Education workshops at schools : Many students in Berlin Smoking weed to escape the stress of everyday life

The 16-Year-old slipped always restless on his chair back and forth, it was clear that he has something to busy. In the whole class room posters, all on the subject of hanging. It went to alcohol, tobacco, Energy Drinks, but on the poster he was staring, "Cannabis". Seconds later, the students get out of burst: "Oh Shit, now I understand why I smoke Cannabis."

A school somewhere in Berlin, tenth class, Workshop of the addiction prevention in Berlin. The students had written down in the working groups to any drug issues. To smoke Cannabis: "Why I it? What is happening with me? What is stupid to smoke Cannabis?“ Answers provided by the students. Why Cannabis? Due to the performance pressure. Because it relaxes. Because you have to endure then pain, mental and physical.

The group of 16-Year-old was busy with another drug, now, he heard to his own Problem. Oh God, the pressure to, as he knew the. "I smoke to relax", he said in the class, "my mother makes a Stress due to grades. The Old one sucks. Then I say that I go for a walk.“ He gets stoned, he says.

"In secondary schools is the performance pressure is high"

Lydia Romans tells the story, she was going to. Now she sits in the office of the prevention of addiction, black glasses, black hair, diploma-social worker, addiction specialist, focus schools. Here the work is organized in Roman area of the three employees: education of parents, students, teachers, and the fight against the Craving for addictive substances means. And in the Ranking of problems of two points. "Cannabis and the media, burn to the nails," says Christina Schadt, who is responsible for public Relations for the addiction prevention.

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30 percent of all students in Berlin order, as shown by surveys, have already smoked Cannabis, so is Smoking weed. Often pressure is driving young people to the fabric. "In secondary schools, the pressure to perform is high," says Lydia Romans. Ambitious parents act as a propellant. It tells the story of a high school students whose parents have clocked his everyday life, focused on career goal of the son. The son fought his way against the pressure with the handle to Cannabis.

aggravated, But a different, structural Problem the Situation even more. The atmosphere of the city. "In Berlin, learn all, but Here everything is cool, everything here is free. So the adults think. And for many, alcohol is worse than weed.“ Kerstin young man complained to the Executive Director of the addiction prevention. "We have a trivialisation of debate and wonder, then, that children - and youth psychiatric facilities are overcrowded."

against such developments in the prevention works. Since 2005, she explains, with the support of the Senate administration for health. More than 4700 students have been reached, alone in 2018, there were 57 schools events. 87 percent of the students liked the seminars, two-thirds have experienced New, half was stimulated to Think. At each four-hour parent seminars 570 adults participated, and there were evenings even parents. It Figures in the addiction prevention, but behind the Numbers is also a story behind Yes.

"is no matter, if my father beats me"

As the student who says that he did, because it's him, "then don't care if my father beats me". Since the parents who do not care, what the child does. Because the student who escapes with Cannabis, the power pressure is. Students tell stories, often in Workshops, when not a teacher is, if you can openly talk to, when you advance to the topic, after you have only said gently: "I know someone who has smoked."

And sometimes a pupil comes only after the Workshop, when all the others are gone. Lydia Roman paved the way for this. In Workshops, she says: "I clean up at the end of a very long time. You can come to me.“

Previously, but the prevention of addiction comes to you, caused by schools, but also of parents. So far, especially the top schools, the target audience, but elementary schools are now coming more into focus. Either a school asks in the prevention of addiction, or Lydia Roman and her colleagues to go to the schools. A new openness. "We have seen many times in the past, schools have said, we have no Problem with Cannabis," says Lydia Romans. You talk of the upper, primary schools. "Because of the fear of stigmatisation of the schools, the anxiety that parents go to a different school often." The rugged rejection follows more understanding. More and more schools recognize that Look the other way.

searching for 'new media' is up to date

school heads in this prevention a crucial role. If parents in the prevention of addiction requests, need to be involved, the principals anyway. But they can react differently. In each school there are contact teachers for school-based prevention. Only involved to the System. "If contact teacher is not lit, for the thing, but a head teacher then it is very difficult," says Lydia Romans. A rector could commit, for example, students of the Workshops. To take place according to the desire of the addiction prevention in the classroom.

Kerstin young man has productive ideas on how to integrate in the classroom the issue of Addiction, Cannabis is about. "That goes to different points of view in many subjects, in geography, in English but also in German." It is your response to the statement of many teachers, you would have to. their curriculum, they had not to seek any time for additional information on the topic

Smoking Weed is an ancient theme, the addictive nature of new media, however, brand is up to date. "The Problem with this Addiction is gradually so big as with Cannabis," says Lydia Romans. The addiction prevention recommends children up to five years and a maximum usage of 30 minutes per day, with Six - to nine-year-old 60 minutes per day, and ten years, there should be weekly quotas. Rule of thumb: Per year one hour per week. The warning signs are actually not to be overlooked: The school performance, the child does not make friends anymore, it pulls back, it reacts extremely harshly.

A special Problem has increasingly Lydia Roman and her colleagues. The addictive behavior in families. Especially social workers and teachers from primary schools report. Parents with alcohol flag to pick up their children, are a sign of alarm. Addiction prevention therefore offers free Workshops in Neighborhoods in socially difficult areas. This is also urgently needed. "The requests to roll over us," said Lydia Roman.

information on the prevention of addiction: www.berlin-suchtpraevention.de

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lessons in Berlin, Increasing Cannabis use: schools fight against drugs

Susanne Vieth-Entus

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