, never to think about adoption again.
Turns out all that was wrong. There would be no line, no list, no adoption-be-gone. Instead, there would be an expectant mother considering adoption (and possibly father), and our fate would be in HER hands. Further, she/they might want to be involved in our lives now and forevermore.
Continue reading How I Opened to Open Adoption