Mixing Alcohol and Energy Drinks Equals Danger!

I likely blogged about this last year, but it is an important reminder for both teenagers and adults. Mixing alcohol and energy drinks (or any caffeine really) can be even more dangerous. For a person drinking drink after drink that contains alcohol, the body is negatively affected as alcohol is basically a poison. At some point, the body will say it has had enough and shut down.....by passing out. However, if that same person is drinking alcohol mixed with energy drinks (Red Bull and vodka for example), the caffeine tricks the body into thinking it is not drunk enough to pass out and not tired enough to pass out. This keeps the person awake and the person likely continues to drink. This gets them even more drunk and could cause them to have complications due to alcohol poisoning, and in some cases cause death. Pretty scary stuff that some of our kids think is just a natural way to drink alcohol. The worst part is that our teens are smaller and more negatively affected by alcohol so mixing of these two types of drinks can have even more damaging or deadly effects. To read more, click on this blog post from DrugFree.org

Red Ribbon Week Next Week, But Wear Red This Friday!

Although Red Ribbon Week starts next week, at Carlisle we like to "kick" it off a little early. Red Ribbon Week has a tradition of wearing red on Friday, but we do not have school next Friday. So we are asking our students, faculty, parents, and community to wear red THIS Friday, October 19th to get us off to a good start. Since we are playing our rival Norwalk in the regular season football finale, this is another great reason to wear red on Friday. If you are wondering what Red Ribbon Week is, here is a little blurb we put in the Wildcat Weekly this week:




KICKOFF RED RIBBON WEEK
Red Ribbon Week is being celebrated October 23rd– October 31st. As a kickoff to Red Ribbon Week we would like all students, teachers, and community members to WEAR RED on Friday, October 19th. The Carlisle High School Students Taking Action Not Drugs (STAND) group will be conducting activities throughout the week to spread awareness about the harmful effects of substance use to students in the district. This year’s theme is “PAWS-itively Drug Free.”



Red Ribbon Week was originally created to honor the memory of U.S. Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who gave his life in the fight against drugs. He was killed after discovering a multibillion dollar drug ring in Mexico that slipped drugs over the border and had a history of violent encounters. The week has since evolved into a country-wide week dedicated to preventing drug use and showing the pledge that many 
students have taken to stay drug free. 


Red Ribbon Week Website for more information

Stomp Out Bullying Day: Monday, October 1st

     We are asking staff, students, and community to wear blue on Monday, October 1st, to show our united effort to stomp out bullying in our schools and community. In fact, we will use the whole week to raise awareness about the problem of bullying and the long term and possibly deadly effects bullying can have on a young person. Our district counseling staff has been and will continue to get data from students, staff, and parents by using surveys. This data will not only include questions about bullying, but questions about a wide-range of needs a student, staff member, or family member may have. As a team, we then review this data and fine tune our plan to address these needs. With a problem like bullying, counselors and teachers cannot solve it on their own. We need the help of students and families as well. Mr. Barry and Ms. Flagor went to a special showing of the much-talked about documentary "Bully" this summer and participated in an hour-long post-movie conversation. The last statement, made by a high school, student really drove home the issue and solution of bullying. She said "Teachers can try all they can. Parents can try all they can. People can make laws and rules and hang up signs and have special days. But in the end, the solution to bullying is with the students. Students must step up and say this isn't right and bullying is a terrible thing. Students listen to students. So when students start sticking up for each other, only then can we truly solve the issue of bullying." I believe she is right. We can all make a difference, but we all need to plant the seed in a child's head about how terrible bullying can be and teach them strategies to avoid being bullied and how to stick up for others who are being bullied. And then we just hope that seed grows and spreads among all students. So, please wear blue on Monday, October 1st and show your support for our efforts in Stomping Out Bullying. Please see the websites below for more information.

 Stomp Out Bullying website

Stop Bullying.gov

As Suicide Prevention Awareness Week Comes to a Close, Bring Someone Out of the Darkness

Short and simple video that has nothing to do with Suicide Prevention Awareness, just a great invention that is helping people enjoy a simple luxury: light in their house. But wait....does this have meaning to Suicide Prevention Awareness Week? I think so. I think we can all do something simple to provide light in people's life. I think we can seek people out who live in darkness and help them. And I don't think it takes a special person or a genius mind, I think it just takes a small amount of time to find someone who is in a dark place and try to help them see the light. We can all help be a part of the solution. Have a great weekend!

This Week is National Suicide Prevention Week

 

       This week is National Suicide Prevention Week in our country. Our recent local data on the Iowa Youth Survey shows that we have anywhere from 5-12% or our middle school students thinking about suicide, making a plan to commit suicide, or even attempting suicide. At the high school, those numbers rise to near 19% in some cases. That means 1 in 5 of our high school age students have had suicidal thoughts! If that is not scary enough, state and national averages are very similar. As a counselor, it is sad and downright scary to think that a handful of kids that walk into my classroom every class period could be contemplating suicide. This is a problem affecting our teens today. But it is not just affecting teens, it is affecting adults. Adults who have lost their job, going through family splits, and especially adults returning from active duty in combat. This is a great week for all of us to re-focus on each other and reach out to someone who is in need. People who are contemplating suicide typically do not reach out for help. They feel hopeless (Hopelessness is the #1 cause/symptom of suicidal ideation) so they will not seek help. We need to seek them. We need to help them. We need to give them hope. Only then can we start lowering those scary percentages listed earlier in this post. So please keep your eyes, ears, and hearts open this week and every week for those who need a lift. And please try to provide that lift or help them find the help they need. I have placed a link below with TONS of resources and information about suicide such as warning signs, support numbers and groups, and what the common person can do to help. Please click the link and educate yourself so that you can be part of the solution. Thank you!

Suicide prevention Week information and resources

----Lots of information on the website above, but I did want to copy/paste information from one part of the website showing you just how severe the problem is and why we need to work to prevent this from happening. See information below.

Scope of the problem

Suicide occurs when a person ends his or her life. It is the 10th leading cause of death among Americans. But suicide deaths are only part of the problem.  Suicide attempts impact a larger population—more individuals survive suicide attempts than die. And they are often seriously injured and in need of medical care.

Suicide Deaths in the United States

• There are far more suicides each year than homicides. In fact, in 2009, the number of suicides was  about twice that of homicides.
• More than  36,000 people kill themselves each year.

Suicide Attempts in the United States

• There are an estimated 12 attempted suicides for every one suicide death.
• More than 374,500 people with self-inflicted injuries are treated in emergency rooms each year.
• More than 163,000 people are hospitalized each year due to self-inflicted injury.

Age Group Differences

• Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 25- to 34-year olds and the third leading cause of death among 15- to 24-year olds.
• Suicide among 45- to 54-year-olds is a growing problem; the rate of suicide is higher in this age group than in any other.
• Although older adults engage in suicide attempts less than those in other age groups, they have a higher rate of death by suicide.  Over the age of 65, there is one estimated suicide for every 4 attempted suicides compared to 1 suicide for every 100-200 attempts among youth and young adults ages 15-24.

Gender Disparities

• Men die by suicide four times as often as women and represent 78.8% of all U.S. suicides.
• Women attempt suicide two to three times as often as men.
• Suicide rates for males are highest among those aged 75 and older.
• Suicide rates for females are highest among those aged 45-54.
• Firearms are the most commonly used method of suicide among males.
• Poisoning is the most common method of suicide for females.

Racial and Ethnic Disparities

• The highest suicide rates are among American Indian/Alaskan Natives and Non-Hispanic Whites.
• Asian/Pacific Islanders have the lowest suicide rates among males while Non-Hispanic Blacks have the lowest suicide rate among females.