Children &
Family Support

Why SFP is Essential

The wellbeing of communities everywhere depends on strong and loving families. They have the job of producing the next generation of emotionally healthy, responsible, educated citizens who are addiction-free and prepared to maintain the physical and social infrastructure of a society. Research shows well-trained parents help youth avoid substance abuse and have better life outcomes.

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Substance Use Prevention

Addiction has a devastating effect on families and is a major health crisis across the U.S. It costs the nation more than $500 billion a year in social clean-up costs and causes unimaginable human suffering. Yet most addiction begins in adolescence where it is preventable.

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Fortunately, research shows most youth substance use can be prevented by parents who are well-trained in three types of skills:

• Bonding - creating warm, loving relationships

• Boundaries - setting clear boundaries against substance use

• Monitoring - monitoring youth's activities to see that they always stay in an alcohol and drug-free social environment

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Brain Development & Growth

Adolescence is a critical period of brain development. In addition to alcohol and drug use harming the child's brain development, children learn and form life skills that can form positive or negative long term behaviors. When children are neglected or abused, suffering adverse childhood experiences, it negatively affects their developing brain.

 

This puts them at risk for:

• Social problems

• School failure

• Depression

• Delinquency

• Substance use

• or other mental health challenges

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Skills That Thrills

SFP is effective because it was specifically crafted to increase protective factors and reduce the risk factors that lead to both substance abuse and youth depression.

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SFP teaches - and has parents and youth practice - skills involved in bonding (creating warm, loving relationships), setting clear, firm boundaries (rules against antisocial behavior, including drug and alcohol use), and monitoring their children's emotional wellbeing and activities to see that they always stay in an alcohol and drug-free social environment.

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Skill practice creates new prosocial habit patterns in the brain, which helps improve behavior, strengthens the parent-child relationship, and helps a child feel loved.

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Child maltreatment also decreases as parents learn better parenting skills, and practice stress and anger management techniques.

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Adults Must Protect Children

Youth are targeted by alcohol, marijuana, and nicotine product purveyors because they know if they can get kids addicted as youth, they will have steady-paying customers for life.

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All adults have a responsibility to help protect children from neglect, abuse, and alcohol, tobacco, and drug use. SFP offers an array of enjoyable and free prevention skill training to protect our youth.