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our minds matter

  • Reduce the stigma around talking about substance use
  • Learn harm-reduction strategies
  • Practice how to use harm reduction strategies in real-life situations
  • Increase the usage of harm reduction strategies utilized by teens if they choose to use substances 
  • Promote help-seeking and mental health resources

Start the meeting by passing out copies of the Safer Partying flier or bringing it up on a projector so everyone can see.

Take a few minutes to read through it together as a group, and be sure to remind folks that while discussing some strategies today that can make using substances safER, the only truly safe thing to do is not use them at all.

Once you’ve reviewed all of the strategies, have folks break up into 3 groups and assign each group one of the following scenarios:

 

Scenario 1

You’re all getting ready to go to a party tonight, and it’s one of your 18th birthdays. The birthday person and a few others have already made the decision to drink alcohol at this party. As you’re getting ready together, you talk excitedly about celebrating, who’s going to be at the party, and what you’re going to wear. Amidst this discussion, one friend suggests that you all make a plan for the night to make sure everyone knows what you’re drinking, where you’re sleeping, how you’re all going to get there safely, and no one ends up drunk, alone, and stranded at the party. Act out how this conversation might go.

 

Scenario 2

You’re all getting ready to go to a party tonight, and it’s one of your friend’s 18th birthday. The birthday person and all of their friends have already made the decision to drink alcohol at this party. As you’re getting ready together, you talk excitedly about celebrating, who’s going to be at the party, and what you’re going to wear. 

Amidst this discussion, one friend suggests that the birthday person take 18 shots tonight in honor of their birthday because it’s something they’ve seen on TikTok that looked cute. At least one person in the group, maybe more, is hesitant about this because they know how dangerous this level of alcohol intake can be, but they also don’t want to ruin the fun. They decide to say something anyway because they want their friend to be safe. Act out how this conversation might go.

 

Scenario 3

You’re all getting ready to go to a party tonight, and it’s one of your 18th birthday. The birthday person and at least a few of the friends have already made the decision to drink alcohol at this party. As you’re getting ready together, you talk excitedly about celebrating, who’s going to be at the party, and what you’re going to wear. The birthday person says that they have a little something “extra” that they got to celebrate, but that they only have enough for themselves and don’t want to be rude, so they’re not going to tell anyone at the party and will do it discreetly. They also don’t mention to their friends what exactly it is that they plan to take. The group of friends want their birthday person to have a fun night and don’t want to tell them what to do, but they feel nervous about not knowing what their friend is going to take by themselves. Act out how this conversation might go.

 

Give folks 10-15 minutes to talk about their scenario and plan how they want to act it out for the large group: 

  • If possible, facilitators should float around to offer tips or answer questions
    • Each scenario should only take 1-2 minutes to act out
  • Once time is up, have each group come up to the front and act out their scenario.
  • After each group has finished, invite other participants to share what stood out to them regarding what the “characters” did well (thinking about safer partying strategies), and what they could have done better.
  • Be sure to look at the facilitator notes below to ensure you redirect any misinformation back to the safer partying strategies
  • Also, applaud every group because role plays can be tough!

  • What safER partying strategies felt the most practical to you? Why?
  • Are these situations things that people your age might actually experience? 
  • How can you take what you learned today and use it to keep yourself or your friends safer in the future?

For scenario 1, look for the following things and mention them if the group does not:

  • The friends make a plan to get home with a sober driver
  • The friends make a plan to sleep somewhere safe
  • The friends make a plan to not get separated or leave anyone behind
  • Bonus points if the friends make a plan to drink some water and practice other safe drinking habits at the party

 

For scenario 2, look for the following things and mention them if the group does not:

  • Someone mentions that one person drinking that amount of shots can be deadly
  • Someone mentions that this is supposed to be a fun night for the birthday person, so they want them to be able to enjoy it and remember it (which they won’t if they take that many shots)
  • Suggestions are made for other ways to celebrate the 18th birthday milestone, such as:
    • 18 people at the party who had already decided to drink all take one shot, instead of one person taking 18 shots
    • Everyone sings happy birthday to the birthday person or makes a toast before taking one celebratory shot, or just a sip of their drink 
    • The birthday person wears a sash, has a fun special drink (and they know what’s in it), or drinks out of a birthday cup or glass

 

For scenario 3, look for the following things and mention them if the group does not:

  • Somebody asks the birthday person in a nonjudgmental way what they’re planning to take and gets the birthday person to say what it is
  • Someone mentions testing the drug, if applicable
  • Someone mentions not mixing the drug with alcohol OR taking it by themself in secret
  • Someone mentions that maybe just having a few drinks and not getting high alone would actually be a better time
  • If the person insists on using the drug, one of the friends agrees to be their “buddy” for the night so that they aren’t alone

Lastly, keep in mind that this activity is not intended to enable drinking and drug use or condone it. Instead, it’s intended to give teens some tangible, real-life tactics that they can use to stay safER if they or a friend ever chooses to use drugs or alcohol.