Centennial High School
Fall Newsletter 2021
Alcohol and Drug Use and Prevention in Teens
Fentanyl: What's All the Hype?
- Because it is so highly potent, fentanyl is more easily smuggled into the country, and because it is so cheap to produce, drug traffickers have increasingly turned to fentanyl as a profitable product.
- Being so profitable, drug traffickers are producing counterfeit pills, known as fentapills, that look just like the real product. Some of the popular counterfeit pills are fake Percocet, Oxycodone, Oxycontin, Norco, Vicodin, Xanax, Morphine, and many others. It has also been laced in Marijuana, Cocaine, Methamphetamines', and heroin.
- Opioid overdoses accounted for the death of at least 107,000 Americans last year. In Kern County, 60% of overdose death involved fentanyl.
- Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is 50-100 times more potent than morphine. It is used as a prescription pain medication, usually to treat severe pain after surgeries, or to treat people with chronic pain.
- Doses of fentanyl measure in micrograms compared to morphine which measures in milligrams. Example: It's like cutting a 400mg ibuprofen into 400,000 pieces!
Marijuana
- Today marijuana is stronger than it has ever been. In 1970 the THC content in Marijuana was 3% and today it is 33%. Wax can be as strong as 99% THC!
- More than one in three high school students (37%) have used marijuana, with one in five (22%) admitting to using this drug within the past month .
- THC can harm the still growing teenage brain.
- Negative effect of teen marijuana use include: difficulty thinking and problem-solving; problems with with memory and learning, reduced coordination, difficulty maintaining attention, and problems with school and social life.
- Increased risk of mental health issues. Marijuana use has been linked to a range of mental health problems, such as depression and social anxiety.3 People who use marijuana are more likely to develop temporary psychosis (not knowing what is real, hallucinations, and paranoia) and long-lasting mental disorders, including schizophrenia (a type of mental illness where people might see or hear things that aren’t there).5 The association between marijuana and schizophrenia is stronger in people who start using marijuana at an earlier age and use marijuana more frequently.
Nicotine: What's the Big Deal?
- Nicotine is extremely poisonous. A lethal dose for an average adult is 30-60 mg of nicotine (just a drop in liquid form) and as small as 10mg is children.
- Using nicotine is adolescence can harm the parts of the brain that control attention, learning, mood, and impulse control.
- Nicotine changes the way synapses are formed in the still developing brain, leading to retention and learning difficulties.
- Using nicotine in adolescents increases the risk for future addiction to other drugs.
What Can Parents do?
- Give your child the facts. Be open and honest about drugs and alcohol as well as the dangers and effects.
- Be a role model (how your child views alcohol, tobacco, and drugs is strongly affected by how you see them).
- Monitor your child social media, including DMs and chats. (a lot of nicotine and drug products for teens are sold on social media platforms, such as SnapChat).
- Make sure you have the ability to control your child's phone.
- Know your child's friends, activities, and encourage sports, clubs, and hobbies.
- Establish rules and consequences.
- Reassure them that if they need help you are there. If they feel they can't come to you, come up with a list of people or places they can go for advice or help.
- Consider a written contract between you and your child.
What to do if my child needs help.
If your child needs help or you are concerned your child may need help there are many resources available in our community. You can reach out to our Interventions and support team which includes our Substance Abuse specialist on campus.
*Come to one of our Drug Awareness workshops in the Parent Center for more information.
Counseling
Our team:
LAST NAME
COUNSELOR
A-Ce & Head Counselor
Jill Geer
Ch-F
Andy Muro
G-H and ELL
Jennifer Ianiero
I-Mi
Anna Calvillo
Mo-Ro
Emilee Gonsalves
Ru-Z
Tom Cornford
Counseling Secretary
April Wattenbarger
Student Intervention and Support Services
Welcome to student intervention and supports! We provide support for students who may be struggling with a variety of personal, social, and emotional issues. We provide a tiered system of intervention and support including group and individual interventions.
Our team:
John Eldridge - On Campus Intervention Teacher - john_eldridge@kernhigh.org
Georgiana Bracamonte - Substance Abuse Specialist - georgiana_bracamonte@kernhigh.org
I provide substance abusing students group and individual sessions using The Matrix Model.
The Matrix Model for teens is a proven program that uses cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and motivational interviewing (MI) to teach teens to analyze events and change thoughts, behaviors, and lifestyle related to alcohol and other drug use. Sessions will also include social and emotional regulation skills.
Ashly Latunde - Interventionist - ashly_latunde@kernhigh.org
My goal as the interventionist is to provide students with evidence-based, targeted interventions that include increased instruction in cognitive skill areas (including problem-solving skills, executive functioning, and social emotional competencies), opportunities to practice skills outside of the intervention setting, and progress monitoring tools. Some of the interventions include C.A.T (Anxiety Group), Forward Thinking, Anger Management Essentials, My Journey (Grief Group), Social Skills, Why Try, Girls Circle, and Boys Council.
Eric Finch - School Social Worker - eric_finch@kernhigh.org
My role as a School Social Worker is to provide individualized intensive case management, crisis intervention, support plans and linkage to community partners. I use direct therapeutic interventions and supportive counseling with students. I also sit on multidisciplinary teams and provide consultative services to school personnel.
How to request support:
Go to the Centennial website at https://centennial.kernhigh.org/.
Click on the link at the top left of the page and fill out the form.