Recently, a mom from Idaho went viral after she filmed herself preparing a medical-themed care package for her daughter who was about to depart for her freshman year in college. The daughter sat by excitedly as she watched her over-prepared mother drop practical things like Band-aids, hydrogen peroxide, and cortisone cream into a plastic carrying case. You know, the kinds of things you might need as you strike out on your own for the first time and don't have mom and dad around to fetch for you.
What a wholesome image, right? Mom preparing daughter for college life. Norman Rockwell could have painted the all-American scene.
Well, things quickly took a dark turn when the mother produced a package of Narcan, the nasal spray that can reverse the deadly effects of a drug overdose. Apparently, you never know when you, your roommate, or someone in your new circle of friends is going to binge so hard on narcotics that emergency, live-saving measures will need to be taken. Practical in 2025? Perhaps. Setting your kid up for failure? Pretty much.
Then, mom produces a pack of Plan B pills—because "accidents happen"—and plops them right into the box next to the Narcan. Plan B pills, also known as the "morning after" pill, can prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. But, they are not contraception like condoms are contraception; Plan B is an abortifacient that can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting. It is sold over the counter, so is easy to obtain for college kids; this mom probably would've added the dangerous at-home abortion pill Mifepristone if it didn't require an existing pregnancy and a prescription.
The comments on the video are exactly what you'd expect. "Slay, girl." "Coolest mom ever." "Realest video I've even seen."
They are all brutally wrong and misguided, of course. This is horrifying.
Let's start with the Narcan. A college student interviewed about the video thought it was super groovy that the mom sent her kid off to school with it:
"I administered Narcan to a girl who was passed out on the front lawn of an off-campus frat party," the psych major from North Carolina, who didn’t want to use her last name, told The Post. "It literally saves lives."
Yes, it does save lives. It also creates a false sense of security in young adults by saying it's okay to binge on drugs because someone nearby is sure to have Narcan on hand. That's playing with fire. The better lesson for the mom to impart here is to stay away from drugs and definitely stay away from people who do drugs. And, quite frankly, if you feel strongly about having Narcan on hand, go get it yourself. That's what we call adulting.
And we all know the mom smugly added the Narcan presuming it's not for her child. It's for the riff-raff down the hall who don't have such a caring parent. Her kid will be the hero when she saves the day by deploying her handy-dandy Narcan, and won't that be a great story to tell all the girls at the gym?
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The Plan B pills are a whole different problem. No, she doesn't need Plan B pills to promote promiscuity; society as a whole has done a, well, bang-up job on that front. But the message is clear: Mommy's going to be there to take care of all your problems, even if she can't be there in person. She's still going to clean up all of your messes, even from hundreds of miles away. You don't have to build a moral backbone because there's a quick fix to all of your problems. What's the life lesson in that?
Yeah, maybe I'm just old. Back in my college days, my older sister would pack up some homemade chocolate chip cookies, throw in a mix-tape and some gum and call it a day. And I'd be thrilled beyond belief when the package arrived at my dorm.
I'm also not naive to Gen Z problems. I helped two daughters get through college in recent years, so I'm hip to the challenges and pitfalls of campus life. Unfortunately for my kids, I'm not a cool mom. You want to FA with drugs and sex? Then you can FO all on your own. There's nothing quite like the shame you feel when having to fix your boneheaded screw-ups. Welcome to adulthood and personal growth.
Listen, the world is hard enough these days for young adults. They had their schooling (and development) disrupted by COVID, and now they're overpaying for college degrees in underpaying fields. They don’t need cool moms and dads cushioning every poor decision with Narcan and Plan B. They need moms and dads who love them enough to tell them no—and to let life’s lessons do the teaching.
