Parents ~

I've always wondered how many other parents frequent this section of the forums? And if so, how many children do you have, and what ages? And how do you feel about letting the children know about your smoking, if you do let them know, how would you apporach the subject?
lol just planning ahead of time because my son is only 18 months old :tongue: I figured out what my parents were up to at about 15 (well, one set of parents, that is!) and my sons mother is a BIG TIME MEGA SMOKER so Im sure he is going to find out sooner or later. I dont smoke any more than once a week, but I also feel that there is nothing wrong with it. At all. Ever.

 

i'd be more concerned with the needle shit first. but that's just me personally

 

You won't even really have to approuch them. At least for a kid, I have a pretty good idea of what my parents are doing. They'll find out sooner of later.

 

I don't smoke anymore but I have in the past and I have been very honest with my kids about it. Even still I continue to inform them about marijuana and my believes on smoking. I started by explaining to my oldest about laws and cops and how if people knew what I was smoking that I could go to jail but I also explained to her that I did/do not agree with those laws.. but for safety sake we had to not talk about it.. that and I let her also know that it wasn't a big deal not that the consequences weren't potentially serious but that the drug wasn't what people were trying to make it out to be.. and this was reinforced by my behaviour while I was smoking.. if anybody would know it would be her.. I still played with her and fed her.. I still acted responsibly... for me smoking hasn't been about "getting high" not that I haven't enjoyed the feeling.. but more so it has been about me keeping my headaches at bay.
she was two or so when she started talking about smoking so that's when I took my cue to start explaining.. small steps really...
now I have four children and I handle it pretty much the same way as with my oldest.. age appropriate discussions.... Alex is 9 tomorrow and then I have James who is 5.. Kat (Katharine) is 3 and my wee one.. Mia is 7 months old

 

when im at home sometimes i'll be on hipforums and my dad will be like "Why are there marijuana leaves on that background?"

me - "because it's a Marijuana forum"

dad - "oh"

 

Come do Drawings, thank you for sharing how you handled the situation! I guess every child is different and you have to feel it out for yourself based on how your child is, but this is pretty solid experience that Im sure will ring in the back of my mind when my time comes to explain

And Digital, your short post speaks volumes of history, pretty self explanatory. Thank you, as well, for sharing (Im not being a dick, I mean it)

 

Of course! But, my question was more along the lines of letting my son know that I, personally, smoke, and how to tell him and explain it. Because as much as I think that I am a good parent, I learn from him every day (Im a single father so I am trying to do this on my own) and I was hoping to hear from experienced parents how they themselves told their children about what they do and that it is ok, bla bla bla you see what I mean Im sure?
And if anyone could preach the evils of the needles, look no further. I started using when I was 17, opiates at 14 but never railed until 17. Im not on it anymore but I saw where that shit takes you. I still use Morphine orally from time to time when I can spare some spending cash and am having high stress levels, and I am not proud of it in the least.

 

aye i thought you said you were still shooting? it's not my business but ehhh....

and as far as my own experience, my parents never ever smoked around me and i had no idea that they even smoked until i was about 15 or so and i found my dog chewing up a joint in the bathroom.


but i have a friend and his parents used to smoke blatantly and freely in front of him since he was little and he has never touched it. in fact, he's sworn never to smoke it because of his parents.

then again, most of my friends whose parents were too overprotective and constantly lectured them about how evil marijuana was, those were the ones who wanted it the most. and most of them turned into daily smokers.

the truth is that if your kid wants to smoke pot, he/she will probably just do it and you may not ever know. i smoked for about five years before i told my parents and they had no idea. and they think they are smart people, too.

dunno how much that helped, though.
yep yep yep.

 

When your son is 12-14 I would show him what it looks and smells like. Tell him that it is illegal but it's not bad if your responisble. I wish my mom had been more honest about her smoking habits. She had always smoked but also preached the evils of any drugs.

 

When your son is 12-14 I would show him what it looks and smells like. Tell him that it is illegal but it's not bad if your responisble. I wish my mom had been more honest about her smoking habits. She had always smoked but also preached the evils of any drugs.

 

I'm not a parent but I did come across this book.: It's Just A Plant http://www.justaplant.com/

Krsna Bhakti
This may be of interest to you? http://erowid.org/chemicals/ibogaine/ibogaine.shtml

 

I thought I might just also suggest that you don't smoke around your son.. I'm not sure if you said you did or not. I smoked outdoors around my kids but not in the car or in an enclosed space... I don't honestly know if it would affect their growing brains but I figure why take the chance... I like my children to grow up being their own unique individuals... not forced into my lifestyle
sorry just a thought

 

Oh no I dont smoke around him, like I said earlier I only smoke about once a week!

And TesBizarre, trust me I know what Ibogaine is. Im one of the people on this site who has studied basically every drug, psychedelic or narcotic, whatever, to the fullest and have plenty of experience. So please, no body worry about my safety, I thank you for the concern but its ok

btw, Natural, I recently stopped railing the shit and havent touched dope in almost 3 weeks. Im trying to stop completley, even the morphine, although my friend wants me to make him some tea, which I already promised I would :tongue:

 

Im not a parent.
However, I do not think its safe for kids under 17 to even know that you smoke unless you know they do it too.
Authorities, sadly, do not take pot smoking lightly especially for parents.
If your child gets a whiff (no pun intended hehe) of your pot smoking, even if you have explained your personal views to them, they could go to their friends bragging or whatever, their friends could tell their parents, parents could tell the school, school could alert authorities. You can really never be too careful about this sort of thing. It is important to educate kids on marijuana from a young age, and let them know that it is not as harmful as the media, etc would like to make them think, I dont, however, believe that should include a parent telling their child that they toke up.

 

Your right nirmalamaya, that is why I said we must feel it out for our children individually.

 

I dont think you need to make too big of a deal out of it, just be honest, and let your child know theres a line you can cross where it becomes too much of your life. Plain and simple.

I think some parents try too hard to be perfect or to be a "good" or "responsible" parent, and it just fucks everything up.

 

Yea, I also know parents who try to be perfect and they tend to go a bit overboard. I treat my son as an equal, and I am really only concerned with showing him my philosophy and spirituality and love, and allowing him to choose his own path when he can think on such matters freely and make sense of them for himself. Other than that, Im only his friend, not his master

 

Exactly. Doctor's and judge's children will do drugs, and crackwhores and migrant workers children will abstain their whole lives. I'm sure those doctors and lawyers warned their kids of the dangers of drugs, and I'm sure the crackwhores children saw drugs being used firsthand. It doesn't really matter. Kids are individuals, and when they reach the age where it's typical to start experimenting with and using drugs, the decisions they make are going to have little to do with what their parents are saying, or have been telling them their whole lives even.

Take my family for example. I have two older brothers. My dad was an alcoholic through all of our childhoods, always at the same degree. My brothers both became alcoholics. Me? I don't care for alcohol. My oldest brother became a hardcore drug addict. He's been in and out of several rehabs. My older brother and I mainly just stick to pot, and basically swear off all hard drugs. My mom is as straight as an arrow. There's really no predicting how a child is going to turn out.

I think pianoperson is right. Just be honest and consistent with your kids. They're more likely to trust and respect you that way. If they grow up hearing stuff like "pot will make you schizoprenic and die when you're 30", once they find out the truth, chances are they'll never listen to you again, even if you offer then sound advice like "don't drive after you've had a few drinks".

When I have kids I'm not going to tell them that I smoke up, or let them find out until they reach an age where they can understand it, and sort out myth from fact on their own so they don't get all caught up in the lies surrounding marijuana and other drugs. I also want to wait until they reach an age where they'll be able to handle smoking responsibly incase they decide to experiment with it themselves.

 

When it comes time, make sure he dosnt start smoking with the wrong crowd, I'm sure you know what I mean.

 

I sure do Fallout, the wrong crowd are those who dont allow you to be yourself.