Talking to 15yo niece about alcohol... need advice...

[Indadhanu]

Thanks for that mrsmac

[sushee]

Leasha,

I only just saw this and I think Lulu's given you great advice. At this age, kids value their friends' opinions over anyone else, and you're in the unique position of being in that 'in between' stage of being young enough to be cool but old enough to lend some experience to what you say.

I have to admit, I never allowed my kids out overnight unsupervised, but it did not stop them from drinking whenever they got together at their friends' homes, where the parents who were supervising them were the ones who supplied the drinks. So I think these days, there are those sorts of pressures on kids to drink alcohol no matter where they turn.

I think the best we can do as adults is to be good examples, drink responsibly ourselves, talk frequently about the negatives of alcohol (that relate to them, like pashing a boy you wouldn't normally give the time of day to, or having your friends make fun of you because you did something stupid while drunk) and hope for the best. Peer pressure is such a difficult thing to counter, and I reckon that unless she becomes convinced that drinking is uncool - and I think that requires a society-wide change of attitude - parents are always going to be battling with teenaged drinking.