Vaping in teens, ISO advice....

[jerseygirl07067]

Hi everyone, I haven't posted on here in forever, and I know many of us now have teens, which is crazy, since I came on here when my first DD was born almost 18 years ago. I have always considered this board such a great source of valuable advice which is the reason for my post.

I am reaching out because my teens and I have recently been talking about vaping. During one of our discussions it came to my attention that a two of their friends are not only vaping, but vaping THC. These are very high achieving students, so it was a bit surprising, but these days with what kids are doing I guess I shouldn't be so surprised anymore. My kids said that not only is vaping rampant, but a lot of kids are vaping THC. They are telling me a lot of the kids are doing it with THC oil, so it is virtually undetectable, compared to traditional pot which has that very specific scent. This is all so disturbing. Back in the day when I was a teen, if kids smoked pot, you could at least smell it!! I have talked to my kids about making good choices, and I hope that they are not tempted to try any type of vaping. My kids are normally VERY private, so the fact that they even told me this was atypical for them. I also have a relative in another state who is also a school social worker and she has told me how rampant it was at her high school, which is very affluent. Our HS is probably middle/upper middle class and definitely a good amount of affluent students as well.

So a few days ago, I was talking with one of the parents of the friend who was vaping THC, and apparently the parent is aware (she caught her about a month ago) and both the teen and the parent are supposed to be going to counseling. I got the impression they have not started yet as there was someone they wanted to see specifically who is hard to get an appt with. The parent said her teen's justification for doing it is because she has a hard time sleeping at night, I'm guessing due to anxiety, which I know is an issue for many these days. She said the teen also feels like she does school work and school activities all the time, and wanted some "fun" in her life. The parent said she was struggling with boundaries, and how to handle the situation, since despite being a super high achiever, the teen is also a bit rebellious. The parent has been doing routine room checks, but is afraid her teen now knowing this is going to hide it more, if she is still doing it.

Has anyone had kids that have done this? Vaped regular nicotine or THC? I know this is a very personal issue so if you don't feel comfortable posting here, please feel free to pm me. But I wonder if my kids were doing this how would I know? What would I look out for? I've been reading much more online since I want to educate myself, since I was worried enough about the vaping and the potential health consequences. But THC too?

Thanks in advance!

[gatorsmom]

I just asked my teens and they don’t know anyone who is vaping or smoking and especially not THC. How are these kids getting ahold of it? Isn’t it expensive? Where are they getting the money for it? Who’s buying it for them? I’m guessing it’s illegal for minors. Aren’t they afraid of how it could affect their judgment, their health or just get in trouble with the law?

[SnuggleBuggles]

I always wonder if people get more worried/upset/concerned about THC than they do alcohol. I would obviously prefer my teens to avoid either but of the 2, I am more comfortable with THC than alcohol and I have told them that as well. I feel like it really has to boil down to the kid and whether they are just doing it on occasion (aka at a party/hang out with friends a few times/year) or it's becoming a habit. Is it affecting school work, activities, their social circle? If, as you say, they are a high achiever and in a lot of activities I am not sure I would do much more (to start) than remind them of making good choices, their health, driving while under the influence and just keeping it from being a central piece of their socialization.
I agree that there's a good chance that an overzealous approach won't curb the activity and will instead damage the parent/child relationship.
I didn't drink or do drugs in high school (well, maybe a few drinks at one or 2 parties) but other kids did but it was an occasional weekend thing and it wasn't a central part of their life. I guess I'm not a "no! never!" kind of parent though so I'm not sure I am who you want to hear from.

[ezcc]

This is very, very common among teens here. My nephew is at boarding school and apparently it's a huge problem there because as you said, you can't smell it so very easy to hide. My teens say it is easy to get. I know ds (in college) uses marijuana/alcohol occasionally at parties but I think I would be more concerned about a kid who is using it at home to self medicate. DS also reports that at his college there are many kids who totally abstain from alcohol and consider pot a safer choice. I think some of the legalizing discourse has gone a little too far on making pot seem like no big deal, when it's definitely not good for developing brains. I would be more concerned about a 14/15 year old than a 17/18 year old. If your kids are telling you about it I would feel pretty good that they are making good choices and just keep that dialogue going. As far as how you would know, I am not sure- I think you would need to look for unusual behavior. I do know people who drug test their kids after they were caught with it but that seems a little extreme to me- I would only go that route if I had a young teen who I really felt was going off the deep end.

[marinkitty]

It is widespread here, perhaps slowly being overtaken by kids eating THC edibles.

But my hockey playing junior has been seeing kids vape (including vaping THC) since he started high school and a bunch of the kids on his varsity teams do it frequently. I also know from sitting on the parent board of our large public high school (4,000 kids total) that it has been an issue for a good four to five years now and the edibles are gaining popularity and are getting the girls more involved (girls seem less likely to vape according to the administration and my two older teens).

DS2 who is in 8th grade reports neither seeing or hearing about it at his school yet, which is good.

Neither DD (now a college freshman in a state where pot is not legal, which she said makes kids way more careful about using it in ways that could get them caught) nor DS1 (the hockey player) do it (and I don't think I'm being naive - neither one drinks either, they just aren't party kids at all and both are intense rule followers). But my younger DS is not like that (much more likely to be caught up in the popular crowd's thing) so I'm sure I'll be paying far more attention as he hits high school next year.

Other drugs are also a problem, but I agree with PPs who say that the kids seem to feel like THC products are not a big deal now that they are legal and as long as they don't drive or it impairs their ability to perform at school or extra curricular activities. Most of the kids I know who are doing it are jocks or party crowd kids. I'm not aware of the more studious kids engaging, but of course, how would I know? DD always knew who did it and who didn't. DS1 definitely knows which hockey players do. He says that they all know who does and doesn't and after getting offered it a few times, now no one offers it to him anymore because they know it isn't something he does. I think it's important to talk about with your kids because I think it is probably everywhere and I get the impression it is VERY easy to get your hands on and not exorbitantly expensive (we live in an affluent area so the kids all have the means to buy unless it were super pricey).

As far as how you would know - I think you just have to keep your eyes open, keep the conversation going, but in OP's case I doubt your kids would have come to you so openly if they were using. Unless they were testing the waters to see how you'd react. All the parent seminars I've been to on this say tell them not to do it and explain why as kids apparently report their number one reason for saying no is that their parents have told them not to. Our words are pretty powerful.

[3isEnough]

I’m pretty sure it’s rampant here as well. I know vaping is rampant and has been for at least 3-4 years, but I’ve recently begun to hear that they’re vaping THC. I don’t know a whole lot about how it works except that 1) DH, who is a physician, recently told me that they’re starting to see a lot of serious lung damage from THC vaping (far worse than smoking weed), and 2) my 18yo nephew stayed with us over the summer and I walked into the living room to find him taking a hit from and hiding something. I was later able to figure out that he was vaping THC. There’s no way I ever would have known had I not seen him, there was zero residual scent from it. Oh one more thing, I attended a drug/alcohol presentation at my kids’ school a few years ago and they passed around vaping devices for the parents to see, I was stunned to find out they look exactly like highlighters (pens), lipstick, thumb drives and other everyday items. It’s really easy for kids to hide it.

My oldest is at UC Berkeley and the freshman dorms all reek of weed. I shouldn’t be surprised but I am, I figured they all worked so hard to get there that they’d stay away from it but nope! But between vaping THC or smoking weed, I FAR prefer the latter.

[bcafe]

It is everywhere, whether one sees it or not. I do believe kids with high anxiety are at greater "risk". I would fear the habit or "need" to use it.

[bcafe]

I just asked my teens and they don’t know anyone who is vaping or smoking and especially not THC. How are these kids getting ahold of it? Isn’t it expensive? Where are they getting the money for it? Who’s buying it for them?

My brother and family live where you do, and guaranteed if I asked my nephew who is a sophomore, he would know plenty of kids who vape and vape THC. Many kids work and will get older siblings or acquaintances to buy it for them.

[SnuggleBuggles]

My brother and family live where you do, and guaranteed if I asked my nephew who is a sophomore, he would know plenty of kids who vape and vape THC. Many kids work and will get older siblings or acquaintances to buy it for them.

Agree. I think pretty much any kid, anywhere knows how to get it.


I remember how my brother went to the fanciest Catholic high school in our city and his take away is the kids had access to better drugs and parents who weren't around a lot... That was years ago.

[jerseygirl07067]

OP here...while smoking weed is not desirable it's my understanding that the THC oil is very dangerous because of the vitamin E acetate. It's been causing a lot of lung damage in people.

I honestly feel like the only thing that should be inhaled in your lungs is air but if people are going to do it, I feel like the standard way of smoking weed would at least be more preferable than using THC oil.

So it's definitely very prevalent as other people have said too...ugh...