Parents need to examine their own behavior and figure out how their way of parenting has led to this place. It may be a wake-up call to re-examine the family dynamic and re-adjust to make the home a more recovery-supportive environment.
It is natural and good for parents to provide everything for their children, but codependency happens when a parent forms an unhealthy attachment to the child and tries to use either control or enticement over the child’s life. This often happens to teens and adolescents who are in the developmental stage of seeking independence and self-determination.
Codependent parents like to hold onto control. Their sense of self depends on the parent-child relationship. This shows up in over-involvement, inappropriate caretaking, and over-indulging children. Codependent parents may also manipulate their children’s emotions into compliance. They can be either authoritarian or permissive in terms of parenting styles. At the core of the problem is the lack of healthy boundaries.
Parenting is about setting up boundaries. They determine certain behaviors to be acceptable and normative and others not. Children, including teens and adolescents, need healthy boundaries to grow in the right direction. Risky behaviors such as substance addiction do not happen overnight—they happen because healthy boundaries were trespassed without parents noticing or intervening. Codependent parenting tends to produce unhealthy boundaries that lead to such behaviors.
Take money, for example. Codependent parents enable addiction if they always yield to their teen begging for money to fund the addictive habit. Even after a teen completes treatment and recovers from substance addiction, parental codependency may again pave the way for relapse. If the person in treatment is working on recovery while family members are making no change, it can be very challenging for teens who live in the home environment.
Parent-child codependency can have negative effects on a young person’s emotional and mental health. As they develop their own personality, a teen tends to demonstrate low self-esteem because his or her sense of self-identity has largely been determined by an external force—parental approval.
Parental codependency robs the child of an important chance to build their sense of self-identity on the choices and commitments they make. Furthermore, because codependent parents are often poor role models for taking up responsibilities, teens and adolescents naturally pick up on their parents’ behaviors, including patterns of codependency.
Misplaced attachment and a distorted sense of control can set a young person’s social life in chaos. Because they grow up without healthy boundaries, some young people raised by codependent parents tend to gravitate towards toxic relationships later in life. For example, they might extend the attachment to friends who use substances.
The first step is always acknowledgment of the problem. Denial will not get you anywhere. In fact, parenting is a perpetual struggle and ongoing learning journey to test where boundaries have shifted and should be adjusted. There are common and proven techniques for this, such as coaching youth responsibility and disallowing risky behaviors.
Parents should practice “tough love” principles that prioritize healthy boundaries over satisfying every need of their teenager. Parents should be aware of their own behavior and avoid enabling risky behaviors. They also need to realize that teens need respect for their boundaries in life. Treating your teenager as an independent individual with a growing sense of responsibility means that you should step back and play a supportive role.
Treating teen addiction is a complicated task. Parents need a lot of education and support. It is better to consider working with professional interventionists who help identify signs of codependency and coach parents to improve in practicing tough love. Professional interventionists often use a multi-layered approach, including the following:
Have you re-examined your parenting style to see if there are any enabling patterns leading to your child's substance use problem? Admitting that you are a codependent parent can be difficult, but it is the first step towards your child's recovery and healing of your relationship. You do not need to walk this journey alone. There are ways to turn things around. It is time to work with an interventionist. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults achieve sobriety and restore family relationships. We coach parents to modify their past codependent behaviors and make the home a long-term recovery-supportive environment. We want to walk alongside you, and you can count on us. South Florida Intervention offers a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escort and case management services. We are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
]]>However, the teen addiction epidemic is not better in these affluent neighborhoods. Children growing up in well-to-do families there are becoming increasingly troubled, reckless, and self-sabotaging. In recent years, more and more troubled teenagers from the Boca Raton area are struggling with mental health, behavioral and addiction issues. One might wonder, given all the resources these wealthy families have access to, such as counseling and therapies, why hasn't the situation improved?
Growing up in a culture or family of affluence offers many opportunities for children to flourish. However, there are also potential psychosocial risks. Research has shown that children from wealthy families tend to experience more anxiety and depression. To the general public, this might first appear as a counterintuitive finding. Why might "privileged" youth be troubled? It turns out that there are many systemic factors behind the "privileged child syndrome."
First, children raised in wealthy communities are expected to show high achievement. Their parents often have higher educational degrees and occupy important career positions. In the families' social circles, parents also succumb to peer pressure to raise children in a certain way to show accomplishments. Children's other aspects of life, such as character and emotional wellbeing, are often devalued. Such high parental pressure can be a constant source of stress and anxiety.
Secondly, children from wealthy families tend to experience more parental neglect when growing up. Parents with important jobs often leave home for business trips, leaving children to hired caregivers. Parents also tend to think this is good for their children's self-sufficiency. However, there is generally a lack of emotional bonding and nurturing. Emotional isolation may lead to distress.
Even after children from wealthy families are found to have mental health issues and substance abuse problems, parents are less eager to follow the most standard process of treatment, which requires more parental involvement. Delayed intervention and treatment are very common.
Some may be reluctant to seek professional help because of privacy concerns. They fear that this may become an embarrassment in their social circle. There is a need to always maintain a veneer of wellbeing and family unity. Entering their children into detox treatment or mental health rehab might become known in these children's schools, as their children tend to participate in many activities. In sum, the stake of residential treatment is very high.
Educators in schools that serve wealthy families tend to be less persistent in having students screened, diagnosed, and recommended for treatment. Some counselors, for example, may hesitate to express concerns to parents from a wealthy background, sometimes fearing threats of lawsuits. As a result, wealthy youth may end up having less access to school-based counseling services than students from less well-off family backgrounds.
Addressing these systemic problems needs to start with the first step toward more parental involvement. It is time parents examine the true costs of their competitive and overscheduled lifestyles. Maybe those with work addiction need to seek help from mental health professionals first. Otherwise, it would be hard and unsustainable for parents to monitor their children's wellbeing.
Wealth does not protect children from being at risk of harm. Unfortunately, many family dynamics (including abuse and neglect) have already introduced children into a harmful environment. Affluence itself becomes a risk factor in adolescent development. Parents need to re-examine whether they have placed money above values. If a home provides little parental presence but a lot of financial means to get whatever one wants, drugs and alcohol may easily become an adolescent's self-soothing method against isolation.
Emotional nurturing and bonding are of primary importance between parent and child. Parenting practices centered around nurturing assure children that they are loved through words and action. Family members create quality time to have fun together. They listen to each other about what happens in their inner, emotional world. Most importantly, parents are role models in whom children place their trust.
Early and effective intervention for wealthy youth should be a responsible parent's top priority. Denialism can only make things worse. Many families have learned this lesson the hard way. Untreated or ineffectively treated teens may experience more cognitive and mental difficulties in later life. Consult with a professional interventionist, and change can start today.
Do you wonder why mental health issues and substance abuse have been rampant problems among youth from wealthy families? Why don't many seek professional intervention and treatment? There are systemic factors contributing to the lack of care for teens and adolescents of wealthy families. Affluence, stress, and easy access to substances seem to form a vicious cycle. Parents and educators have the power to break this cycle if they work with professional interventionists and health specialists. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many parents and their teens emerge from this crisis. We know the complexity of the problem and can help ensure your privacy during treatment. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. We can also provide a sober escort service for people in early sobriety. With our support, your child will have an excellent chance of achieving sobriety and wellness. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>For many teens and adolescents, substance addiction can be a way to self-medicate in response to traumatic stress. It is important to learn how traumatic events in the home affect children’s long-term health. Parents need to work with professional interventionists who know how to implement trauma-informed care to help young people recover from both trauma and addiction.
The word “trauma” refers to physical or emotional impact by violent or life-threatening events. Traumatic events can happen in the home. Examples include sexual abuse, domestic violence, fatal accidents, and other violent incidents. They impact every member of the family, including children. The effects of trauma can triple through family relationships, creating dysfunctions that can last for decades and affect many generations. Family trauma can become intergenerational trauma.
Traumatic experiences can certainly bring family members together and build collective resilience. However, in most cases, they create a high level of stress and expose the vulnerable ones to life-long risks of dysfunction. Children who are exposed to family trauma may experience difficulties in regulating their emotions because the traumatic stress has hampered their emotional and mental development.
The signs of traumatic stress are different in each child, depending on their age and personality. Emotional distress, anxiety, fear, and poor sleeping patterns are common among young children. Among teens and adolescents, common signs include depression, social isolation, self-harming behaviors, risky sexual behaviors, and substance use.
Intergenerational trauma may negatively affect children. Due to the lack of a nurturing home environment or a higher dose of violence and conflicts, the younger generation can become emotionally distanced and defensive. Many families cope with intergenerational trauma by two unhealthy coping mechanisms: denial and minimization. These practices may create an oppressive silent culture within the family system, which is not conducive to mental health.
The family should be a safe haven where healthy emotional bonding across generations happens. With intergenerational trauma, however, family members may struggle with how to express their emotions in a healthy way. Once children who were exposed to traumatic stress grow up to be parents, the lasting effects of past family trauma can add burden to their already stressed parenting role. Parenting under high stress is shown to be related to insensitivity, lack of responsiveness, withdrawal, irritability, negativity, and punitiveness.
Childhood traumatic experiences may lead to a higher risk of substance use and addiction. Apart from stress, trauma can also damage one’s self-confidence and sense of self-worth. Children who have experienced trauma (abuse or violence) at home also find it harder to trust people. Teens and adolescents who have experienced family trauma and struggle with substance addiction often have difficulty entering or staying involved in treatment.
Not all substance addiction treatment programs use a trauma-informed approach. Facilities that lack integrated services are not equipped to care for teens with both traumatic stress and substance use problems. Both addiction treatment and mental health providers need to pay attention to young people’s trauma history and its relationship to their current conditions.
Teens and adolescents use drugs or alcohol for a variety of reasons. Some may have experienced traumatic events that play a large role in their addiction. Not all parents or caregivers are aware of the reaching effects of family trauma. Perhaps they have been the perpetrators of such trauma in the home. Most parents are not naturally capable of addressing the negative impact of family trauma on their children. Sometimes it takes external interventionists to break the cycle of trauma and addiction.
Parents and caregivers also play an important role in helping young people to unburden themselves. If they open up about past family trauma, consider it a golden opportunity for open communication. Explain to the child that he or she is not responsible for what happened, as that is often one hidden burden. Be patient with their progress – healing can take time and is not always linear.
The most effective care for teens and adolescents who struggle with family trauma and substance addiction is for parents, caregivers, and interventionists to work together by implementing a personalized trauma-informed treatment plan. Family-based, trauma-informed care should include coaching family members on the signs of shared traumatic stress and how much stress has shaped family relationships, as well as encouraging them to seek evidence-based treatment.
The problem of youth or teen addiction often has deeper roots in the family system. Some young people have experienced traumatic events in the family, which increase their risk for mental health illnesses and substance use. Parents need to know more about how family trauma works for the younger generation before intervening in their risky behaviors. In these situations, working with professional interventionists can be extremely beneficial. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults navigate family trauma while trying to achieve sobriety. We know how to implement trauma-informed care to support families. We can also help your loved one connect with a strong and supportive recovery community, including other trusted health experts. South Florida Intervention offers a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escort and case management services. We are here to help. Do not delay treatment. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
]]>Researchers have found that parenting style is closely related to a child’s development, mental health, and even risk for substance use. The family is a system and an institution. Parents play a formative role in how the system works. Understanding this can help you assess and improve.
We all raise children differently. Depending on communication, nurturing, expectations, and discipline style, parenting may fall into four main types.
First, authoritarian parenting refers to parental behaviors that are controlling and disciplinarian at home. They are often very strict, with little room for negotiation. Communication between parent and child is usually a one-way street, with the parent giving commands. There is less nurturing and emotional bonding. Expectations are high, and the home tends to see more physical and emotional abuse, which are adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
On the other end of the spectrum is neglectful or uninvolved parenting. Children are given maximum freedom, and parents want to stay out of the way. Both nurturing and communication are limited, and parents have little or no expectation of children. There is no particular discipline style used in the home.
Between these two ends of the continuum are two other types: permissive and authoritative parenting. In permissive parenting, parents behave like friends to their children, offering limited guidance. Communication is open, and children have the freedom to make their own decisions. There can be warmth and nurturing. Expectations are fluid, usually not set by the parents. Discipline does not happen a lot.
In authoritative parenting, communication is frequent and two-way. There is nurturing and emotional bonding. Expectations are high, but children may have input into their goals. Disciplinary rules are clearly spelled out and used.
It turns out that authoritarian and neglectful parenting styles are positively related to a higher risk of substance use. In comparison, the other two types (authoritative and permissive parenting) tend to bring lower risk. These findings can be generalized into one overarching principle for parents: They should not tightly control everything, nor should there be neglect and lack of affection.
Parenting style is not the determinant of youth substance use; there are many other factors at work. For example, parental history of substance use (or lack of sober adult role models in the home) also affects the risk of children developing substance use habits during adolescence. Early exposure to substance use by other family members or caregivers can also increase the risk.
Educators and a child’s peer group may play an increasingly larger role among teens and adolescents. This time is when parental authority wanes and external influences rise. For example, a teacher’s style of instructing and working with students may also influence a child’s development and mental health conditions. Another key risk factor is whether a child’s peer group has bullying practices or glorifies substance use.
No matter what your assessment is and how your child is doing, teens and adolescents always need parental support. Even the best parenting style with the most consistency does not guarantee success in raising healthy and happy teenagers. Parenting is not an exact science, and we cannot control all variables in a teenager’s life. There will be peer pressure, conflicts, and even trauma, but what parents can offer to do is just be there for them.
Connecting with your child in an emotional way is important. Maybe you have not done that so often for various reasons in the past, but it is never late to try and start anew. Spend more quality time with your teen child. Try to understand and enter their emotional world. Listen to their worries, anxieties, and regrets. A listening parent is the best therapist for your child. Some parents may not be expressive in forming an emotional connection, but your teenage child can see the efforts you put into trying, and that alone can impact the bond between you two.
There can be communication gaps between a parent and child, especially when substance use is involved. The key is to initiate non-confrontational, two-way communication with your child.
Understandably, you can feel emotionally charged when starting a conversation. It may help you get parent coaching with a professional interventionist before initiating a conversation with your child about their substance use. You may have many questions you want someone to answer regarding teen addiction. After you are better informed and have reasonable knowledge, you will be able to engage in calmer conversations.
Professional interventionists can also do the heavy lifting for you. They can act as a bridge between you and your child struggling with substance use. They understand how teens and adolescents behave in this situation and know the best practices and strategies that have been proven to work.
Do you know that authoritarian and neglectful parenting styles may increase a child's risk of mental illness and substance addiction? Are you unsure about how to best communicate with your teen child on the topic of substance use? Many parents engage in confrontational and counterproductive clashes with their adolescents over this situation. With more education and preparation, you can better help your child. There are professional interventionists who work with parents and youth toward the goal of recovery. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many parents and youth recover. We can connect you with trusted health professionals who have plenty of experience in this area. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we offer detailed case management. We can also provide a sober escort service for people in early sobriety. With our support, your child will have an excellent chance of achieving long-term sobriety. Call us at (202) 390-2273 today.
]]>Like other types of addictions, social media addiction is a behavioral disorder characterized by an uncontrollable and compulsive urge to use social media despite experiencing its negative impact on emotional and mental health. Addictive social media use may lead to mood shifts, social avoidance, relationship conflicts, and a range of mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. People also experience withdrawal symptoms when quitting social media.
The mechanisms of social media addiction in the brain are also similar to other addictions. Social networking provides a dopamine-inducing environment, the same neurological circuitry that produces pleasure gives reward to more frequent and prolonged social media use. For these reasons, social media use can be addictive psychologically. For example, neuroscientists find that getting a notification or a like on social media can make the brain receive a rush of dopamine and form a positive reinforcing reward system,
Too much social media use happens when individuals over-depend on them to relieve stress or loneliness. They end up engaging more and more. In social life, they tend to isolate and withdraw. As a result, people ignore real-life relationships, work or school responsibilities, and even physical health. For example, some young people stay up late on social media, which may cause sleep disorders.
Parents should watch out for the following signs of behavior in their teens and adolescents which might point to social media addiction: Have they been spending a lot of time on social media, including late into the night? Do they frequently feel the urge to access social media? Has their use of social media caused relationship problems with family and/or friends? Did they try to reduce the use without success? Are they developing mental health issues?
While social media platforms offer a lot of benefits to young people, like access to new things and connecting to peers, too much use can increase negative emotions. The negativity surrounding breaking news about violence and crimes can be compounded when the world is synced together. Many young girls are also increasingly challenged by the perfect body image of peers on social media, leading to depression and eating disorders.
Teens and adolescents are at a developmental phase longing for social approval from their peers. Many experience a kind of anxiety to fit in. Social media may aggravate it by creating a fear of missing out on social happenings. When young social media users see images of events to which they were not invited or fun activities they were not able to attend, there tends to be an intense fear and anxiety of being left out. This can take a toll on young people’s self-esteem. It also causes them to constantly check on social media platforms in order not to miss out on anything.
Social media is not only potentially depression-forming but also habit-forming. Young people who spend three or more hours a day on social media platforms are at higher risk of developing mental health issues. Because their brains and social skills are still developing, this problem can have lasting impacts. In recent years, new trends of online bullying and harassment add more harm to young people, sometimes causing suicide attempts.
Parents can affirm that it is only normal for young people to want to connect and communicate with peers. This trend seems inevitable given the wide availability of smartphones and information technology. Parents still need to remind teens and adolescents that the online social world may pose many risks to their mental health. It is important to introduce the topic of emotional and mental health to young people, just as how physical health is emphasized in the home and at school.
Parents are in the best position to help boost their children’s self-esteem. Affirm their individuality and help them understand how one’s self-worth should not be determined by what their peers think. Parents should plan healthy events that enrich and support teenagers’ self-confidence. Encourage young people to spend more time with offline friends and build meaningful, mutually affirmative connections.
Parents can also help them develop healthier habits such as regular exercise, a healthy diet, and consistent sleep patterns. The best way to lead them into a balanced lifestyle is to model one. Parents themselves should show moderation in all things, including the use of social media and communication technology.
Social media overconsumption and addiction has been common among young people these days. Not many parents are aware that social media addiction can rewire the brain to the same addictive patterns as substances. It can also worsen youth mental health problems and put them at a higher risk of substance use. Parents need coaching on how to intervene and reverse addictive behaviors in youths. Working with a professional interventionist can help. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults overcome all kinds of addictions. We know how to work with young people and their families in personalizing intervention, treatment plans, and relapse prevention plans. Depending on your needs, South Florida Intervention offers a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escorts and case management. We are here to help. Early intervention is key. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
Despite the potential harm of these illicit and nonmedical drugs, more and more young people have been normalizing their use. The legalization of recreational marijuana in many states has also led to a decrease in perceived harmfulness. During the pandemic, overdose deaths of teenagers who used illicit drugs through online sales have made headlines. Parents and educators must continue to raise awareness among young people with evidence-based data about the overwhelming negative impact of these substances.
The recovery community defines illicit drug use as misusing illegally purchased or prescription medications in ways other than instructed. The most commonly misused prescription drugs are opioids, pain relievers, depressants, and stimulants, all of which are easily accessible.
Young people often obtain illicit and nonmedical drugs from peers, friends, or even family members. Many are ignorant about the illegality of purchasing or distributing drugs in this way. The high accessibility makes illicit drugs rampant among youth. For example, 15% of high school students in the U.S. reported having ever used illicit drugs. When compounded with other risk factors, such as poor parental monitoring, family history of substance use, mental health issues, and lack of school connectedness, the risk for youth in using illicit drugs can be very high and alarming.
It is commonly observed that when parents are engaged in their children’s school activities, these children tend to get better grades and thrive socially. Parent engagement can also motivate children to avoid unhealthy behaviors even when faced with peer pressure to do so. However, all parents need some coaching when it comes to fully support their children. They need information and skills to make effective two-way communication with children. Parents themselves need to model a healthy lifestyle and active community involvement.
Parents of teens and adolescents especially need some coaching on how to best support their emotional development. This is a time when mental and sexual health, bullying, and substance use all appear on the horizon. Parents are sometimes late to catch the early warning signs of risky behavior. This is when non-confrontational, mutually agreed-on parental monitoring is necessary. Parents need to spell out their intentions for monitoring their children’s whereabouts and social circle. Research has shown again and again that teens who believe their parents disapprove of risky behaviors, such as skipping school, smoking, drinking, or sexual experimentations, are less likely to choose those behaviors.
Parents need to know the importance of plugging their teens into a network of health care, educational, and recovery support. For example, teens can benefit from regular one-on-one meetings with health care providers. They should be encouraged to pay more attention to their own health needs, giving them a sense of agency in weighing health choices. Parents can support and prepare them to make this transition. Seeing a health care provider regularly can build a consistent support system in a young person’s life.
Usually, teens and adolescents feel more connected with their school institutions when educators and staff care about them as individuals. This sense of connection can help students succeed academically and make healthy choices. For educators and school staff, the goal to increase connectedness with students should guide how they prevent risky behavior among students, such as illicit drug use.
Educators and school staff should be able to connect with families and know about their unique and diverse situations, which might impact a child’s emotional and academic development. For example, every school has students who are at increased risk of feeling socially isolated from others. This might be due to disability, divorce, financial stress, or other family circumstances. Fostering a bully-free and inclusive school atmosphere is crucial for these students and for the general morale in a school. The best prevention against unhealthy peer behavior is to build up a strong, cohesive, and healthy support system for every student.
Are you worried about your teen child getting access to illicit drugs through their friends? Do you know how to best prevent illicit and nonmedical drug use from happening? Given the prevalence of illicit drugs in an average American teenager's social life, it takes a strong coalition of parents, educators, and health care professionals to protect more young people from the harm of this epidemic. You can learn more about prevention and treatment to prepare for the worst scenario. A professional interventionist can coach you and other parents in your community to best prepare and intervene as soon as early signs are detected. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many parents and families. We can connect you with trusted health professionals who have plenty of experience in this area. We also offer detailed case management and can provide a sober escort service for people who are in early sobriety. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Some parents would want their teen to get treatment immediately. They want to see willingness in the child for getting help. But how should they convince a reluctant teenager who is still in denial about the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol? Sometimes parents need more patience and techniques to communicate with their child.
Once strong emotions settle, parents should continue to talk with their children about the importance of sobriety through treatment. For a substantive breakthrough to happen, there needs to be a lot of preparatory communication. Knowing that there are deeper causes behind a young person’s substance addiction, parents should try to find out what they are.
Instead of demanding tasks and dominating conversations about your child’s life choices, maybe it is time to ask questions. Find out what has been causing emotional pain in their life. Maybe this involves your own relationship with the child. Once your child opens up about their inner world, do not steer away from discussing these challenging topics.
Having heartfelt conversations is a way of building trust. Parents need to listen deeply. They need to empathize with the child on what they are afraid of. Parents can use open-ended questions, which allow a young person to open up. It is also wise to wait for the right timing. It usually does not work if the teenager is under the influence of drugs or physically tired.
Parents need to create incentives when talking with their teens about treatment. This works better than just listing the harmful effects or threatening them with negative consequences. Incentives help restore a child’s own agency. In the meantime, though, parents need to be wise on how to use such leverages without creating codependency.
Codependency or enabling behaviors in the home need to be identified and reduced to a minimum. For example, parents should monitor more closely how their teen children spend money, and refuse to support their over-expenses. They should also avoid telling lies or hiding the problem of addiction for the sake of “protecting” the child, especially when the teenager can hear these lies. Doing this only creates more codependency and resistance in the child for positive change. Recognizing the problem is much more empowering than trying to cover it up.
Parents also tend to swing between two extremes: denialism and blaming themselves. The former is a kind of neglect that can delay your child from getting treatment. The second does not motivate you towards supporting your child, either. Addiction is a chronic disease, which is beyond one person’s willpower. Specialized treatment is what your child needs.
Parents should take a science-based and rational approach. One option is to seek help from a professional interventionist who works with young people, using a family-based approach. Getting educated is always the first step to becoming recovery-supportive. Parents should also be prepared for a long-term journey because recovery is not a sprint, but a marathon. They need to be motivated positively to support their children on this path.
When choosing a treatment program, there are many factors to consider. Some residential programs directed at teens now offer tutoring or continuing education so that young people’s academic studies are not interrupted. Peer group support or group therapy is also conducive to teens who need strong emotional and social support during the process.
Parents also need to consider co-occurring mental health problems their children display. These include depression, compulsion, anxiety, or ADHD. Youths with these conditions might need a strong component of mental health care. Young people who have experienced trauma in issues related to sexual assault, sexuality, or teen pregnancy might need gender-specific programs to recover without the social distractions of dealing with the opposite sex.
Parental support is needed after a young person finishes treatment and returns to normal life. During this state of early sobriety, the risk of relapse is still high and there are many triggers around. Parents should prepare the home environment to be not just substance-free, but also stress-free. This requires parents to be able to identify potential triggers and stressors.
Family relationships also need to be improved to avoid relational stress at home. Open communication and healthy boundaries are still the keys to navigating this home recovery phase. Parents can also consider joining their own support group so they can best function as the main caregivers for a young person in recovery. Professional interventionists can help them set a personalized relapse prevention plan. However, even if relapses happen, parents should always resort to the foundation of compassion and empathy towards the child because it is such support that makes recovery possible.
Parents may go into anger and frustration mode when finding out about their teenagers' substance use or addiction problem. However, confrontational communication can be counter-productive. What your child needs is compassionate support and effective guidance towards self-control and recovery. As parents, your best option is to work with an experienced interventionist who knows how to talk with young people. Early intervention is key, so parents should act now. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults complete treatment and achieve sobriety. They know how to work with young people and their families. You need a strong recovery community to support your role as an involved parent at this critical stage of your child's life. South Florida Intervention has your back. We offer a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escorts and case management. We are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
In sharp contrast to this trend is the reality that only a small percentage of adolescents who need treatment are receiving care. Untreated or ineffectively treated adolescent SUD has always been a serious problem. It is time for parents and educators to work with recovery specialists in a concerted and proactive way to address this ongoing crisis.
Adolescents are individuals between the ages of 12 and 25, a critical period for developmental outcomes. Young people explore new things and take on more risk-seeking activities. Unusual behaviors such as truancy, aggression, and violence can also occur. Researchers consider adolescence a developmental phase when many unhealthy behavioral patterns take shape with a lasting impact on later adulthood.
The most common behavioral problems among adolescents are smoking, drinking, and experimenting with drugs. Teens and adolescents are highly social groups where the fear of exclusion runs high. Peer pressure alone may become a conduit for substance use to spread within a group of adolescents.
The critical nature of this developmental phase also lies in the fact that external factors make the adolescent brain highly malleable. Early exposure to drugs and alcohol may wire the brain structures in a way that makes a person more susceptible to addiction and its co-occurring mental health problems in later adulthood.
One difficulty with treating adolescents for SUD is that many tend to leave or quit before treatment is officially over. These half-treated young people then return to life while experiencing difficulties in school and work, including academic failure, broken relationships, and sometimes overdose deaths. Therefore, it is crucial to find effective interventions to keep young people enrolled and actively engaged in the treatment program until full completion.
Recovery specialists need to keep young people in treatment for more extended periods. Techniques like motivational interviewing can motivate and support young people by meeting where they are at. Group counseling also has a strong, cohesive power to support recovering individuals. There needs to be a reward plan and incentives to encourage non-substance-using behaviors.
One significant aspect is involving the adolescent's caregiver to participate in the treatment plan. Parental and family involvement is key to effective prevention and treatment of SUD among teens. This approach takes care of many issues, such as family communication and conflict resolution, which are often deeper causes or risk factors for substance use among young people. Research shows that family-based intervention and treatment are both highly effective.
These include brief strategic family therapy, family behavior therapy, functional family therapy, multidimensional family therapy, and multisystemic therapy. A common underlying belief behind all these programs is that one family member's behavioral health issues are related to unhealthy family interactions. Through the facilitation by a trained therapist, family members can apply new skills to improve the home environment.
Another important institution is the education system, which plays a big role in preventing adolescent addiction. School-based interventions with personalized feedback and goal setting, as well as family-based programs emphasizing parental support and establishing clear boundaries can reduce alcohol-related behavior issues among adolescents.
It takes a big team to implement a successful intervention for adolescents who develop an addiction to drugs and alcohol. There needs to be medication management by licensed professionals, psychiatric consultation by trained counselors, family therapy by experienced therapists, and support staff who offer a range of other important age-specific services such as academic support and aftercare planning.
To a certain extent, intervention for adolescents can be more challenging to navigate than for adults. Parents always want to find the best program for their children who are willing to try it. However, they also do not want their children's academic grades to fall during this time. Effective intervention for this age group also demands an individualized approach to meet each young person's unique needs. Therapists and counselors also try to give young patients a sense of agency because that is what keeps them motivated.
Finally, treatment specialists need to consider that the adolescent years are critical for young people to develop life skills. Some treatment programs prepare them for future career choices by building the young individual's self-confidence and coaching them in key relationship skills. This is part of the adaptability side of successful prevention.
Are you worried about a teen or adolescent child who uses substances? Do you know how to best intervene? Early intervention is key for young people because their habits today are formative for their adulthood. However, there can be unique challenges when intervention is needed for adolescents. Many who were willing to be treated eventually leave treatment without completing it. You want to have the best strategies ready before doing anything. Otherwise, untreated adolescent substance use disorder can be even more difficult. Because of the complexity of this task, you should consider working with professional interventionists who are experienced with young people in this age group. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many parents, and our commitment is to connect you with trusted health professionals. We offer recovery coaching, parent coaching, detailed case management, and sober escort service. Early intervention is key; do not delay. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Early intervention means identifying and providing effective early support to young people who are at risk of substance use and addiction. This involves two major steps: identifying and providing support. The first step deals with risk factors, while the second step takes a proactive approach to risk reduction. In other words, effective early intervention chooses to tackle problems head-on before these same issues get worse.
Early intervention also involves setting up healthy relationship boundaries in the home, establishing coping skills for traumatic or stressful events, and fostering a sense of confidence and self-worth among young people. These can all minimize the need or want to use substances in the future for destressing or self-medication.
Early intervention must include a proactive education initiative to teach young people about the science behind substance addiction. Parents and educators need to convince young people about the long-term impact of harmful drugs on their well-being. If parents are not sure of how to educate their children, they should be open to working with professional interventionists who have expertise and experience in coaching young people.
Many young people who develop substance addiction were exposed to drugs and alcohol during early adolescence. Some got exposed to family members who use, while others were offered the opportunity to experiment with drugs in their peer group. In many cases, parents are unsuspecting or unaware, losing the best early opportunities to intervene. It is therefore crucial for parents to educate themselves and know how to detect early signs as soon as possible.
In general, substance-using teens and adolescents tend to demonstrate unusual behaviors, such as social withdrawal, secrecy, sleep problems, and sometimes eating disorders. Parents who are involved in their children’s daily routines should be able to detect these and many other signs. There also tends to be a change of personality as the young person may resort to deception and disrespect towards others. Because those who use drugs later lose interest in things they were previously passionate about, there can be shifts in interests and hobbies, too.
Once parents detect these early signs and confirm the presence of drugs in their children’s lives, they should not deny or delay the problem. The earlier the young person receives the treatment he or she needs, the more effective recovery can become. In reality, though, many parents tend to react emotionally and fail to implement the non-confrontational principle. Few want to involve external interventionists because of the shame and stigma. This tends to produce counter-productive outcomes.
The correct approach is to work with addiction and recovery experts immediately. As parents, you need to be educated, as well, and addiction is too complicated for one person to wrap their head about it overnight. Many parents feel hesitant to reach out because they are unaware of the resources available to them. All this lack of knowledge requires coaching from professional interventionists.
Early intervention is key because once this window of opportunity is lost, it can be more difficult for a young person to recover. By the time parents find out, it is likely that many young people have been using substances for a long time. Repeated and long-term exposure to drugs and alcohol may change his or her brain structures in a way that becomes hard to reverse.
Even if they can maintain sobriety, for now, substance-using teens and adolescents face a higher risk of relapsing and getting addicted when they reach adulthood. For some drugs, delayed intervention can be life-threatening. Each year, many parents are shocked to find their teens and adolescents dying from an overdose of cocaine or other high potency drugs without even knowing that these children had addiction problems.
Early intervention organizations act in many ways to help families succeed in co-leading the young generation. This includes home visiting programs to raise awareness among parents or to support vulnerable parents in high-risk homes. Schools may have problems improving students’ social and emotional skills. Some provide a mentor system for young people from high-risk backgrounds.
Effective early intervention can improve a young person's chance at life at any point. This means that it is better late than never to be involved in an early intervention program provided by neighborhood or community organizations. In sum, parents and educators as the first responders to teen addiction ought to implement effective early intervention, which should be guided by support, compassion, and understanding. They should be consistent in messaging and predictable in their actions.
Most people know that early intervention is key for substance addiction among young people. But what does early intervention entail in real life? Strategies are important to implement the mandate of early intervention, which often falls on the shoulders of parents and caregivers. At South Florida Intervention, we can help. You can work with professional interventionists to learn more about early intervention strategies. Our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults achieve and maintain sobriety. We consider early intervention as key, no matter which stage one is at. There is always a chance to turn back, because addiction is a treatable disease. Parents can benefit from a range of services provided by South Florida Intervention, including recovery coaching, parent coaching, sober escorts, and ongoing case management. Change starts today. Come work with an interventionist for effective early prevention techniques. Call South Florida Intervention today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
]]>Many people in recovery look back on the years of their past addiction and realize that they have lost their own identity in the trial. Substance addiction increases the risk of developing mental health problems and creates a kind of emotional numbness in one’s inner world. These conditions are related to the brain’s neurotransmitters changing its reward circuits, making daily activities, including connecting with yourself in a sober way, devoid of pleasure.
The loss of self-identity may also show up in how you are seen as a different person in the eyes of family members and friends. Substance-induced stress responses and mental health conditions often lead to behavioral problems, such as lying, deception, avoidance, and compulsion. Of course, you can see the loss of self in such behaviors only when you reach sobriety and regain rational reflection power on what has happened to your life.
At an addiction treatment facility, health professionals can help you understand why you started using substances in the first place. There are often deeper causes of why you resorted to drugs and alcohol for self-medication. For some people, it was trauma and abuse. For others, it was overwork and stress. Discovering the root of your addiction is not a waste of time but a way to effectively eradicate the influence of drugs and alcohol from your life.
Connecting to yourself in a sober way is the foundation of sustainable self-care. Many treatment centers encourage patients to use various self-discovery techniques, such as journaling, meditation, and mindfulness. Many people who have quit drugs and alcohol find it challenging to discover who they really are. Many of them had low self-esteem in the first place and are reluctant to look into themselves.
Despite this apprehension, there is no way around it. Getting to know yourself as someone vulnerable and brave is the only way to heal. Moreover, your self-discovery journey does not have to be a lonely one. Using proven methods, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, health professionals can help you analyze the deeper causes of your addiction, such as family trauma and abuse. Staff at your treatment facility can also coach you to uncover your needs and where you can be creative in the journey of self-discovery.
Living without drugs and alcohol is a freeing experience. You can discover who you are without the bondage of substances. You get to rediscover what makes you joyful in life and what gives you a sense of purpose. You will have a second chance to savor and cherish relationships. The more you invest in these fulfilling aspects of life, the sharper your sense of self will become. Your past addiction will also look more harmful because it has cost all the beautiful things in your life.
When you have been educated on the root causes of your substance addiction, you will have an increased awareness to watch out for signs of a potential relapse. Journaling about triggers in the past can help you detect the early signs of relapse, which is a benefit of the self-discovery process. You need to face the demons of the past to prevent them from overcoming you again. Once you can identify the root causes of your addiction and its early signs, you will have a better chance and increased awareness of detecting signs of relapse.
The phase of self-discovery during your early sobriety can give you a chance to expand your hobbies and interests. You can try creative activities such as art therapy. Creativity helps emotional healing and reduces stress and craving for substances. Creative activities also train you to be present and live fully in the moment instead of escaping it. Finding new hobbies with sober friends can also rebuild your social skills. You will find that a whole new life is waiting for you.
The rewards of self-discovery can deepen your emotional roots and improve your mental wellbeing. Understanding yourself leads to more appreciation for yourself, which can ground you for a lifetime of healing and fulfillment.
When you look back on your history of addiction, do you realize how lost you were? Substance addiction can shatter people’s lives and steal their dreams and ambitions. Many who suffer from addiction are lost in meeting the distorted desires of the brain while feeling emotionally numb about everything, including their own existence. Recovery and healing must happen at the innermost level of a person. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many people find themselves again. We walk alongside young people on this journey of self-discovery. We listen with a compassionate heart and answer with informed wisdom. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we offer detailed case management. We can also provide a sober escort service for people who are in early sobriety. With our support, you or your loved one can learn to appreciate themselves and their self-worth. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Naturally, family is important for the nurturing of a younger generation. Teens and adolescents are subject to the parents’ monitoring and support. This can help rein in risky behaviors during this volatile phase of their development.
Even before that, family is where children’s emotional and mental health is supported. Unfortunately, the family also tends to be the primary place where trauma, abuse, and neglect happen, leading to a wide array of problems that impact young people’s emotional and mental health in a negative way.
Family-based prevention and intervention pay attention to family communication and conflict, the parents’ mental health, the child’s learning disorders, and peer networks. It takes a systemic lens in identifying the most common risk factors in a family system, which includes not just the parents, but their social environments, such as neighborhoods and social peer groups.
For the reasons listed above, if one needs to trace the root causes of youth addiction, that would be the primary family environment. Research shows that family-based intervention and treatments are highly effective for young people who struggle with substance addiction. Some even suggest that they are more effective than other one-on-one and group treatment options.
Family-based intervention often involves outpatient care. Because parents and caregivers in the family are given the primary responsibility while being supported by interventionists or therapists, this approach provides the best possible care for adolescent substance addiction in young people’s natural social environment.
Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) examines a young person’s behaviors by considering unhealthy family interactions. It often involves a dozen sessions, with the counselor forming a relationship with each family member and observing their interactions. The counselor then assists family members in changing negative interaction patterns.
Family Behavioral Therapy (FBT) combines behavioral observation with crisis management to address risky behavior among teens and adolescents. At least one parent and the youth participate in treatment. The therapist coaches family members to use positive behavioral strategies and encourages them to apply new relationship skills in improving the home environment.
Functional Family Therapy (FFT) is aimed at improving communication, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and parenting skills within a family system. The therapist motivates family members to improve and change. He or she also introduces techniques in these areas (communication and conflict resolution) to modify family members’ behaviors at home.
Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) broadens a family-based approach to a community-based intervention model. It helps improve family competency and collaboration with other neighborhood systems such as schools or the legal system. It can be very effective in reintegrating juvenile detainees with substance addiction problems.
Multi-systemic Therapy (MST) addresses severe cases of substance addiction among youth who demonstrate violent tendencies. The therapist examines the young person’s patterns of behaviors as well as those of his or her family, peers, and neighborhood actors. Counseling sessions may touch on issues that involve multiple systems that impact the youth.
First of all, family members need to realize the importance of their relationships with the young person who is struggling with risky behavior. They should reflect on their own actions and take more responsibility for the young person’s problems as part of a family system’s malfunctioning. Family members are expected to show up during intervention and treatment in a supportive, rather than condemning, posture.
Second, family members need open and honest communication about how to improve the system from now on. Maybe a young person’s problems serve as a wake-up call for all family members to modify their ways of behaving to each other. A relationship built with open communication almost always leads to improvement in the young person. Meanwhile, parents and caregivers should respect the young person’s ability to make decisions. A domineering attitude does not help the situation.
Lastly, family members should realize that they need professional help from other systems that may also influence the young person. They can serve as the youth’s advisors or task force for connecting him or her with the best possible resources in the school or neighborhood systems. While doing this, family members should acquire more cultural literacy about how different families and systems have distinct cultural beliefs. This can help them set up healthy boundaries by not imposing their own beliefs on others.
Successful prevention of substance use among youth always requires the involvement of strong families. Healthy family relationships are the first guard rail against risky behaviors. This is why the medical community has been calling for family-based prevention and intervention regarding the rise of adolescent substance addiction. Family-based intervention integrates the most beneficial support and treatment. You can work with a professional interventionist to learn more about these options. South Florida Intervention has professionally-trained interventionists who have helped many teens and young adults recover. Knowing the importance of family support, we are a big advocate for family-based intervention approaches. Our recovery coaches help your loved one connect with a strong and supportive recovery community while enjoying positive support from family members. Many families benefit from a range of our services – from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escort and ongoing case management. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
Most people use drugs for their psychological benefits — the feeling of "getting high" — which is why many claim that drug use is just another leisure activity because it promises a certain degree of pleasure. Some researchers even came up with a model of addiction to show that drug use does not undermine the autonomy of the user and qualifies as a pleasure-oriented activity.
Indeed, in the beginning, a nonaddicted brain does get "pleasure" from chemicals in the substances. However, as time goes on, repeated substance use can gradually change the brain's reward system, making the same pleasure possible only by taking more frequent and higher doses of the same substance. This is when pleasure gives way to dependence and addictive habits. By then, the teaser effects of pleasure gradually wear off, revealing the addictive power of a substance in controlling a user's life.
Just as substance use in the early stage can boost your mood so that you feel "pleasure," in the addictive phase, substance use continues to alter your mood by changing the brain chemicals and structures. Neuroscience has helped us understand more about how substance addiction harms the brain, one of the most important human organs.
Two specific areas of the human brain undergo changes due to substance addiction: the reward circuit and the stress response system. The power of addiction lies exactly in how substances hijack and even rewire brain circuits. Normally, a healthy brain experiences pleasure when doing healthy things, such as eating good food, being physically active, or spending time with family and friends. When these healthy activities activate the brain's reward circuit, it releases neurotransmitters, such as dopamine, to send positive messages of pleasure and enjoyment.
When addictive substances flood the brain, they cause a sharp rise in dopamine levels. They stimulate the brain's reward circuits in a way that normal and healthy activities cannot immediately do. However, when the brain is repeatedly exposed to the same high-intensity reward, it stops responding to the normal "reward" activities. The brain no longer finds other things pleasurable, even regarding the same dose of substances. What happens is the brain's decrease in the ability to feel pleasure.
After pleasure is hijacked by substances, the brain no longer enjoys a good meal, connecting with a friend, or watching natural sceneries as before. There is an emotional bluntness to all of these activities. Relationships also feel not enjoyable. At the same time, the brain tends to see an increase in emotional stress when the drug wears off, which is why most people with substance addiction have mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety.
These negative effects happen because the brain's stress-response circuit has also been changed because substances are chemicals that make the brain stressful, especially with the increasing frequency and dosing. Tragically, when these two processes happen (intense pleasure and increased stress), people tend to rely more on the soothing effects of substances, which places them in a vicious cycle.
By the time the parts of the brain responsible for self-control and healthy decision-making are less effective, a person's behaviors will also have changed. This is why people who struggle with substance addiction and mental health issues inevitably experience tension and conflicts in their relationships — whether at home, in the workplace, or on social occasions. Their actions can become compulsive. They succumb to mood swings and increased irritability.
To access more drugs, some lie to their employers and family members. Deception alone will break many relationships. Some people gradually grow into a group of new friends who use substances or avoid socialization altogether, choosing to live just with drugs and alcohol.
This bleak picture should not make you lose hope because addiction is a treatable disease. Since science has helped us know more about its working mechanisms, health professionals have come up with proven ways to combat addiction. Holistic treatment addresses the brain's emotional and behavioral levels.
Early intervention is key given how substance addiction can harm the essential human organs over time.
Do you know that substance addiction can lead to lasting damage to the body and the mind? Addiction can negatively impact your major organs. Your brain structures are changed so dramatically that many mental health conditions are likely to occur. Many people who use substances tend to deny these effects, thinking that they can quit at any time, but science does not back this notion. Substance addiction is powerful, and few people can quit by mere willpower. You need to work with a professional interventionist as early as possible. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many young people and professionals heal from substance dependency. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we offer detailed case management. We can also provide a sober escort service for people who are in early sobriety. Early intervention is key; make the decision to quit today. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, in the United States, over 90% of addictions have originated in the teenage years. The median age of onset for illicit drug use and alcohol use is 14 years old. Over five million adolescents in America now suffer from a substance use disorder.
There can be signs of concern even before young people are exposed to drugs that are available in their environment. Behavioral scientists and the broader medical community have developed evidence-based, selective prevention programs that target a subset of young people who might be at higher risk of developing problems with drugs and alcohol in the future. For example, in 2017, over 3.2 million U.S. adolescents aged 12 to 17 had at least one major depressive episode.
Based on the Substance Use Risk Profile Scale (SURPS), there are four types of personalities that are considered to be at a higher risk of developing substance-related problems. The first is people with Negative Thinking. They often demonstrate low self-esteem because of negative beliefs held about themselves, others, and the future. This behavioral indicator is consistent with what recovery specialists have long pointed out about how poor mental health (low self-esteem and depression) among young people is highly associated with the risk for drugs and alcohol.
The second personality type is characterized by Anxiety Sensitivity. The fear of anxiety-related physical sensations may lead to substance use in young adulthood. Young people with this personality type may also be more responsive to the temporary, anxiety-reducing effects of drugs and alcohol. Over time, however, they will develop panic-related disorders that co-occur with substance addiction.
The third personality type is centered around Impulsivity. People in this category tend to make hasty decisions and demonstrate poor response inhibition.
The last personality type is characterized by Sensation Seeking, where there is a constant need for stimulation and risk-taking. Once people in this category have access to drugs and alcohol, they tend to develop heavy consumption patterns. The trajectory to addiction can be a short sprint. Both of these personality types may evolve into anti-social and risk-taking behaviors.
The rationale of early prevention is easy to understand, but it can be hard to implement. Personality-targeted prevention has been proven to be an effective way to proactively prevent substance use among young people. By targeting personality risk factors before the onset of mental health emergencies or substance use issues, this approach has the advantage of involving youth who might be functioning well or not yet experiencing problems.
Personality-targeted prevention can also be built into a skill-building activity so that it is less intimidating for youths to participate in. Trials of such behavioral programs have succeeded in attracting 70% to 85% of youth to voluntarily participate. Integrating personality-specific skills with group therapy has also increased engagement and empathy among young people.
Personality-targeted prevention relies on a set of assessment tools, such as cognitive-behavioral and motivational interviewing. This requires interventionists to be familiar with the psychological risk factors and know how to have engaging dialogues with high-risk youth.
Such a prevention and intervention approach may best benefit the teen and adolescent population by reducing bullying. Identifying a wide range of contextual risk factors such as socioeconomic status and feelings of marginalization at school while providing high-risk youth with skill-building workshops can empower them to better cope with environmental stressors.
It takes an army of responsible parents, educators, and medical professionals to build a system of early prevention and screening to fight against the worsening substance use epidemic among teens and adolescents. We all have a role to play in helping young people gain insight into their actions, cope with difficult situations, and care for their mental health.
Parents, of all responsible parties, are in the best position to screen for psychological risk factors. Even when your teenager pulls away and is eager for more independence, deep down they still want your involvement. A stronger bond with your teen or adolescent can help reduce the chances of them developing unhealthy behaviors. This can be especially effective if you communicate the reason why you are interested in their actions and whereabouts.
Research in the medical community has informed early intervention programs that target certain high-risk young people. Certain psychological factors are more likely to be associated with substance use and addiction. Parents and educators need to be more well-informed on how to identify early signs of substance use tendencies, because early intervention is key. Young people's habits of substance use may negatively impact them in the long run. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults reach and maintain sobriety. We consider it an honor to work with families and young people. They can benefit from recovery coaching and parent coaching while staying connected with a strong and supportive recovery community. South Florida Intervention is the portal to a strong support system. We offer a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escort and case management. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
Quitting drugs or alcohol is not the end of recovery. One must also learn to manage cravings for substances despite triggers in life. Among everyday triggers, stress is one of the most common types. We all experience stress; it is the human reality when facing demands and uncertainty. However, some sources of stress can be avoided, which is particularly important for people in recovery.
For people in recovery, there might be different sources of stress, including uncertainty about what the future holds, uncertainty about how long recovery takes, family tensions, job loss, financial stress, and broken relationships. These different stresses can manifest in several ways in the body, including headaches, insomnia, irritability, and stronger cravings for drugs and alcohol. Because substances are used as self-medication to soothe the mind, which can be overloaded with stress, unmanaged stress can directly trigger using drugs and alcohol.
When your loved one returns home from a treatment center, they have fought a tough battle to regain sobriety. As a supportive family member, you would not want to sabotage that effort. The first thing you need to do is remove all drugs and alcohol from the home. Do not reserve some in a place where you don't think your loved one can find. Doing so is like saving a ticking bomb in the home. The home has to be absolutely substance-free for someone newly sober.
Secondly, create an uncluttered and quiet space for your loved one to rest and connect with themself. Add some lush green plants to the room, which can significantly reduce stress. Help them live daily routines according to a consistent schedule. You have to be proactive in making this happen. Talk about the new schedule and ask your loved one to be on board as a kind of new resolution or commitment. A regular and unbusy schedule can de-stress from the potential daily chaos in eating and sleep times. There must be a visible break from their early habits.
Overusing TV or social media can be another stressor. Replace these activities with healthy rituals, such as walks in the park or cooking together with good music on. If your loved one still spends too much time on the smartphone and engaging in social media content, there needs to be a conversation about how social media produces stress, which can negatively affect someone in early recovery.
The most challenging task at home is to make changes in family relationships. Every home has relationship tensions. It is time to work on them by setting new boundaries. In some homes, this might show up in reducing parental arguments in front of your recovering teenager. In other homes, it may require you to change old communication habits by saying more praise and affirmation than words of criticism.
When your loved one is recovering at home, other family members also need to use this time to learn how to become recovery-supportive. Everyone plays a role in stress reduction at home. Like noise reduction or carbon footprint reduction, there are practical strategies to reduce stress at home and enhance positive feelings among family members. One key is to keep healthy boundaries in communicating and acting toward each other with an awareness of how much stress that might produce.
The entire family also needs to examine their food intake to see if it can be healthier. Unhealthy food can be another stressor on the body, although the effects do not immediately show. Learn about foods that can help boost one's mood, and commit your family meals to be more mood-boosting. Preparing healthy diets for your loved one is a way to show love and care.
As the biggest advocate for your loved one, you can also try to get them moving, as exercise is the best natural stress reliever. Try to go outside every day for a long walk or biking. Cut down on indoor gaming time for your loved one. It may be beneficial for both you and other family members to join a support group, whether in-person or virtually. Make the above suggestions into proactive goals for the entire family.
If you have a loved one who has completed treatment and returned home to recover, do you know how to best support them? A relaxing home environment is essential for people who are newly sober because the home can have many triggers that might potentially trigger a relapse. However, you can work with a professional interventionist to prepare your home. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many parents and their young adult children achieve long-term recovery. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. We can also provide a sober escort service for people who are in early sobriety. With our support, you can prepare your home into a most relaxing and trigger-free place for your loved one to recover. You do not need to do it alone. Help is here. Call us at (202) 390-2273. We will walk alongside you every step of the way.
]]>Young people aged between 15 and 25 are at a developmentally significant phase when it comes to their brain development. During this time, the prefrontal cortex of the brain, which is responsible for emotional regulation, rational judgment, and self-control is at a fluid state, making them at a higher risk of irrational decision-making.
Also due to the same developmental reason, exposure to substances during this time can powerfully reshape the brain structures (reward circuitry) which maintain the association between drugs and pleasure, leading to a higher risk of addiction. Nevertheless, not every young person who takes drugs will become addicted. This is because addiction is also determined by a person’s genetic makeup and a range of other environmental factors.
Having a close family member who is addicted to substances can be an indicator of genetic risk. Family history of mental illness also increases the risk of mental health problems in youth, putting them at a higher risk for drug addiction.
External environmental factors mostly come from social learning experiences with friends who use drugs or alcohol. Young people often succumb to peer pressure and the false narrative that using drugs is only another form of entertainment and one has the power to quit. Some young people with poor socialization skills may use drugs as a “lubricant” to facilitate socializing.
The biggest environmental risk factor is the availability of drugs in a young person’s immediate surroundings, whether it is home, school, or within their circle of friends. Alarming examples of access to illicit drugs include online sales or parents' prescription drugs at home. Both of these can happen under situations of low parental supervision.
Apart from these most common risk factors, it is important to add that young people’s emotional and mental health also matter. Sometimes, young people begin experimenting with drugs and alcohol simply because they feel bored. Boredom can also be an intense trigger for young people who are going through treatment.
Low self-esteem is another root cause of many co-occurring mental health issues with addiction. Take young girls, for example. Many are body-conscious in the social media era where the “perfect” body image can lead to a body-shaming experience. Some young girls believe that drugs can be a quick way to lose weight. The obsession with keeping a certain body image has become a mental illness. As a result, eating disorders often co-occur with drug addiction.
Because of these above-mentioned risk factors, it is crucial and even life-defining to nurture young people in embracing a holistic and healthy lifestyle. This is especially true for young people who have high-risk factors, such as having a parent with addiction or struggling with a mental health issue.
A holistic lifestyle balances internal and external wellness. Parents and educators should devote more attention to children’s emotional and mental health before they enter puberty. They should be encouraged to explore hobbies and develop personal interests that are non-addictive, both at home and in school. There should be opportunities for them to share ideas and express emotions without fear. Young people should be coached on how to deal with stress in a healthy way.
Parents and educators should raise social wellbeing awareness as early as possible. Young people’s desire to fit in and feel good about themselves should be acknowledged and expressed. Given the high accessibility of drugs among young people’s social groups, there should be more education on the long-term developmental impact of drugs, as well as how to prevent and treat addiction.
The best prevention method is to equip young people with the science and facts about drugs and addiction, not just with slogans like “Just Say No.” For example, as marijuana legalization sweeps across the nation, young people should be educated that today’s marijuana isn’t the same strength as decades ago.
Parents and recovery specialists need to dialogue with each other to reduce the stigma of drug addiction while proactively prioritizing prevention and treatment. A holistic approach to treating young people should include the medical/biological, social, and emotional aspects of a young person. Treatment programs should also be age-specific and gender-specific to cater to different needs.
In particular, mental health issues among young people should be prioritized as having the same importance as physical health problems. This requires parents and medical providers to become proactive in screening and treating the issues before young people take matters into their own hands by resorting to harmful drugs.
Young people today are exposed to the danger of high access to substances in the community. Not every young person is at equal risk when it comes to developing substance addiction, though. What puts certain people at a higher risk? Addiction is a complicated matter. Parents need to understand and assess the risk for their children. Working with a professional interventionist can get you on the fast track for learning about these topics. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults succeed in recovery. We know how to work with young people and their families. We also help your loved ones connect with a strong and supportive recovery community, including other trusted health experts. At South Florida Intervention, we offer a range of services, from recovery coaching and parent coaching to sober escort and case management. We are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
]]>Self-confidence, or self-esteem, refers to a person's perception and judgment about themself. Throughout a person's developmental trajectory, the perception about oneself forms after acting in daily life and thinking about these actions and how others perceive these actions. Because it depends on daily experiences, a person's vision of themself may have natural fluctuations.
A child with self-confidence experiences minimum fluctuations in how he or she evaluates the self. The child feels good about themself. The child can also realistically recognize their own strengths and weaknesses. To make this happen, parents and caregivers need to signal consistently about how this child is valued and loved. An emotionally stable environment often fosters a healthy person's self-esteem.
To children with low self-confidence or self-esteem, the fluctuations can be dramatic and overwhelming, often determined by their current actions. They tend to have more negative thoughts and feelings affected by the immediate environment. Deep down, they do not believe themselves to be important. There is a deep fear of negative feedback from people around. Such an individual thinks nobody likes them. There is a constant feeling of loneliness and alienation from others.
Researchers found a close association between self-esteem, optimism, and adaptability. This explains why people with low self-esteem tend to develop mental health issues such as a depressed outlook on life, anxiety, stress due to inadaptability, and a higher risk of substance addiction. For example, some researchers find that the lower the self-esteem, the higher the likelihood of drug addiction in girls. A general rule is, when you don't feel well about yourself, you don't treat yourself well.
During the teenage and adolescent years, the relationship between a young person's self-confidence and mental well-being shows. Teenagers with low self-esteem may experience depression, a sense of shame, and fear of peer pressure. Many feel socially inept without using substances as their peers do. This is why low self-esteem becomes a springboard into adolescent drug problems; it is considered one of the leading catalysts of addiction among teens.
Treating teen addiction also requires health professionals to improve these young people's self-esteem. Without this part of the work, relapse can easily happen because low self-esteem will always be the underlying condition for mental illness, which invites self-medication.
When cognitive-behavioral therapists work with youth battling addiction, they often find that the sources of low self-esteem come from close relationships such as family members and friends. Instead of positively affirming one's value, these relationships have played a negative role, sometimes through trauma and abuse, in adding stress and confusion to these young people. Another source of low self-esteem comes from the over-consumption of social media. Young girls tend to develop negative body image, leading to eating disorders and substance use disorder (SUD).
Because children's self-confidence or self-esteem is closely related to the psychological satisfaction they got from close relationships, parents and caregivers are in a natural and crucial position to shape their children's self-confidence early on. Two principles of raising self-confident children are affirmation and reducing psychological pain. Through doing both, parents can raise emotionally resilient and self-affirming children who can withstand future storms and temptations in life without resorting to substances.
Parents should build their relationships with children to be closer. This requires time investment and commitment. Spending time with their children each day, especially when they are in a developmental state, can help children know that they are important and dear to their parents. Parents can also understand what is going on in the emotional world of a child. Giving enough attention and deep emotional engagement can help build up a child's self-confidence.
Parents need to learn how to read their children. When they seem stressed or worried, parents should be emotionally available to talk about things and help them solve the problem. This is a destressing exercise that helps children build up problem-solving muscles and learn how to rely on others for support.
Many parents know how to use praise and encouragement to boost their children's self-confidence, but the key is consistency and an emphasis on self-value. One's self-value does not depreciate even when one makes a mistake or something bad happens in the immediate environment. Parents need to have realistic expectations and refrain from pressuring their children into succeeding beyond their abilities.
Wise parents help their children learn about their inner-self. They encourage children to look inside themselves and find satisfaction from being their true selves. With these strong self-concepts, parents can become a powerful force in the fight against teen SUD. Helping your children know how to make healthy and wise decisions will pay off in the future.
You might know that self-confidence is important for children, but do you know that boosting children's self-confidence from an early age can lower their risk of substance use in the future? Scientists have found self-confidence (or self-esteem) to be closely associated with the risk of substance addiction in young people. It is never too late to change your parenting style into one that helps build up your children's self-confidence. If your child is already struggling with substance use and low self-esteem, you can find competent interventionists at South Florida Intervention. We help teens unlearn self-devaluing beliefs and teach them to celebrate themselves positively while reconstructing their perception of self. We can reach teens inside their emotional world. Treatment is only successful as clients understand how to shift their thinking from negative self-talk to positive self-affirmations. By using non-confrontational recovery coaching with young people, we have helped many teens and adolescents. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
Usually, affluent families in the United States are characterized by achievement and success. Children grow up seeing their parents and other family members having wealth and status. The bar is set higher, and they feel the pressure to live up to that upper-class culture of achievement. Even when parents do not express such expectations, there are enough role models pointing them to that way of life. Any signs of mediocre ability or failure seem a blow to their self-esteem.
Children who grow up in affluence normally are not financially strained to get the things they want. They do not need to worry about spending money on purchasing things that make them happy. Everything in life becomes a consumeristic game. The access to entertainment methods is low. Many young people seek new experiences and consider expensive drugs and alcohol a kind of entertainment. Some enjoy throwing parties for friends to come and join the fun of trying out drugs and alcohol.
In affluent families, parents are usually absent in monitoring their children’s whereabouts. They are busy people managing busy positions and traveling to business occasions. Less interaction with their parents may also create a sense of abandonment, anxiety, and other mental health problems. The poverty of parental attention sets in contrast with the wealth of other means of comfort, and children learn how to compensate with the latter for the former. They experience more emotional isolation.
The kind of peer pressure on children from affluent families is largely a self-imposed one. They assume that they need to be competitive and achieve in school. The zero-sum mentality is prevalent because they have bought into the Jungle Rule more than other children. Some tend to value less about building meaningful friendships. To compensate for the lack of friendships, children with affluence like to provide large parties to create more social acceptance. These occasions often become accessible venues for young people to experiment with drugs and alcohol.
The lack of parental presence makes detecting early signs of substance use and addiction difficult. Even when parents detect these signs, very few of them can afford the time and energy required by treatment experts. They tend to outsource that parental responsibility to a hired worker or another family member, and this kind of delegation is not often helpful for the children to feel that their parents actually care.
Many affluent families care about their reputation and status. There is more stigma attached to their children’s addiction. So parental denialism is one common barrier. Related to this is the absence of trust between children and parents. The revelation of youth addiction might worsen the situation when parents view it as a betrayal of expectations. Parents of wealth may also lack the trust of outsiders, so it is difficult for them to seek professional help unless their child has hit rock bottom.
When it comes to breaking down these barriers to treatment, parents need to make some personal breakthroughs. Maybe it is a time to reflect on their life and reset priorities, or they should learn how to build trust first with their children by having vulnerable conversations. It is never a wise plan to delay treatment because addiction can become a hardwired brain disease with mental health consequences. Young people are in a developmental stage when it comes to their brain development, so an early exposure to addictive habits can have negative life consequences.
Parents should not kick the ball to other people. This is the moment for them to step in. Maybe working with a professional interventionist can help you dispel some fears about privacy and reputation around your children’s addiction treatment. There are interventionists who have high levels of privacy built into their practices. Even when working with an interventionist, it is a mandate for parents to be directly involved, instead of delegating the task to others.
In the recovery community, there are addiction specialists who have experience caring for young people coming from affluent families. They are aware of the common stressors in such an environment. This knowledge not only makes them more culturally competent, but can also help them design a customized relapse prevention plan.
Do you have a teen or adolescent child who shows signs of addiction to drugs and alcohol? Upon considering getting addiction treatment, are you concerned about privacy issues? If you are concerned about the many implications this has on your family, remember that there are high privacy treatment programs available to you and your child. There are many questions around this issue and maybe you need help from a professional interventionist. It is time for you as a parent to step up to the task. The first thing you can do is to be informed and educated. You need professional interventionists who provide recovery coaching for the child, as well as parent coaching. You can find competent interventionists at South Florida Intervention. We have helped many teens and adolescents from affluent families achieve and maintain sobriety while having their privacy protected. We are skilled at non-confrontational recovery coaching with young people. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
We live in a time of worldwide economic downturn partly due to the prolonged COVID-19 public health crisis. Research has shown that even before the pandemic, unemployment has been closely associated with substance use problems among young adults. Joblessness creates stress, income loss, and an intensified sense of failure, which all increase the risk for substance use. Therefore, economic hardship has been regarded as a stressor to addiction problems.
From a life-course perspective, young adulthood is a time of transition to early career paths, as well as social and economic independence. Young people who have had good education often aspire to achieve great things. However, the larger picture does not necessarily facilitate that. An economic downturn brings structural unemployment, which is beyond anyone’s capacity to overcome. Young people who are hit by this frustrating tide, depending on how long his or her joblessness continues, may enter into a dark period of self-doubt and hopelessness.
For young adults who use substances as a way to self-soothe during joblessness, the bad news is that frequent use might turn into an addiction, which can sabotage one’s physical and mental health for the long term, further disqualifying them from pursuing a career. Although many young adults don’t think their active use of substances is immediately noticeable, repeated use and addiction will sooner or later reveal themselves.
One’s changes in mood and behaviors due to the negative effects of drugs and alcohol will be cumulative but definitive. These changes or lack of emotional and cognitive capacities may prevent them from fulfilling future job responsibilities. They can also disrupt social relationships, further isolating the individual from his or her support system. In sum, developing substance addiction during a time of unemployment can be highly risky. One’s mental health might embark on a tragic journey of no return.
Both unemployment and substance use have been stigmatized by society at large. There are many stereotypical beliefs that consider both unemployment and substance addiction as results of personal moral failure. Sometimes these stigmatizing beliefs can manifest through the actions of family, friends, care providers, and even health professionals. The desire to avoid such stigmatization may hinder people from seeking mental health care or addiction treatment.
There are ways to address the stigma, and everyone has a role to play. First, there needs to be a narrative change that promotes personal stories instead of stereotypical beliefs. Second, family and friends of an impacted young adult should act to form a stronger support system, and their role is to encourage and support, not to blame or shame. Lastly, there can be more bridging institutions to help young adults transition into society in a time of economic uncertainty.
Treatment specialists and the recovery community, in general, need to be aware of the increasing scale of this problem among young working adults and young professionals. A holistic approach would be to support the recovery of the whole person, including his or her sense of economic security, self-esteem, mental wellness, and sobriety. This requires the recovery community to build stronger connections with other sectors, such as social services and prevention organizations.
Young people who are experiencing the brunt of unemployment, mental health issues, and addiction need a strong support system. Unfortunately, not many young people in this situation like to reach out to their parents. The communication channel is not effective enough to provide support when they are in need. A professional interventionist can help bridge this gap in communication.
First, an interventionist can coach the young person and the parents on the importance of seeking treatment, as the first priority in this young person’s life. Second, an interventionist can help connect with necessary resources in the community for treatment and post-treatment care. These are important steps for personal recovery, which should be a priority for a young adult so that they can face other challenges in life.
Do you have a loved one who is a young adult or young professional struggling with job loss and substance addiction? The COVID-19 pandemic has hit young professionals hard. Many are experiencing mental health issues triggered by the stress over economic insecurity. To help your loved one more effectively, you need to become more informed about the intersections of economic insecurity and substance addiction. You may want to consider working with a professional interventionist. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults in achieving and maintaining sobriety in the most adverse circumstances. We know how to do non-confrontational recovery coaching with young people, including young adults and professionals. We are also committed to supporting you and connecting you with trusted health professionals who offer a range of programs from detox treatment to therapies and counseling. You can also benefit from our detailed case management. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
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Young people with physical and mental impairment often battle with a range of stress from experiences such as being unseen by society, being considered as an outsider group, social isolation, and the inability to fulfill one’s career ambitions. Young people with disabilities are less likely to achieve a high school or college education. All these stressors may contribute to higher rates of substance use and addiction.
Another reason why young people with disabilities may become vulnerable to addiction is that they sometimes use prescription medication to battle painful conditions, giving them access to prescription drugs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), individuals with disabilities “experience higher levels of mental health conditions and substance use than do adults without disabilities.” Unfortunately, it seems that disability, mental health issues, and substance addiction can potentially become a vicious cycle, reinforcing each other’s effects.
Substance use among individuals with disabilities may lead to greater adverse effects on the behavioral level. These include risk-taking, moodiness, aggression, and even violence. Meanwhile, other negative physiological consequences can also include cognitive deficit and cardiovascular diseases. Because drugs and alcohol change the brain structure, especially for young people, those with disabilities and substance addiction can experience mental confusion and even coma.
Lack of cognitive skills, mobility, and financial resources may limit people with disabilities from seeking treatment for their addiction. Research in this area has been lacking, and most treatment centers have not developed mature approaches to care for people with both disabilities and substance addiction, so the barriers to treatment are multifold.
Society as a whole needs to raise awareness about the needs of people with disabilities. There needs to be more research done for directing evidence-based treatment plans and policy-making to clear many of the barriers. For example, treatment facilities need to provide accessible entrances, policy-makers should change exclusive policies, and counseling programs should adapt to the needs of people with cognitive disabilities.
Parents and educators should pay special attention to youth with learning disabilities and behavioral disorders. The risk factors of young people with these needs include low self-esteem, academic challenges, loneliness, frustration with socializing, and depression. Prevention of substance addiction among these young people would require early identification of learning disabilities and how to cope with them. For those who have developed substance addiction, the treatment also needs to be tailored to deal with both issues.
The main concern is still accessibility and mobility. For example, if a person in a wheelchair cannot access all areas of the treatment center, that would not help this person get appropriate care. Secondly, communication can be another challenge. For example, not many treatment centers have sign language counseling sessions, but that is critical when caring for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. Reading materials also need to be adapted for those who are blind and need to access information through braille materials.
Apart from these concerns, treatment centers ought to realize the intersection between physical health, mental health, and recovery. Based on this understanding, they should incorporate accessible physical therapy for those with disabilities. All these are of course based on a foundational step — a specialized understanding of specific disabilities, their substance addiction outcomes, and how to best address both conditions.
Many people with disabilities have also lived with a history of trauma. Therefore, another concern is to provide trauma-informed care for their mental health and behavioral health needs. Treatment centers need specialized staff who are trained in supporting trauma-informed recovery and conditions of disabilities.
All in all, it is very important for people with disabilities and substance addiction to find a treatment center that understands and can provide this high level of specialized care. Talking with a professional interventionist can help you determine what kind of treatment fits.
Do you have a loved one who is a young person with disabilities battling mental health problems and substance addiction? To best help with his or her needs, you need to work with professional interventionists. It requires a high level of specialized care to treat young people with a triple set of conditions: disability, mental health problems, and substance addiction. An experienced interventionist can coach you and help connect you with trustworthy resources, such as accessible treatment facilities and specialized counseling programs. At South Florida Intervention, our trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults from diverse backgrounds. We value the opportunity to serve you with our best knowledge. In addition to recovery coaching for young people, parent coaching, sober escort services, and detailed case management, we have the expertise and connectedness to plug you into other services. Specialized intervention works for young people with special needs. We are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
To break with the influence of a substance, you first need to admit it as a problem to yourself. Many people bury their heads in the sand, denying the severity of this problem even to themselves. Self-deception is a part of denialism. Soon afterward, you will likely find yourself hiding it from or lying to your closest friends and family, too. Admitting the problem of addiction is the only way to beat it and get your life back.
Drugs and alcohol may bring some kind of pleasure to you at first. However, over time, you will surely notice signs of dependence, and that is when casual use becomes an addiction. These substances bring about chemical changes in the brain, so using them will surely impact your mind, mood, and behavior. You will feel more anxious and irritable. These will inevitably cause tension and conflicts in your relationships. By the time you feel the negative influence of drugs and alcohol, it is usually too late to quit on your own.
Your relationship with your parents is one of the most important relationships you have in the world. Your presence is incredibly important to them, as well. The fear of telling your parents is real because you do not want to disappoint them. Hiding the problem from them cannot make it less disappointing, though. On the contrary, as your addiction worsens, it will surely show in your behaviors. Perhaps they have already noticed signs, despite your lies.
Deep down you know that talking to your parents about your addiction is the right thing to do. This conversation can be very frightening and uncomfortable, but they would also have no other choice but to support you. Another equally important reason is that you are going to need all the support from them. No one should go through treatment alone. Your parents are closer to you than anyone on earth, and therefore would want to be involved.
Nevertheless, you still need to think about the timing of having this conversation. You want to present this problem with all seriousness, letting them know that you have realized your own fault in giving in to these urges. Explain how it happened, and how you feel. Express a determination to seek treatment. Also, give your parents ample time to take in the message.
Expect there to be anger, disappointment, and a range of intense emotions from your parents. They may react this way because they care too much about you. Sometimes, parents can be guilt-ridden by realizing that they have not noticed the signs or symptoms of your addiction. As a family, you should acknowledge all these emotions. It takes a process to feel these real emotions. At the end of the day, though, your parents are the ones who can unconditionally support you – and you will need all the support you can get from them.
Telling them also means you are growing out of denialism. Hopefully, your parents can realize that it takes great honesty, trust, and courage to have this conversation. This can be a relief to you, too, because you will no longer need to hide or lie anymore. If you really struggle with telling them face to face, maybe consider writing a letter with the same honesty and transparency.
Everyone’s parents are different. Not all parents know how to be supportive from the beginning. If telling your parents did not go as you had hoped, at least you have done the right and responsible thing. Allow them more time to process the “shock.” If you have a family member who can be more accepting and supportive, reach out to that person.
You can also seek help from a professional interventionist who can serve as a communication bridge between yourself and your parents about the issue of addiction. Express your wish to get treatment and the interventionist can help coach your parents to support you. He or she can also connect you with age-specific treatment options.
If you are a parent who detects early signs of your child using drugs or alcohol, do you know the best way to approach this issue with your child? Are you aware that denialism among young people who have substance addiction can be hard to break? You need to learn effective and non-confrontational techniques in getting to your child in a way that expresses concern and love without producing counter-productive results. At South Florida Intervention, we have professional interventionists to assist and coach you on how to do just that. Our experienced interventionists have helped many teens and young adults in maintaining sobriety. We know how to work with young people and their families. It is also our commitment to connect you with trusted health professionals who have plenty of experience. In addition to recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. Early intervention is key, and we can help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Quitting drugs and alcohol might give you more free time, so why not date? The fact is, treatment and recovery demand your time, too. You need to prioritize going to support group meetings and seeing therapists. Even after you finish inpatient treatment, you might also have other forms of follow-up care. Post-sobriety life can be very busy, and you need to focus on adapting to new rituals and routines that set up healthy boundaries for your body and mind.
Dating not only consumes your time, but it can also bring about avoidable stress. During your early sobriety, avoiding triggers is another priority, as well. Among the many triggers in social life, stress is one of the most common ones. It may arise from overworking, family obligations, and interpersonal conflicts. While dating can bring some emotional benefits at first, things can become rocky sooner or later for most romantic relationships. That kind of stress can easily trigger a relapse.
Many recovery experts suggest that recovering individuals should wait for at least a year to begin romantic relationships. Doing so can help you avoid stress and emotional pain brought by conflicts and sometimes breakups. Some romantic relationships might also generate toxicity and thus sabotage your effects in maintaining healthy relationship boundaries.
Before you achieve steady sobriety, you are not presenting your best self to a significant other. There is just so much repair work to do before you can enjoy the full scope of a meaningful romantic relationship. For example, you need time to heal from years of emotional flatness due to the influence of drugs and alcohol. Alternatively, you may need to care for your own depression and anxiety before entering a relationship with someone who may also have mental health concerns.
Premature dating during recovery from addiction might risk falling back into old patterns, including substance use and mental health disorders. It is wiser to take some time in connecting with yourself, developing your coping and relationship skills before charging into another emotional minefield.
For some recovering individuals, romantic relationships or sexual intimacy might become a replacement addiction. These substitutive activities can generate rewards for the brain system similar to drugs and alcohol. That same mechanism also determines that their influence can be as equally destructive to one’s emotional and mental health as substances.
If you continue to invest in this path towards sobriety, recovery, and healthy lifestyle rebuilding, there will surely be a day when your sense of self and security are not grounded on external things and relationships. When you feel anchored in yourself and self-worth and feel comfortable being known and seen by others in a meaningful way, then you are ready to begin a romantic relationship.
Believe it or not, the relationship and coping skills you have developed in the past months or years of recovery from addiction can greatly enhance your positive involvement in a healthy dating relationship. Once you have done the necessary work to care for yourself, you should have the energy and resilience to build a meaningful relationship that can withstand some storms of life.
Your first priority should be focused on building a reliable group of sober friends. This can begin with individuals you see at support group meetings. Value these friendships and invest in them. When you feel lonely and tempted to date someone, reach out to these friends for companionship and advice. Friends can do a lot of fun things together that do not require dating relationships.
It is wise to commit to a non-dating decision before achieving full recovery from drugs and alcohol. Do not fetishize romantic relationships as if you are worthless without them. This mentality shows that you need more time to heal before committing to a meaningful relationship. Good things are worth the wait. A future version of yourself with a healthy outlook on your self-worth and life is one of those good things that are worth waiting for.
For young adults who are recovering from substance addiction, starting a romantic relationship might not be a good decision. Before one's recovery stabilizes, dating and its emotional dynamics might create stress for a recovering individual. This is especially true for young adults who are in a vulnerable developmental stage and cannot properly regulate their emotions. If you have a loved one who struggles with this situation, there is always help. Encourage them to reach out to health professionals and make more informed decisions. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults in maintaining sobriety. We know how to work with young people and their families and have helped many of them by providing recovery coaching and parent coaching, which can address a variety of concerns. We also offer detailed case management. You can count on us to be your strong support system. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
Peer pressure refers to influence from members of a peer group. For teens and adolescents, the pressure to conform in a group of friends and classmates can be powerful. They may feel pressured into doing something they are uncomfortable with. Such pressure can be expressed openly or implicitly. In most instances, peer pressure is hard to define or pinpoint, but its presence is undoubtedly there.
As human beings, we are highly social beings who signal to each other about norms, so peer pressure is not inherently bad. However, reality presents more negative cases of peer pressure when teens and adolescents have access to drugs and alcohol in their environment. Take the desire to socialize, for example. It is natural and age-appropriate for young people to explore friendships and spend time together, but drugs and alcohol are often used in these same social settings.
Drugs and alcohol may enhance socializing because using them in a group setting can amplify the positive mood effects and the value of social stimuli. Unfortunately, their negative influences can be hidden behind these seemingly beneficial effects, especially for young people who have not developed responsible ways of regulating behaviors.
Some people claim that using drugs or alcohol is a good way to socialize because many say or do things they normally wouldn’t and using substances seems to release something in them. It is true that drugs and alcohol may change how the brain works, which might first feel like a release of pleasure. Gradually, however, the long-term risks of dependency on substances will show up.
Take social drinking, for example. Consuming alcohol in a social setting, such as a party or a bar may make people feel relaxed because alcohol affects brain function, changing moods and behaviors. Repeated social drinking can soon develop into alcoholism, though. Heavy social drinking can cause people to engage in compulsive and abusive behaviors.
Not conforming to a group’s norm can be costly. Young people should expect resisting peer pressure to be necessary and costly. When feeling pushed to participate in something you do not want, one needs to be firm and tactful. Real friends will surely respect your decision. Those who cheer you on to engage in risk-taking activities are not real friends who care about your decision as an individual or your safety.
The larger social environment is saturated with the presence of drugs and alcohol, so young people today should have strategies to avoid exposure to them. You can suggest different healthy activities to steer the social event away from unhealthy activities. A few sober friends can also form a mutual support and accountability group. If the pressure to use drugs and alcohol continues, then the last strategy is to leave the occasion.
One can think of oneself as vulnerable when faced with peer pressure to use drugs and alcohol in social situations. Perhaps a change of perspective is needed here. For someone to swim against the tide, there is great strength shown, too. Young people should recognize the reality that they do not need to be liked and approved by everyone in the peer group. Nobody can be everyone’s friend, and there will always be people who dislike you. Their sense of self-worth is grounded in who they truly are, not by external affiliations.
Swimming against the tide of peer pressure also requires emotional maturity and strong self-control. When it comes to drugs and alcohol, you need to live by principles, which help you set up healthy boundaries in life. The sooner one reckons with this and practices, the better his or her life will become.
Peer pressure can momentarily cause us to lose sight of what we feel is right in ourselves. The more you connect with your inner self, the easier it becomes to swim against the tide. This firm grounding also trains a young person to know other people, identify toxic friendships, and make decisions about who to hang out with.
Do you have a loved one who is a young person facing peer pressure to use drugs and alcohol? Are you aware of how peer pressure works in the socialization of youth? Understanding this aspect can help you better support your loved one, whether they are resisting harmful peer pressure or trying to recover from addiction. You can also work with a professional interventionist to learn more about the social needs of recovering youth. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults in rebuilding a healthy lifestyle and socializing experience. We are committed to walking alongside families and youth who experience this challenge in social life. Our experienced recovery coaches can connect you with trusted health professionals who offer effective treatment and therapies. In addition to recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. Early intervention is key, and we are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Most parents want the best for their children. They also want their teenagers to gradually learn about making independent decisions. When it comes to teen dating, parents might be at loss about how to advise on choosing healthy relationships. Does dating someone with substance addiction mean it is bound to be an unhealthy relationship? There are certainly many real-life examples showing the harm and trauma such relationships can cause, but a parent’s reaction also needs to consider healthy boundaries.
Many parents react poorly because they care too much about the teenager, and the thinking of a toxic relationship can cloud a parent’s rational judgment. Teenagers are known for doing the exact opposite of what their parents tell them to do. So no matter what advice a parent needs to give, there are healthier principles on how to do it.
First, parents should not ignore the problem, thinking that it’s their teenager’s freedom to date whoever he or she likes. This might help you avoid an intense conflict for the present moment, but it is not the best way to parent a teenager. You need to start the conversation, but before that, you need to be educated and informed about the influence that drugs and alcohol use can have on teen dating.
Second, when having the conversation about this teen dating relationship, take a learning posture by showing interest in knowing your teenager’s boyfriend or girlfriend as a person. You should not let stigma and prejudice cloud this conversation, either. Approach your teenager with an attitude of, “I hope to learn more about this young person’s struggle with substance addiction.”
It is important to set rules that make communication with your teen open and continuous. Through this open communication channel, you can educate them on the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol. Try to connect substance use and behavioral problems to show the association there. All relationships need hard work, and teen dating is no exception. Make yourself available as emotional support to your teenager when their romantic relationship gets rocky.
You can sense if there are signs of abuse and toxicity in your teen child’s relationship and whether that is related to the other young person’s substance addiction. As soon as you detect the signs, it is important to further the conversation to alarm your teenager. You also need to watch for signs of substance use with your child. When necessary, you can consider bringing in a professional interventionist. Apart from this guidance, modeling a sober and healthy lifestyle yourself is also important.
Parents can and should express concerns about a relationship of this type, but they would be unwise to take on a confrontational approach. For example, giving an ultimatum for ending this romantic relationship can be counterproductive. It would be wise to first understand the situation, involve some trustworthy friends of your child, and make an informed decision on how to communicate your concerns.
Parents should avoid mischaracterizing a child’s romantic relationship partner before knowing what the person has been through in life. One ought to realize that the root of substance addiction is not moral character, but emotional pain. Although the medical community has long recognized substance addiction as a brain disease, especially for young people, this does not mean it is not treatable.
Whether it is the issue of your teen dating a person who struggles with addiction, that person’s chance of recovery to sobriety, or the success of this romantic relationship, there is no quick fix. What you can give your teenager is compassion and unconditional support, trusting that he or she will make the right decision.
Throughout all these turmoils, the most important thing is to maintain that precious line of communication between parent and child. Do not hesitate in showing care or concern, but always do so in a wise, informed, and nonjudgmental way. When things get too complicated, it is always better to reach out to health professionals who are familiar with addiction and the needs of teenagers.
Are you concerned about your teen child's dating relationships, such as whether he or she is dating someone with addictive habits? What would be the best way to communicate these concerns without a confrontational attitude? How can you inform them about the reality of substance addiction in teen dating but still respect their decision-making? Parents who are in such situations often find themselves at loss. Many old patterns of communication seem to be counter-productive. Maybe it is time to bring in a professional interventionist who knows how to interact with teenagers on the issue of addiction. You do not need to look far for such support. South Florida Intervention has professionally-trained interventionists who have helped many teens and young adults. We know how to counsel parents and inform teenagers. In addition to recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. Concerned parents should act early and intervene wisely. Call us today at (202) 390-2273.
Although dating at any age can be an emotional minefield, beginning a romantic relationship during the teenage years can be a daunting undertaking for one’s emotional health. It is widely known that the human brain does not mature until age 25 when the prefrontal cortex forms cognitive maturity. Before that, a lack of discernment and love for risk-taking activities might characterize a young person’s life.
Dating among teens and adolescents happens together with other challenges in life, such as academic pressure, navigating social pressure, gaining independence from parents, transitioning to college or work, and a journey of self-discovery. Although most teenage or adolescent romantic relationships do not last long, they can still be extremely impactful on young people’s life.
Because the patterns of young people’s romantic involvement may be influenced by their parents’ role model in that kind of relationship, young people who grow up in volatile homes can display greater degrees of insecurity and emotional distress. They might even unconsciously apply some toxic behavioral patterns learned at home to their romantic partners, such as temper tantrums, belittling, and emotional disengagement.
Negative or traumatic dating experiences may reshape a young person’s sense of self-worth. Some feel unlovable and succumb to negative self-talk. Additionally, sex presents a risk. Many young women experience sexual violence in dating relationships but tend to blame themselves for it. Parents and educators tend to be late in catching up with the signs of distress. Many young people do not have a safe space to ask questions and process these painful experiences in a healthy way. Some carry the wounds for life.
For teenagers, romantic relationships and substance use can both be filled with attachment, drama, and emotion. The interaction of these two realities can sometimes lead to volatile emotional patterns such as controlling behaviors. Dark feelings such as jealousy in dating, when aggravated by substance use, can lead to consequences that may involve violence and abuse.
Victims or survivors of dating violence can then become susceptible to substance use, particularly when the dating partner is someone who uses. In these cases, substance use or addiction is both the cause and effect. Without intervention, this cycle may repeat itself.
It is widely known that teenage and adolescent years are associated with many psychological and developmental challenges. The “first loves” experiences can only exacerbate difficulties in processing intense emotions. From infatuation and intimacy to committed relationships, teen romantic involvement is typically highly sensitive to the peer context and the trajectory of self-identity. The complexity and intensity of teen dating may partly explain why rates of suicide ideation and self-harm associated with adolescent romance have been constant.
Young people need healthy relationships to guide their self-identity and emotional wellness, so the dual challenge of teen dating and substance use may lead to long-term mental health problems. Some people can be stuck in compulsive behaviors for the rest of their lives. Others develop lasting conditions of depression, anxiety, and self-hate. The inability to navigate intimate relationships and trauma may socially impair many from engaging in future marital and family relationships.
For these above reasons, if a young person is going through treatment for substance addiction, it is highly recommended that they do not engage in a dating relationship. This is simply because the emotional turmoil associated with teen dating could potentially sabotage one’s recovery progress from substance addiction.
While recovering from addiction, young people can build healthy boundaries in emotional regulation and social relationships. Progress in these areas can benefit one’s future dating experiences. Parents, recovery coaches, and interventionists can teach a young person to understand healthy relationships as characterized by honesty, respect, trust, equality, compassion, and compromise. They need to learn how to detect toxicity in romantic relationships and set boundaries for self-care. Treatment specialists also need to design age-specific therapies for young people who are recovering from both the effects of substance addiction and teen dating.
Most recovery experts do not recommend recovering individuals, especially young people, to begin romantic relationships within one year of their treatment. This is mainly because dating relationships may bring additional stress for someone in recovery. If you are concerned about a loved one in this situation, maybe a professional interventionist can help provide recovery coaching. You do not need to look too far for help. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally-trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults navigate social life after reaching early sobriety. They know how to work with young people and their families. These recovery coaches and interventionists may also help your loved one connect with a strong and supportive recovery community, including other trusted health experts. South Florida Intervention offers a range of services, from recovery coaching, parent coaching, to sober escort and case management. We are here to help. Call us today at (202) 390-2273 to learn more.
Everyone entering treatment has a unique set of problems that they need to work out. These may include personal history, family history, biological traits, and other mental health issues. However, when it comes to young adults in addiction treatment, they face some unique challenges compared with other subgroups of the general population.
First, because the human brain isn’t fully mature in the physiological sense until around age 25, young adults aged 18 to 24 are at higher risk of changing brain structures. In particular, because the last area to develop in the human brain is the prefrontal cortex, early adulthood usually entails the brain going through a process of pruning unused connections and insulating neurons with fatty white matter that increases the signaling efficiency.
The developing state of the prefrontal cortex means that teens are weaker in cognitive skills, which impacts functions such as judgment, self-control, emotional regulation, and forward-thinking risk calculation. These are essential skills of the human brain to recover from an illness like substance addiction. The malleability of the young adult brain means that it can be forcefully shaped by substances without the ability to repair itself toward cognitive maturity.
Apart from the unique physiological trait of young adulthood, this is also a phase when peer pressure becomes most prominent. Although young adults like to think that they think for themselves, in reality, they are most vulnerable to social pressure, particularly peer pressure to conform. Adolescence to young adulthood is a time when a young person shifts from yielding to parental authority in the home to external influence with friends. This shift happens while their cognitive ability is still developing.
Young adulthood is also when romance begins to bloom. Balancing academic achievements and the demands of a relationship may create a lot of stress. Many young people also feel the pressure to excel in sports or other extracurricular activities. All these can be constant stressors in one’s emotional world.
Often, young adults also get to witness a lot of stress at home, such as when family communication breaks down, parents divorce, or other dynamics take place. For all these reasons, young adulthood is a season when mental illnesses begin to show up.
Meanwhile, if one cannot feel a sense of belonging at home, his or her risk of growing attached to a peer group can increase. The attachment to friends and individuals outside of the family can make them susceptible to experimenting with drugs and alcohol. A young person’s connection to a group of peers who use drugs or alcohol can exert powerful but negative influences.
We all know that early intervention is crucial for teens and young adults who show signs of substance addiction. However, young people of this age group are less likely to receive treatment for a mental health issue, not to mention substance addiction. Delaying treatment can only harden their addictive habits. Over the course of one’s life, non-intervention only serves to prolong a person’s suffering with the influence of drugs and alcohol. It is important to involve a professional interventionist to work with a young person so that he or she can get treated as early as possible.
A treatment program for young adults must consider all the risk factors discussed above. It’s not enough to just treat the symptoms of addiction. The underlying conditions, such as brain development, social pressure, and family dynamics, need to receive proper care in order to prevent relapse.
Now that we know about how young adulthood presents itself concerning a person’s physiology and emotional and mental health, it makes sense that young adults with addiction should be cared for by some age-specific treatment programs. Such programs consider various factors related to this developmental and social state. They seek to create a safe space for young adults to explore topics relevant to their lives with trained therapists.
If you want to be supportive to a loved one who is a young adult, you should reach out to a professional interventionist to inquire about this kind of age-specific treatment program in your region. Meanwhile, you need to understand more about the unique triggers that may cause your loved one to fall back into old patterns. You can also pay more attention to how he or she copes with emotions, knowing that emotional regulation is one difficult area for people of this age group.
Finally, walk alongside your loved ones to make them develop an understanding of their own behavior. Growing this sense of self-awareness is healthy for them to better cope with future challenges.
Do you have a loved one who is a young adult going through addiction treatment? Are you aware that young adults face a unique set of challenges that can make the journey of recovery more daunting? Your loved one needs all your support, and you need to be more informed about what addiction treatment means for young people. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults maintain sobriety. We offer a safe, nurturing, and healing space for young adults to experience recovery from the multifaceted disease of substance addiction. We believe in the potential of each young person who can be inspiring and resilient in meeting their challenges, in discovering the root of their own problems, and in reclaiming their lives from the control of drugs and alcohol. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, call us today at (202) 390-2273.
]]>There are obvious reasons young people like to use social media — they can freely communicate, make friends, pursue hobbies and interests, and share ideas and opinions. Young people need this kind of socialization venue, especially when it breaks down geographical boundaries and connects them with other young folks from around the world. The promises of social media are tempting for young minds who are excited about new things.
The percentage of young people who report using social media has been on the rise, as shown from usage rates of the three most popular social media platforms among teens: YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat. These platforms also tend to use more visual tools, such as instant video clips. With the widespread use of smartphones, teenagers now tend to spend a few hours on these social media platforms each day.
Researchers have found that adolescents who use social media more than three hours per day may be at higher risks of developing mental health issues. The positive effects of social media on teens, such as social skills, self-confidence, and strengthening relationships, can be counterbalanced by some negative impacts that may leave lifelong mental health issues.
One of the reasons young people may experience negative effects of social media is due to the prevalence of abusive behavior online. Many have experienced cyberbullying, rumor-mongering, violation of privacy, and online harassment. Some experience the flattening of relationships in the real world.
Usually, people have ways to regulate and moderate the use of social media so it does not take over their lives. However, the hyper-speed of information flow on social media and young people's physiological susceptibility often turns social media use into a kind of rat race. They feel that they need to check social media platforms at least once every hour to avoid feeling left out of a conversation or feeling anxious. Some even coined a phrase: FOMO, the "fear of missing out." However, it has actually become a kind of anxiety disorder
This condition is similar to many other types of social anxiety disorders. People experience symptoms such as the compulsive need to check social media from time to time, over-using, lying about the over-use, social withdrawal, neglecting or losing interest in other favorite activities, nervousness, or withdrawal symptoms when not checking social media. There is also an overwhelming desire to share on feeds. For many teens and adolescents, this social media anxiety disorder is also accompanied by classic symptoms of depression. Many have negative self-images themselves.
Long-term obsessive use of social media also happens because parents and educators have long ignored its impact. When young people develop attention deficiency, depression, compulsion, or hyperactivity disorder, they always tend to look for other causes in the environment. Many parents set no boundaries for their teen children's use of social media, and when symptoms of mental illness show up, social media addiction has always eluded parental attention.
Parents are first in line to be educated about this form of addiction, its symptoms, and its long-term effects. They ought not to take a radical approach such as eliminating social media use, for that tactic is likely to be met with great resistance. The problem is not social media per se, but over-use of it. Parents should be guided by the principle of healthy use of social media. For example, parents can have a conversation to set limits on the time spent on social media. To make up for that social time, they can plan healthy activities with their children, making them realize and appreciate the building of meaningful relationships.
Parents should also catch what is happening inside a young person's world. Be aware of your teenager's emotions when media consumption makes him or her doubt about self-image. Educate your child on how "social comparison" is not a way to connect with one's true self. Remind them that social media always makes people and things "look" better than they are in real life.
Parents can also reach out to professional interventionists who can coach teenagers on how to overcome feelings of inadequacy or insecurity caused by their social media addiction. Young people must be taught that what they see on social media often does not reflect reality. Interventionists can also evaluate a home environment to make sure that parents set up exemplar role models when it comes to a healthy lifestyle.
Do you have a teen child who is constantly hooked to social media? Are you worried about the negative effects of social media on his or her mental health? Your concerns are justified because although social media use has become increasingly popular and its use is almost ubiquitous, especially among adolescents and teens, overuse is dangerous. Like other compulsive behaviors, social media use might become a psychological addiction. What's worse, social media use also increases young people's access to illegal drugs. Maybe it is time to consider working with a professional interventionist. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults recover from a range of addictions. We know how to work with young people and their families. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management for each young person. Early intervention is key, and we are here to help. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>The crisis plays out in the home when both the parents and the child have reached their respective critical periods in life. Midlife marriage strain has to do with adults going through a time in life when youthful enthusiasm has been exhausted and there is a longing for new adventures and even new identities. People who go through a midlife crisis can also experience depression, anxiety, pessimism, anger, insomnia, and lack of energy. Many adult parents barely have the energy and coping strategies to handle their own emotional pains, not to mention their children’s emotional needs.
Around this time, children in the home have grown to become teens and adolescents who are also at a critical period of dramatic change in the body and brain systems because of puberty. The brain’s remodeling causes a period of heightened biological sensitivity to environmental influences. If there are negative patterns of hostility and conflicts between parents in the home, they can be extremely stressful and depressing for teens and adolescents.
Researchers have found a close association between parental marital conflict and adolescent maladjustment. In the extreme cases of parental divorce, stress and pain make up the trauma in severing such close relationships, which were the foundation of a child’s self-identity. With few exceptions that involve domestic violence and abuse, parental divorce almost always brings disorientation and disillusion to a sensitive teenager. Although their minds are actively making sense of this, their emotions are overstimulated to bear the pain. Sometimes, parents take a denialist approach to the ending of their relationship, which is not helpful either.
The medical community defines trauma as resulting from “an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being.” To teens and adolescents, parental conflict and divorce can be a form of trauma that overwhelms them in coping and functioning.
A trauma-informed approach supports adolescents’ recovery from mental health issues or substance addiction by fully considering and assessing their personal history and family history. It stresses the importance of the individual rather than applying general treatment and reflects a holistic and compassionate approach to complex, real-life issues.
Implementing trauma-informed prevention and intervention can improve many steps of treatment, such as screening, assessment, and therapies. A family can also benefit from knowing more about trauma and its impact on young people. Trauma-informed intervention coaches them to invest more in the emotional needs of teen and adolescent children.
Because a trauma-informed intervention focuses on how trauma may have affected an individual’s life and choices, it incorporates a few key elements, including:
The trauma-informed intervention begins with the first contact with an interventionist who recognizes that an individual’s past traumatic experiences can influence his or her receptivity to and engagement with this intervention. The interventionist needs to be sensitive and protective of the vulnerability of this young person while wisely providing support and coaching advice. The interventionist can read the signs and symptoms of trauma through conversations and integrate that knowledge into the intervention approach.
A trauma-informed interventionist has competence in supporting a person by researching and connecting the family to age-specific and appropriate treatment resources. The interventionist also needs to avoid retraumatizing an individual through this whole process. This trauma awareness encompasses the knowledge that trauma can extend to significant others in the home and community. Thus, there is the need to coach and walk alongside parents, close friends, and other concerned family members by encouraging the processing of trauma-related content. They can be encouraged to build more coping skills in supporting each other through a difficult time.
Do you know that marital conflicts and divorce may increase the risk of children developing mental health issues and substance addiction? Have you thought about parental divorce as a form of trauma that may affect a child's emotional and mental well-being? It is important to adopt a trauma-informed understanding of marital conflicts and youth health. Doing so may help many understand the importance of healthy family dynamics to the well-being of a younger generation. You can also talk with a professional interventionist about the topic. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults recover from mental health issues and substance addiction. Aligning with a trauma-informed approach, we know how to work with young people and their families. We can also connect you with trusted health professionals who have plenty of experience. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
]]>Major disruptions such as school closures, social distancing, isolation, and maladjustment to distance learning have caused many young people to experience mental health problems. That this mental health crisis is exacerbating shows that the epidemic of substance use is not likely to subside soon.
Several pandemic-induced factors may negatively impact adolescent mental health. First, disruptions of school and lack of socialization have led to increased anxiety, irritability, and fear among children. Although even before the pandemic, many children and youth in the United States were living with mental health disorders, a combination of pandemic-induced factors such as isolation, loneliness, parental income insecurity, child abuse, and lack of access to mental health care has made the situation even worse, particularly among adolescents.
Researchers found that adolescents, young children, LGBTQ youth, and children of color may be particularly vulnerable to negative mental health outcomes of the pandemic. As a result, the recently passed American Rescue Plan Act allocates funding for pediatric mental health care access and youth suicide prevention. However, parents’ poor mental health due to the need to balance work and childcare has also been on the rise, causing home environments to be more stressful than usual.
Among the many mental health conditions during the pandemic, the top ones include depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorder. Pediatric emergency departments also suggest that suicidal ideation and suicides have been on the rise among adolescents, especially high school students. Parents of those who attend school virtually were more likely to report their children as experiencing worsened emotional or mental health than those attending in-person schools.
Many health care providers began to offer telehealth options, which increased people’s access to mental health care. However, many parents are still delaying mental health care for their adolescent children. There is a need to raise awareness among parents to seek professional help for their children at an early stage when they do develop mental health issues. Schools also need to explore school-based mental health services for both staff and students.
Many research studies in the past have confirmed the association between job loss and increased depression, anxiety, distress, and low self-esteem, all of which lead to a higher risk of substance addiction, sometimes even death through overdose. Throughout the pandemic, women have been more likely to develop mental health problems because they take up more childcare responsibilities, and structural unemployment has also impacted women the most.
During the pandemic, adults in households with job loss have had higher risks of substance addiction. This phenomenon has a trickle-down effect on adolescents and children in these households. They are exposed to the parental practice of substance use (and sometimes abuse), leading to a higher risk of developing mental health issues and addictive habits in this vulnerable stage of life.
Although policy-makers and the medical community need to do their part, each of us also has a role to play in our homes, schools, and communities. The principles stay the same: practice self-care and compassion for others and advise those in need to seek professional health as soon as possible.
All of us hope that the end of the pandemic is on the horizon. However, many of the long-term implications are sure to linger. In history, we have seen similar waves of plagues and disasters, and the mental health impact also outlasts the actual disasters. This means that the adolescent substance addiction and mental health crisis is going to continue on a broader scale. There is a need to strategically rebuild our lives back through strengthening a post-pandemic recovery community.
What everyone can do is raise awareness about adolescent mental health and addiction. We need to do it in a way that does not add to the stigma of addiction. Everyone can play a role in educating members of the public about stress management and coping strategies. When we engage in risk communication about public health or mental health concerns, we need to be clear, consistent, and transparent. Lastly, the idea of seeking early intervention should be firmly planted among everyone who has a loved one struggling with mental health issues or substance addiction.
Do you or your loved one need support for addiction treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic? It is widely known that the prolonged public health crisis has given rise to a mental health and substance addiction epidemic among young people. Early intervention is key, and you need to seek professional help. South Florida Intervention is the place to support you. We have professionally trained interventionists who are experienced in helping many teens and young adults on their journey out of substance addiction. We have also coached many parents on how to best support their children during this challenging process. We know how to work with young people and their families. You can trust our expertise, and we won't disappoint you. It is our commitment to connect you with trusted health professionals who have plenty of experience. Apart from recovery coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management. Call us today at (202) 390-2273. Do not delay.
]]>The first two months of treatment sets an adolescent into a preparation stage. Many adolescents who enter treatment still have a lot of resistance to the plan. If a treatment center has young adult staff who have walked the journey toward recovery themselves, they can be effective guides and mentors for these new program participants.
During this initial stage, it is important to build up an adolescent’s trust and realization that they can make “fun friends” even at a treatment center. Any activity that helps increase a sense of belonging can be a great motivator. As mentioned before, these young people need recovery role models who demonstrate what “enthusiastic sobriety” looks like for them.
The following four months (through Month 6) is the engagement stage. An adolescent will arrive at early sobriety and begin to enjoy the benefits of healthy relationships. A 12-Step support group helps integrate a young person into a healthy and sustainable community that is guided by important principles such as honesty and mutual dependence. An adolescent needs to grow into the routines of attending these 12-Step meetings and spending time making strong ties with recovery friends.
This second stage is when an active recovery lifestyle begins to take root in a young person’s life. Some treatment centers also offer life skills coaching and other therapies to help individuals make the transition from early sobriety to a sober lifestyle.
Once an adolescent is solidly grounded in a healthy lifestyle and has developed accountability for themself, he or she can enter into this recovery maintenance stage. This often happens after one exists in a residential treatment center and begins to re-integrate into one’s own family life and community.
During this time, it is important for the alumni to stay in touch with treatment program staff. The primary goal is to maintain abstinence and avoid relapse. Given how volatile the state of an adolescent’s brain development is at this point, both health professionals and parents need to monitor and support this integration attentively.
No matter how well an adolescent has demonstrated themself to be abstinent, there always needs to be a relapse prevention and intervention plan. Parents and the recovering individual need to numbly acknowledge that the reality of relapse is imminent if one lets his or her guard down against stress and cravings in life.
A trained interventionist can provide regular recovery checkups on the progress of an adolescent. They can also offer trusted referrals and connect you with peer support services. All these are included in what is known as a case management strategy. For recovering adolescents, the first two years after addiction treatment is a critical path. Interventionists who offer case management can become an ongoing mentorship structure.
Other forms of aftercare are also important. Before you or your loved one enters treatment, you can inquire about a prospective program that offers sustainable support through ongoing case management. Some treatment centers also offer outpatient treatment if a co-occurring mental health issue re-emerges. Long-term case management can offer your loved one a customized relapse-prevention and recovery care plan.
If you are choosing a treatment plan for your adolescent child, it is important to do more research. Recent research shows that the following factors determine the efficacy of adolescent treatment programs:
Another critical responsibility as parents is to be good role models for your adolescent children. You need to have an honest self-assessment: Can your child look up to you as a role model? Does your lifestyle set up an example of sobriety for your child to imitate?
You have to know that adolescents need role models in life. Often, parents do not live up to the standards. However, maybe this time of crisis can be a new beginning for you as a parent to practice being positive role models.
Do you wonder why some young people succeed in recovering from addiction to drugs or alcohol while others fail? Are there key ingredients to a successful intervention and recovery? There have certainly been proven methods to care for young people who struggle with substance addiction. The supportive role of their parents cannot be underestimated. However, even the most supportive parents also need to be educated about how to achieve success. You might need to work with a professional interventionist to make this journey smoother. At South Florida Intervention, our professionally trained interventionists have helped many teens and young adults in achieving sobriety and long-term recovery. We know the key ingredients to success, and we have experience working with young people and their families. Apart from recovering coaching and parent coaching, we also offer detailed case management and professional sober escort services. Early intervention is critical, and we are here to help. Call South Florida Intervention at (202) 390-2273 today.
]]>Trauma occurs when certain experiences and events — ranging from car accidents to domestic violence — cause feelings of terror, desperation, and helplessness. People who have experienced such trauma may not be aware of their implications, but the negative impacts almost always appear in mental and behavioral patterns. This is because traumatic events have significantly changed or even damaged a person's cognitive, physical, emotional, and social development. The negative impacts can be more profound in children.
Common symptoms of trauma may include mood shifts, anxiety, fearfulness, separation anxiety, inability to relax or concentrate, emotional flatness or avoidance, social isolation, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts. In sum, the mental and emotional state of an adopted child or youth can be a damaged place. This may be the reason why many adolescents in adoptive relationships seek substances for self-medicating to deal with the effects of trauma.
Adoption can be a long process full of highly stressful situations, including a sense of abandonment by biological parents, lack of social and emotional support, multiple caregivers, and uncertainty about one's future. These situations may all lead to traumatic psychological wounds that are invisible but haunting.
First, separation from their biological mothers has interrupted the natural bonding process between mother and child, which is important for a person's emotional development and sense of self-worth. Being adopted into a warm family will not change that psychological recognition deep inside a child. As a result, adopted children often experience intensified feelings of insecurity and fear.
Secondly, sometimes the adoption process may have exposed a child to disadvantaged circumstances such as lack of material and emotional support. Neglect or exposure to abuse and instability can leave deep marks on their mental well-being.
The term "trauma-informed" refers to a non-conventional way of diagnosing and treating mental and physical conditions. Instead of asking, "Where does it hurt?" a trauma-informed health professional might ask, "What has happened to you?" to get at one's personal history. Trauma-informed care requires interventionists and parents to be more aware of the trauma history of the young people they are caring for. They need to understand that these unresolved experiences, which were out of the young person's control, had influenced their current emotions and behaviors. Denying these influences does not make them go away.
Apart from reaching out with compassion, the trauma-informed caregiver also needs to apply sensitivity to create a safe space for healing conversations to happen. Even when substance addiction is concerned, they need to respectfully communicate and educate the young person about why there was the need to self-medicate and how not to rely on drugs and alcohol.
Usually, if a young person's trauma-related mental health issues and addiction are escalating, their daily functioning can become chaotic. Do not miss the early signs or pretend that it is just a phase. Explain your concerns to mental health professionals and get a referral to do a comprehensive developmental assessment that can assess the impact of trauma in situations such as adoption.
For parents, if you have adopted children who are struggling with drug addiction or alcoholism, it is important to seek early trauma-informed intervention. Youth developmental specialists who are adoption-competent can begin with an assessment to see if your child's addiction is related to the trauma of adoption.
The entire family needs to reckon with this reality and work together to bring healing. Otherwise, the young person will feel isolated, which might worsen the addiction problem. Parents need to identify and acknowledge their adopted children's strengths and gifts and help them rediscover their self-worth and identity, both of which are less shaped by past trauma but by current relationships.
Lastly, if you are a caregiver to a young person who has been impacted by adoption-related trauma, you need to know how to practice self-care. Dealing with trauma can lead to tension and anxiety building up in your body too. You may want to utilize such practices as meditation and mindfulness every day to release the pressure.
Are you aware that adoption is also a form of trauma? Are you a parent to an adopted child who is struggling with mental health issues and substance addiction? Do you know that substance addiction might be a co-occurring condition with the trauma of adoption? Connecting these parts may help you better understand the causes behind these painful problems with your child. It can also inform you to seek professional help because trauma is a highly complex issue. At South Florida Intervention, we have professionally trained and trauma-informed interventionists to work with parents who are concerned about their children's substance addiction. Our recovery coaches can help educate both these young people and their parents. We take a non-confrontational approach, encouraging parents to become more supportive of their children's recovery. We also provide recovery coaching, parent coaching, sober escort, and detailed case management. We can also connect you with health professionals who are trauma-informed and adoption-competent. Call us at (202) 390-2273.
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