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Learn More About the Resources Available

in the Community and on the Web

 

Local Resources

It is easy to recognize when you need help,

but often it is difficult to determine where you need to go to get the assistance you need. DenverRAP is working to help you find the organizations in the community to provide you with the services you need. Click HERE for our detailed list of resources ranging from places to go to get help with homework, to mental health services, to after school activities. If you need to find a resource that isn’t on that list, feel free to CONTACT US, and we will work to find what you need.

If you are worried about yourself or someone you know, and need immediate assistance, call MetroCrisis Services at 1-888-885-1222. Trained counselors are available 24/7 to listen and help connect you to other local resources that can help.

Click on the links below for resources in the Denver community.

 

Web Resources

The web is full of information on alcohol and other drugs,

but remember – you can take the most ridiculous, misinformed, just plain wrong “information,” and dress it up in a slick Website. If you’re not an expert, this can make obvious misinformation seem like real, scientifically accurate, clinically sound advice. It isn’t always obvious what information to trust, and how to make that decision.

To help clear up the confusion, and to provide a handy, one-stop clearing house for teen substance abuse information, we’ve assembled some links and resources we’ve come to know and trust.

Resources for teens:

Above the Influence! – Above the Influence is a national organization, run through the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, a program of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Their goal is to empower teens to resist poor influences and bad decisions. The site has lots of user-generated videos and other content and is very good at speaking to teens with respect in their own vocabulary.

Friends Drive Sober – Friends Drive Sober aims to help teens say no to impaired driving, the definition of which includes drunk driving, driving while high, and even texting while driving. The site includes links to distracted driving prevention apps for your smartphone, state and municipal traffic safety offices and other resources.

Shatter the Myths! – This is the Website of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and is focused on providing information about the upcoming National Drugs Fact Week (NDFW). The site is colorful and engaging, with videos, free downloadable T-shirt transfers and other teen-centric content.

The Cool Spot – With an edgy, anime-influenced look, and a selection of interactive games, “The Young Teens Place for Info on Alcohol and Resisting Peer Pressure,” is engaging, offering teens not only some good, simple definitions of peer pressure, but delving into why kids use it, why it works, and how to exercise your “Right to Resist.” Warning: side bar navigation makes annoying sounds.

Resources for parents and other caring adults:

Speak Now! Colorado – Speak Now! gives parents strategies and tools for talking to their kids about teen drinking. There’s a Web app that will send your kid a (very positive) text message to initiate conversation about underage drinking, a guide to developing an anti-drinking teen action plan, and a guide to Colorado’s possession and ID laws, and other alcohol informational resources.

The Partnership at Drugfree.org – Drugfree.org (formerly The Partnership for a Drug-Free America) is a clearing house for information on all sorts of substance abuse issues, including prescription drug abuse, teen and binge drinking, as well as prevention, intervention and treatment. To find resources in Spanish, visit hablacontushijos.org. If you’re looking for advice, support, or to commiserate with other parents who may be walking in your shoes, Drugfree.org has a toll-free parent helpline at 1-855-DRUGFREE.

The Search Institute – The mission of The Search Institute is “to provide catalytic leadership, breakthrough knowledge, and innovative resources to advance the health of children, youth, families, and communities.” They provide surveys, speakers, training materials, podcasts, and other educational resources to parents, teachers, librarians, and teens.

Parents Empowered in Utah – Videos, articles, texting apps, games and other prevention strategies and tactics with an emphasis on parent-child relationships and conversation.

College Stats As your kids develop and leave the nest for college, they’re faced with many stresses – leaving home for the first time, independence, maintaining grades, managing a personal budget and meeting social expectations. The list keeps going. College students often lean to drugs and alcohol as coping mechanism (more on that in this guide to understanding addiction in College), so it’s critical that they’ve had these conversations early on, before they’re on their own.