With the back to school bonanza already in full swing, I thought this an opportune time to educate parents on addiction’s early warning signs – behaviors your teen or young adult may exhibit that betray a closely-guarded secret.

One element substance abuse research agrees upon is early intervention. That means the sooner you determine there’s a problem and act, the better the chance addiction won’t claim another victim.

Now I’m certainly not trying to use scare tactics here. In all likelihood, your son or daughter will never develop a substance abuse disorder. But there are behaviors that, if exhibited, point towards a compelling chance addiction is emerging. Or already present.

When the school year starts, many parents feel mixtures of unease and confidence, conflicting emotions each jousting for influence. Will my daughter succeed? Will my son surpass my expectations? Surely I’ve prepared them to steer clear of the inevitable debauchery they’ll encounter.

Your kids will likely party in high school. They’ll almost certainly cut loose in college, or at the very least, experiment with drink or drug or both.

Truth is, you’ve likely imparted all the wisdom that your not-so-little loved one needs to succeed. But any responsible mom and dad recognize a check-up here and there is necessary, especially when intuition or evidence yields probable cause. I’m not advocating going into total control freak mode. A simple conversation can be an excellent way to forecast the weather, so to speak.