"Pharm Parties"

Ya know, having grown up on a farm, there's one thing you can usually count on: boredom.

While flipping around on the tube this morning, I found a doctor talking about farm parties. This confused me. I mean, does that mean putting up streamers for the chickens? Playing pin the tail on the donkey with a real live donkey?

Then I figured it out: "farm" parties is more properly spelled, "pharm parties."

As the physician described it, it was more like the old idea of the salad bowl parties from the 60s and 70s. Call it what you will, the idea is simply to procure as many prescription drugs as possible and, well, party.

The physician described pharm parties as teenagers raiding their parents' medicine cabinets, grabbing whatever drugs have even a minimal psycho-active effect and taking these drugs for intoxication purposes.

A few points:

1. Do we really need all the pain killers and anti-anxiety meds provided by physicians? Likely not.

2. And more importantly, this is such a good reason parents need to keep an eye (and maybe a lock) on their prescription drugs. Think of it - is it easier for a teenager to swipe a few Zanex from Mom's medicine cabinet? Or is it easier to find someone to walk into a liquor store and purchase alcohol? That answer, in most cases, is a no brainer.

This totally highlights just how widespread the use of prescription drugs for intoxication is. The dopamine in the brain activated by opioid gives as good (if not better) highs for those taking the drugs; better than alcohol, better than weed, better than cocaine. And yet, how many of we parents, if pressed, admit we have prescription drugs where teens could easily grab them? Likely, many of us.

Be sure - VERY sure you aren't helping to contribute to a child's substance abuse by keeping your meds where they need to be - in your possession and your possession only!