Wow, this question hits really close to home for me right now. I have recently had to stop my children from being around my sister. I love her, but she is on drugs and very unpredictable. One minute she is happy and fine and the next she is angry, violent or talking about inappropriate things like suicide. I had to explain to my kids that their aunt is having problems and that she needs to get help. My 6 year old does not understand about drugs so I did not go into detail with her, but I did with my 14 year olds. The reason that I told them about the drugs is to use it as a way of teaching them what can happen if that is a road that you choose. My mother has also had to take custody of my sister's 2 kids this past week because things have been escalating, so it is hard to hide what is going on. Sheltering kids causes parents to miss out on opportunities where they can teach their kids what consequences come from the choices that they make, in my opinion.

There's a fine line as far as sheltering your kids goes and it is rather subjective. Ultimately, you as a parent have to determine for yourself what kind on environment your child is living in, as well as going to school in. The best thing to do is to set limits, as far as how late a child can stay out at night, the crowd your child is hanging around with, etc. As far as sensitive topics such as drugs or sex, it may best to be brutally honest about this to your child, especially once they hit around nine or ten years old, and explain the dangers that come with them. The more a child understands, the better off they will be later in life.

If you live in that enviorment than you should let the kids see it and explain to them on their level the dangers in different situations. But it is not good to keep kids bottled up and then have them opened up to situations that are all around them at a later age. Let them be aware of what is there and the danger of getting involved in things.