JustUs
Drug and Alcohol Education
Session 12
Materials Needed:
Group Rules Handout
TRUE/FALSE Signs (1 copy for each participant)
Game Prize (see User Guide)
Prior to group Facilitator will write the topic and outline on white board or flip
chart:
Prescription and Over-The-Counter (OTC) Drugs
All the Basics
The Prescription Race
Discussion
1. Welcome to everyone
2. Introduce your name and the name of the group
3. Facilitator will give a brief overview of the group, for any participants
who were not present for the first session:
Together we are going to learn about addiction and about how our
bodies, brains, our mental health and our lives can be affected by
different kinds of drugs, including alcohol and marijuana.
4. Facilitator will review the group rules and will give Group Rules handouts
to new participants (facilitators will follow their agency instructions for
this step)
5. Facilitator will remind participants of topics of Session 11
(Tobacco/Cigarettes) and will ask if there are any participants who would
like to remind the group of the information. If not, facilitator will do a
quick reminder (Tobacco is addictive because of the nicotine in the plant
leaves, cigarettes contain many chemicals that are even more dangerous
than tobacco, there are more than 480,000 tobacco related deaths in the
United States every year)
6. Facilitator will introduce the topic for Session 12 which is Prescription
and OTC Drugs:
There are a lot of prescription drugs and medicines out there that can be
very helpful when we need them. All medications have side effects, but
most prescription and OTC drugs are safe when taken as prescribed or if
we are seeing a doctor or other medical professional. However,
prescription and OTC medications can be just as dangerous as illegal
drugs when they are abused – and these medications are now the most
commonly abused drugs by Americans 14 and older after marijuana and
alcohol.
7. Facilitator will lead a discussion about Prescription and OTC medications
using the following questions:
a. What are some of the ways that prescription drugs are abused?
(taking medication that has been prescribed for someone else,
taking medications in a higher quantity/frequency or in a way that
doesn’t follow the instructions, taking a drug for another purpose
than it was prescribed for)
b. What are some different kinds of prescription or OTC medications
that are abused most? (opioids (Vicodin, Oxycontin) stimulants
used for treating ADHD (Adderall, Ritalin), anxiety medications
(Valium, Xanax), and cough/cold remedies)
8. Facilitator will continue:
To learn more about Prescription and Over-The-Counter Drugs we are
going to play a game that is kind of like a game we’ve played before…
In just a minute, everyone is going to get into a straight line in the middle
of the room. The goal is to get to where I’m standing by answering
questions correctly. You will all have a TRUE sign and a FALSE sign. I will
read a statement and you will hold up the sign that you think is correct. If
you have the right answer, you will take one step toward me. If you have
the wrong answer you answer will take one step backwards.
Facilitators – you will pass out TRUE/FALSE signs and will have
participants line up across the middle of the room. Please remember to
read each question slowly – the purpose is learning information so do not
move too quickly through the questions!
Here are the game questions:
i. Prescription stimulants such as Ritalin affect the brain the
same way as cocaine (TRUE)
ii. Although you can get high, prescription and OTC drugs do
not lead to addiction (FALSE)
iii. Prescription opioids can be addictive, but they do not cause
brain damage the way heroin can (FALSE)
iv. More people die from overdose of prescription opioids than
all other drugs combined (TRUE)
v. Over 2 million people in the United States suffer from
addiction to prescription opioids (TRUE)
vi. Withdrawal symptoms are not as severe with prescription or
OTC medications (FALSE)
vii. Taken in large quantities, cold medications can cause
permanent brain damage (TRUE)
viii. Mental health problems such as depression and
hallucinations can just as easily be caused by prescription
and OTC medications as by illegal drugs (TRUE)
ix. It is safe to take someone else’s medication as long as you
have taken it before and they are the same height and
weight as you (FALSE)
x. Although it can be unsafe, it is not illegal to take prescribed
medications even if they were not prescribed to you (FALSE)
xi. Anyone who has had past issues with addiction is at higher
risk for prescription drug abuse or dependence (TRUE)
xii. Same as with illegal drugs, people often make bad decisions
or have high risk behavior when abusing prescription or OTC
medications (TRUE)
Facilitators – give lots of encouragement during the game and lots of
praise to the winner or winners. Hand out the prize(s).
9. Facilitator will gather everyone back into a seated circle and will lead a
final discussion with the following questions:
a. Was anyone surprised by the information
b. Was there one new thing you learned today? What was it?
c. Is there anyone in your life who you’d like to share this information
with?
10. Facilitator will summarize:
Thank you so much for the great work today. You know by now that there
is no homework for this group, but you’re all doing such a good job with
your attendance and I look forward to seeing you again next week! Have
a great week everyone!
Drug and Alcohol Education, Session 12 TRUE/FALSE Signs