Drug Risk-Minimisation booklet in schools

Not sure if this has been posted yet, but anyway, I think its a big step in the right direction. If anyone has received, or does receive this booklet, I'd love to borrow your copy for a read sometime.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,8035984%5E662,00.html

Cheers,
Doooofus

i havent seen it but its about frikkin time hey.

and to think its the Uniting Church thats encouraging this. its great i reckon...because ppl can see that there are positives as well as negatives, without them just saying "dont take drugs"

Well from that read it seems like great news. It's interesting that the more progressive thinking churches are appearing to be less conseverative than the current federal government in their approaches to drug education.

You can order copies from here. I commend them for their approach to this issue, however without even reading the content, i fear for the way it was written. Below is the 'comic book like' cover the news article was talking about and I have to agree with them, it is designed to entice the readers. I believe it was designed this way to target the younger demographic to read it, however it could be interpreted as making drug use appealing. I wouldn't have included any kind of illustrations as ridiculous as these, it cheapens the very important issue that is at hand and you don't need silly cartoons detracting from the very important content.

From the looks of it, itis not just saying drugs are bad though. It is about time that the wider community educated young people to the pros and cons and let them decide how appealing the drugs are. Better than a big book saying DRUGS ARE BAD! Anyone managed to have a read of it yet?

cowboy mac, i agree.........
before i read your post i was like.... how cool and accurate are these cartoons, they look like they are having alotta fun.
even the dude spinnin the wax has one of them hats.



i think some more accurate cartoons would of been some of the aftershow, and after days. And even some1 G'd out on the cover... harsh but thats reality.

Yes I have read the book and I have a copy available here at VIVAIDS, if you are keen to have a look.

Overall given the book is published by the Uniting Church, it is fairly informative without pushing the 'just say no' message.

However I do still feel that it is not a resource suitable for all target groups aged between 16-25 like they are marketing it as.

For school children who have had no exposure to party drugs, it is a great resource in outling the risks associated with party drug use, but as it tends to state on each page 'the downsides' then 'the extra risks' associated with each drug plus the horror stories experienced by users, I found it to be slightly insulting, and I don't think users of party drugs would find it very informative.

I was concerned by the accurateness or phrasing of some of the content eg ' ecstasy is a substance that is toxic to the brain. It can damage both mind and body. '

I wouldn't really recommend it as a complete harm reduction resource, and when I undertake 'safer partying' workshops with school students (yr 10, 11 and 12), my main resources that I disseminate still are the Enlighten brochures, because of how comprehensive and informative they are.

Unfortunately the 'Big Book of party drugs' does not mention pill-testing, but I can understand that the Uniting Church does not have the freedom the push the boundaries like RaveSafe in its literature.

oh -- I forgot to mention that Bluelight is one of the recommended sites to visit on the back of the book.

When I was young (13-up) I read Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers



Do I think this made drugs more attractive to me? Marginally perhaps. What it did do is reveal many areas and topics I'd never heard of before. Such was the power of he underground press in the US at the time. But any curiosity I had I followed up by looking further. Around the same time (3-4 years before I took any drug) I also read an ecology mag which detailed the marijuana fiasco and its relationship to hemp.

For me it was the continual uncovering of facts purposely concealed from the public. I wanted to know the reasons these drugs were illegal and part of that was discovering their actions. I will say this without reservation, that much of what drove me to experiment, was to discover what we were not told. Most descriptions of drug actions did not detail the pleasant side. I could never understand why people would want to do them if that's all you could expect. Unless of course they weren't giving us the whole picture

Getting back to the booklet; I realise that the intent of the cover is show people having fun and thereby be interesting to teenagers. I think it pretty well sums it up - a typical club environment - complete with wobbly legs and one or 2 who look like they've overdone it. Nothing really new to kids who watch movies, V or Rage, but then again some parents restrict what their kids watch. We never have so such issues don't exist.

The fact is that a drug experience is alluring to many people, young and old. For some this starts as soon as it is realised it can be done. Presenting the reality in it's entirety leaves no mystery and as teenager inquisitiveness is what it is; a driving curiosity.

Isn't the next question coming from the lips of a 14 year old better to be "How does Ecstasy damage the brain?" Rather than whispering to a friend at the next desk "I wonder what it's really like?"

Let's take the "wonder" out of drug education. It may destroy innocence, but it potentially preserves a lot more.


Without reading the booklet I can side with RaveSafe Vics' view on the age suitability of the material. Apart from ~20 years of co-parenting, I'm certainly not qualified in this area, but IMO these issues should be taught at a much younger age, with the final HS years involving a level of drug discussion similar to the more involved topics raised on Bluelight.

As for labeling MDMA toxic to the brain; I think this is possibly sound education at this level. All drugs are toxins. Any substance that significantly alters homeostasiss is. Providing a ground up understanding from this level enables a clearer picture when learning the actions of a drug. Relative toxicity comes later, although this can be initially explained by comparing with potency. Get this bit right and I believe most grade 12 students could leave with a sound understanding of dose response and an even better picture of the actions of drugs.

A thorough life/drug education leaves no stone unturned IMO

To quote Monty Python:

...Get it out in the open....I know I have!