March 10, 2022, 1:00pm-2:30pm EST
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Laura Stack’s 19-year-old son, Johnny, died by suicide on November 20, 2019, after becoming delusional from dabbing high-THC marijuana concentrates. Soon afterward, Laura started a 501c3, Johnny’s Ambassadors, to educate parents and teens about the dangers of today’s high-THC marijuana on adolescent brain development, mental illness, and suicide. In this session, Laura will share the story of Johnny’s marijuana addiction from a parent’s point of view, a poignant chronicle of the shocking descent from innocence to eventual suicide. Before marijuana, Johnny was a computer whiz with a 4.0 GPA and a perfect math score on the SAT. After marijuana, he stole his family dog from the home and threatened to kill it without payment from his mother. With moving candor, Laura traces the first warning signs, their attempts at rehabilitation, her desperation, and his eventual demise. Three days before his death, Johnny issued his own warning about marijuana usage. Through this tragic tale, Stack hopes to use her pain to help parents talk to their children about the dangers of today’s marijuana. Participants will hear a first-hand account of the death of a teen from marijuana use and be educated on the harms of marijuana on adolescent brain development, mental illness, and suicide. Laura’s real-life story is backed by recent scientific-based research on how today’s potent THC products lead to mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, paranoia, psychosis, and sadly, suicidal ideation. This presentation is a clarion call for parents across America to educate themselves about the risks of today’s high-THC marijuana products and to better understand the potentially devastating effects on youth mental health.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
PRESENTERS
Laura Stack, MBA, CSP, CPAE is the Founder & CEO of Johnny’s Ambassadors, Inc., educates parents and teens about the dangers of today’s high-THC marijuana on adolescent brain development, mental illness, and suicide. Prior to her advocacy work, Laura was a 30-year award-winning professional speaker, spokesperson, and author with eight bestselling productivity books. The devastating loss of her child gives Laura a powerful voice and a platform for change. Laura sees it as her responsibility to share Johnny's warning to prevent other families from having to go through what she did and save other young lives. Laura’s platform now brings marijuana education, awareness, and prevention curriculum around the globe to raise awareness of THC use, mental illness, and suicide. She presents live and virtual keynotes, breakout sessions, and training for parents, teens, schools, coalitions, and drug prevention conferences. By sharing Johnny’s own warning about marijuana, Laura helps parents understand and talk to their children about the potential harms of today’s marijuana. She is determined to start a movement to bring teen marijuana use, mental illness, and suicide into the spotlight and get adolescents to #StopDabbing.
