October is National Substance Abuse Prevention Month. Red Ribbon Week is the nation’s oldest and largest drug prevention program reaching millions of Americans during the last week of October each year. By wearing red ribbons and participating in community anti-drug events, young people pledge to live a drug-free life and pay tribute to DEA Special Agent Enriqué “Kiki” Camarena.

Special Agent Camarena was an 11-year veteran of the DEA assigned to the Guadalajara, Mexico office where he was on the trail of the country’s biggest marijuana and cocaine traffickers. On February 7, 1985, he was kidnapped, brutally tortured, and murdered by Mexican drug traffickers. His tragic death opened the eyes of many Americans to the dangers of drugs and the international scope of the drug trade.

RAYSAC (Roanoke Area Youth Substance Abuse Coalition) and Blue Ridge Behavioral Healthcare are excited to once again sponsor Red Ribbon Week in the Roanoke Valley as a way to demonstrate our commitment to a safe and  drug-free Roanoke Valley.

All schools in the Roanoke Valley – Roanoke City, Salem City, Botetourt County, Craig County and Roanoke County public schools and all private schools in our area – are encouraged to participate in the week-long drug and alcohol awareness events to promote a drug-free lifestyle for our youth from October 21^st – October 27^th.  Elementary, Middle, and High Schools can compete for school awards which are given to the schools that best illustrate the spirit of Red Ribbon Week. Individual students in Elementary school participate in a poster contest; Middle and High school students participate in a media contest.

This year’s theme is “Life is Your Journey. Travel Drug Free.”™ The Candlelight Ceremony and awards presentation will take place a week after Red Ribbon Week on Sunday, November 11^th at 3:30pm at the Hotel Roanoke.  For more information about the contests, the Candlelight Ceremony and RRW activities, please visit www.RAYSAC.org.

Parents, talk to your children about Red Ribbon Week.  Ask them what their school is doing to raise awareness about alcohol and other drug abuse. Use your voice; they will listen!

This month’s RAYSAC Radar is written by Zoe Farmer, a local high school student and member of RAYSAC Empowered Activist Leaders (R.E.AL. Team).

An alarming new trend known as Juuling has made its way into the hands and health of teens in the Roanoke Valley and across the nation. Concerned teachers and medical professionals are struggling to get the word out as new information regarding some of the dangerous side effects of e-cigarettes are being revealed just as the Juul has begun to make its way into the classroom.

A Juul is a type of vaporizer designed to be compact and discreet. Its long, slender black body strongly resembles a flash drive and can even be charged in a laptop’s USB port. This makes it an easy accessory for teens to hide from adults. As a Junior in high school, however, there’s no hiding the presence of this device in the lives of most of the students. It’s visible in the empty and cracked pods littering the parking lots, in the sickly strawberry-scented vapor lingering in the bathrooms, and in the constant stream of Juul-related posts on social media. There are signs of it everywhere, and yet, not much has been done to educate the public or prevent it from spreading.

I’ve done some investigating at my school in order to figure out what it is exactly that draws so many teens to the Juul. Below I’ve compiled a list of some of the things I’ve noticed dedicated Juulers always talking about.

• As I mentioned above, it’s small and easy to carry around everywhere.
• They’re extremely easy to buy. Teens are constantly selling them online or passing them around among friends. At 17, if I wanted one, all I’d have to do is ask.
• They’re simple to use. Juice refills come in packs like a carton of cigarettes and the Juul itself is charged just like a phone.
• They’re popular. Teens are easily persuaded to follow what their peers are doing. Just as it used to be in style to smoke cigarettes without actually knowing the health risks involved, the same is happening today with young vapers.
• They don’t think it’s bad for them. This is the most common and most dangerous excuse I hear. When asking friends at school why they choose to vape, nine times out of ten they’ll respond with something along the lines of, “Why does it matter, it’s just vapor.”

It’s important to go over what makes Juuls so dangerous and why they are often misconstrued as harmless alternatives to smoking. Vogue magazine recently published an article highlighting how the vape pen has made its way into the fashion world and the various risks associated with the rise of a new nicotine product into mainstream media. For one, e-cigarettes usually contain nicotine, just in smaller dosages than traditional cigarettes. This makes them a healthier alternative only for current smokers trying to wean themselves off cigarettes and escape the harmful smoke and tar associated with them.

• For non-smokers such as young teens, e-cigarettes can have the opposite effect, hooking them on nicotine and pushing them to start smoking or experimenting with other drugs.
• Another alarming feature is its lack of FDA regulation. The industry only just came under the FDA’s authority in 2016 and little is known about what chemicals are actually contained in the vapor.
• Some have concerns about the solvents used to make the various flavors, such as propylene glycol and glycerin.
• Others question what metals come off of the device’s heating coils.
• In the end, when you choose to Juul, you have no way of knowing what kind of toxins might be entering your body.

With the number of teen cigarette smokers decreasing each year, I fear that the rise of vaping products, such as the Juul, filled with nicotine and other harmful chemicals, will bring about its rise once again. It’s extremely important to spread awareness about these growing trends in order to protect current high school and college students, as well as rising generations of pre-teens from the devastating grasp of addictive and harmful chemicals. I hope that by educating more adults on some of the reasons why kids my age have taken to e-cigarettes so quickly, they will be more equipped to know how to stop it, how to educate their children, and how to realize what’s happening if a child is to get involved.

It may not always feel like it, but physical pain from an injury or surgery can actually be helpful.  Feeling pain keeps us from pushing too hard to use our bodies when it needs to rest. Pain keeps us from moving injured limbs as a way of protecting them from further damage. Opioid medications, which are very popular for treating pain, don’t take the pain away – they simply trick the brain into thinking the pain is not there.  As a result, people tend to overwork their bodies when they should be resting, which causes additional problems and can make recovery take longer than it should.  An extremely important thing to remember about opioid medications is that they can cause harmful side effects and place the patient at a high risk for dependence and addiction. The United States uses about 80% of the world’s opioid pain medication despite being 5% of the world’s population, and the number of opioid prescriptions nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2014.

If you are preparing for surgery or are already experiencing pain from an injury or medical problem, there are effective ways to treat pain without using opioid medication:

• Injections or nerve blocks can be used to treat pain in a specific area. Doctors can inject medication that blocks or dampens pain over a series of injections or ongoing treatment.
• Creams and ointments that reduce inflammation, increase blood flow and lessen pain to a specific area may be helpful. They are available over-the-counter and also by prescription.
• Surgery may be necessary for correcting whatever is causing the pain.
• Physical or Occupational Therapy exercise programs designed to improve mobility and function can decrease pain. Methods that may be used in physical and occupational therapy include whirlpools, ultrasound and deep-muscle massages.
• Sending low-voltage electrical signals to the painful area through patches attached to the skin can provide short-term relief, especially to muscles. This is done in a doctor’s office but over-the-counter devices are available as well.
• Mindfulness techniques including meditation soothe the brain patterns underlying pain and, over time, these changes take root and alter the structure of the brain itself, so that patients no longer feel pain with the same intensity.
• Psychological counseling, depending on the patient’s specific pain concerns and history, can be helpful. Daniel Berland, M.D., Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at Michigan Medicine says, “Many patients have had things happen to them in life that make their brains react excessively to the pain they have in their bodies. It’s not because they’re crazy or want disability, but instead their brain’s response to pain has been effectively altered by their lives.” Options for counseling-based treatment include biofeedback, hypnotic analgesia and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).
• Non-opioid medication options include Tylenol, anti-inflammatory drugs called NSAIDs (Ibuprofen) and others that can help with pain, mood and sleep. Some antidepressant and anticonvulsive medications have shown to help pain as well as mood and sleep.  Patients should talk to their doctors before starting these medications, though, because they can have dangerous side effects.
• Massage causes relaxation and pain relief. In addition to relieving physical pain, massage can reduce stress and increase positive emotions.
• Acupuncture. Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese practice in which fine needles are inserted into various “acupuncture points” on the body to treat pain. It sounds painful, but the needles are so tiny that it doesn’t hurt. This practice is known to provide significant pain relief when done regularly.
• Tapping, otherwise known as EFT or Emotional Freedom Techniques, is a combination of ancient Chinese acupressure and modern psychology. EFT is free, can be learned fast and very effective.
• Herbal remedies/supplements. Some popular supplements that can help decrease pain include fish oil, glucosamine, probiotics, melatonin and magnesium. You definitely want to research and ask your physician before using herbal remedies and or/supplements, as certain herbal remedies can interfere with prescription medications.
• Watching what you eat can help reduce post-op inflammation and pain. Inflammation around the surgical site is a common cause of pain and discomfort after surgery. Foods that cause inflammation are refined carbohydrates including white bread, pastries and refined sugar, fried food, sodas and processed foods. Foods that help reduce inflammation include tomatoes, olive oil, green leafy vegetables, nuts, fatty fish and fruits.

It’s important to do plenty of research, talk to your doctor and set realistic treatment goals for your pain management.  Trust yourself to know what is best for your body.

Parents, consider using alternative methods for managing pain in your home.  Your teens need you to set an example for them!

Today’s guest post is written by Gemma B., a high school student here in the Roanoke Valley who wants to encourage other teens to find their natural high.

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A natural high is finding joy in performing activities you feel passionately about without the use of drugs or alcohol.  When participating in an activity you enjoy, dopamine is released in your brain, a natural chemical which increases your happiness and benefits your overall mental health.  Personally, my natural high comes from playing soccer.  Playing soccer provides me with a way to forget about the stresses of school and focus on something that pushes me to become the best version of myself.  Through playing soccer I have not only gained physical strength, but mental strength too.  By working relentlessly to reach my goals I have learned that hard work pays off.  As a result, I have gained a sense of accomplishment and purpose.

However, not everyone’s natural high comes from playing a sport.  For example, you may find hobbies such as skateboarding or photography to be your natural high.  Additionally, do not be discouraged if at first it is difficult to find the activity that clicks for you.  Try stepping out of your comfort zone and experience something new; you may be surprised at the overwhelming benefits to follow.

The following information was adapted from 7 Ways to Get Rid of Negative Energy and Become Positive by Chris Talambas.¹

Negativity affects ourselves and everyone around us. It limits our potential to become something great and live a fulfilling, purposeful life. Research has shown that people who develop negative energy experience more stress, more sickness, and less opportunity over the course of their lives than those who choose to live positively.  Negativity affects ourselves and everyone around us. It limits our potential to become something great and live a fulfilling, purposeful life. Negativity has a tangible effect on our health, too. Research has shown that people who cultivate negative energy experience more stress, more sickness, and less opportunity over the course of their lives than those who choose to live positively.Although negative and positive thoughts will always exist, the key to becoming positive is to limit the amount of negativity we experience by filling ourselves up with more positivity. Here are some ways to get rid of negativity and become more positive.

Become grateful – for everything.  When we begin to be grateful and appreciate everything in our lives – from the small struggles that make us better, to the car that gets us from A to B every day – we shift our attitude from one of selfishness to one of appreciation. This will make your life more fulfilling and more positive.

Laugh more – especially at yourself.  Becoming positive means taking life less seriously and letting yourself off the hook.  Are you sensitive to light sarcasm?  Do you have trouble laughing at jokes?  Usually, people who are stressed out and overly serious get most offended by sarcasm because their life is all work and no play. If we can learn to laugh at ourselves and our mistakes, life will become more of an experiment in finding out what makes us happy. And finding happiness means finding positivity.

Help others.  The most basic way to create purpose and positivity in your life is to begin doing things for others. Start small; open the door for the person in front of you at Starbucks or ask someone how their day was before telling them about yours. Helping others will give you a sense of value that will transform into positivity.

Change your thinking.  We can either be our best coach or our best enemy. Change starts from within. If you want to become more positive, change the wording of your thoughts. We are the hardest on ourselves, and a stream of negative self-talk is damaging to a positive life.  The next time you have a negative thought, rephrase it with a positive spin. For example, change a thought like, “I can’t believe I did so horribly on this task” to “I didn’t do as well as I hoped to on this task. But I know I’m capable and I’ll do better next time.”

Surround yourself with positive people.  We become most like the people around us. If our friend group is full of negative people who love drama, we will act like them and also become negative. It is very difficult to become more positive when the people around us don’t show positive behavior.

Get into action.  Turn negative stress into positive action. The next time you’re in one of these situations, walk away and take a break. With your eyes closed, take a few deep breaths. Once you’re calm, approach the situation or problem with a pen and pad of paper and write out four or five actions to begin solving the problem. Taking yourself out of the emotionally-charged negative by moving into the action-oriented positive will help you solve more problems rationally and live in positivity.

Take full responsibility; stop being the victim. You are responsible for your thoughts. People who consistently believe that things happen to them handicap themselves to a victim mentality. Blaming circumstances and blaming others only handicaps our decision to change something negative into something positive.

    Parents, you are your teen’s most important role model.