Teens Risking Their Lives on Spring Break

Teens Risking Their Lives on Spring Break

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

filed under: family

Momlogic wanted to know exactly what happens on spring break, so we went to Ground Zero -- South Padre Island, Texas. What we found will shock you -- take a look.

So, how can you keep your child safe? "The most important thing is to set limits," says ML pediatrician Dr. Cara Natterson. "If you know the situation will be wild, don't let him or her go. It is equally important to keep talking to your child. Bluntly tell him or her what worries you. Use short-term examples like: 'You won't to be able to play sports next week,' instead of talking about long-term addiction or eventual loss of brain cells."

Dr. Natterson points out most most teens can't anticipate consequences because, "their frontal lobe, the C.E.O. of their brain, isn't fully developed yet," which is why so many teens still live like there's no tomorrow. "While it is true that the chemistry of the teen brain will often win out over your words of warning -- your words are still valuable," says Dr. Natterson. "Every time you sit with your child and have that talk, it's another piece of hay on the haystack. Eventually the stack gets big enough that you are influencing your child's decisions."

Ready to have the discussion? Download our discussion guide.

Dr. Cara Natterson, a graduate of Harvard University and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and author of "Your Toddler: Head To Toe," is a pediatrician and mother of 2. She is working on her forthcoming book, "Dangerous or Safe?"

49 comments so far | Post a comment now >>

I don’t buy that teens can’t make good decisions. I am thankful that I was capable of making mostly good decisions for myself growing up, particularly concerning drugs, alcohol and sex. I grew up very close to my mom and stepdad and got really good advice from them.

- responsible adult

Posted 03/24/09 01:06 AM

i think older teens can make good decisions regarding their safety on spring break. i went to s. padre 3 times during my college years and had a blast but i also knew my limit with drinking and stayed with friends at all times. ok maybe one time we stole a couple of margarita’s while in mexico and could have ended up in mexican jail so maybe that wasn’t so smart but the waiter never came back with our tab:) my point is they can be safe if they look out for each other and keep tabs on the drinking. and as the “don’t let them go” part if they are in college they don’t really need your permission (unless you’d be the one paying) and no way in he&* will my dd be going in high school, that is a recipe for trouble.

- mollysmom

Posted 03/24/09 09:18 AM

“Heavenly Father, please shake and wake up America. I pray earnestly for our American People. Heavenly Father, I beg for forgiveness that I was unable to teach them that you are the Parent of all humankind. Heavenly father, I will invest all my energy and prayers here in the spirit world until the day when all the American people become Gods true children”. Franklin Delano Rosevelt, 32nd President of the United States, 1940 AD in the year of our lord.

- john

Posted 03/24/09 11:45 AM

What did Jerry Springer do before he was a talk show host? And Tyra Banks is a talk show host with other jobs. Howard stern and Oprah are how rich?

- john

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