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Certain places locations and activities
are common situations in which we tend to display our bad habits...
- Restaurants with large fatty portions of
food
- The road we drive home on with the fast food
restaurants
- The alley where you purchase drugs on the
way home from school
- The food court at the mall
...Sometimes, unfortunately, the worse
place for bad habits is right in your own home. Maybe a particular
room or activity in your house is your danger zone. Maybe you need
to avoid...
- Eating in front of the television
- Sitting alone in your room with the door
closed
- Staying up late with nothing to do
Teens with home-access to alcohol are more likely
to drink frequently. Teens with easy home-access to guns are more
likely to commit violent acts and to have suicidal thoughts. The
same goes for cigarettes, marijuana, compulsive eating, etc. If
you need to occupy your time with activities outside of the home,
do so. Join a sport, take music lessons, an art class, a youth group,
volunteer, etc.
On the other hand, maybe your danger zone is the overload
of extracurricular activities in your daily schedule. Teens that
work over 20 hours a week during the school year exhibit higher
amounts of emotional distress and increased use of cigarettes, alcohol
and marijuana. Maybe your danger zone is work. Many bad habits stem
from stress or emotional distress. Maybe what you need is less work-related
stress and more rest and relaxation.
Maybe your danger zone is the place where you hang
out with friends. Do your friends encourage negative behavior when
you all hang out together? You might consider going out with your
friends one at a time to avoid the peer pressure of the group. Maybe
you could meet some healthy friends in addition to your current
friends, by joining a club or sport, to gain some healthier influences
in your life.
When we spend time in these danger zones, we are more
likely to give in to our negative behaviors. Don't go there,
period. Stop watching TV. Stop going to those restaurants. Take
a different route home. If your social life revolves around food
or drugs, find a different place to go, and a different activity
in which to socialize. Varsity or intramural sports, dance class,
volunteering, clubs etc. Not only do these activities occupy your
time in a healthy way. They provide places to socialize and to meet
healthy fun people.
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