teen drug addiction

Teen Addiction – Understanding and Treating Drug Addiction in Adolescents

September 7, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Teenage drug addiction has become more prevalent in today’s culture than thirty years ago. Then alcohol and marijuana were the primary substances used by adolescents. In 2009 however, the prevalence of teen drug addiction has become alarming.

The number of adolescents undergoing drug addiction counselling has increased rapidly. Many centres have begun to accept patients younger than eighteen seeking help with addiction because the demand has become so great. However, adolescent drug abuse is a delicate subject as the psychology of teenagers is extremely complex and external factors are often influential in drug use in this age group.

Adolescence is not easy
Adolescence begins at approximately age 10 for girls and 12 for boys with the further development of their reproductive organs and sexual maturity. Hormones develop and behavioural changes begin to occur as well as physical changes. Individuals experiencing puberty and adolescence are going through one of the most difficult times of their lives. The physical and emotional changes play a large role in the confusion and the need for acceptance which adolescents feel at this time.

Peer pressure is a big motivator behind the increased use of drugs and alcohol. Adolescents are experiencing a stage where they struggle to find their identity whilst emerging from the safety blanket of their parents. They are beginning their preparations for adult life and self-esteem can suffer in the confusion which adolescence brings.

Drugs and self-destructive behaviour
To a teenager, it seems that only their friends understand them. The need to be accepted can involve participating in the same behaviour as their circle of friends, which can be experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Alcohol and marijuana are commonly used by teenagers, as are ‘party’ drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy), Acid (LSD) and magic mushrooms. Harder drugs such as cocaine, heroin, crack-cocaine and crystal methamphetamine are sometimes used by adolescents but less frequently. Solvents such as glue, paint thinners and aerosol gases are also a popular choice of drug for teens.

Professionals are generally hesitant to label a teenager as an addict for two reasons: Firstly, addiction is a disease – if a person is using drugs regularly, this does not mean that they are a drug addict. Secondly, teenagers are developing psychologically and it can be dangerous to diagnose someone as an addict before they are at least 20 years old.

Disease of Addiction
The disease of addiction is incurable, grows progressively worse and is fatal unless arrested. It can be stopped by the application of drug addiction counselling and a programme of recovery. The disease concept states that an addict is sick and that their drug use and other compulsive behaviours are symptoms of this ‘sickness’. Either someone has the disease or not.

Those addicts that do start drinking and using can experience a ‘honeymoon period’. This is a phase when an alcoholic/addict is at the beginning of their drinking/using career: an enjoyable time when the disease has not progressed yet. Addicts generally begin this phase of addiction in their teens.

It must be emphasised that many teens who do not have the disease of addiction will try drugs and may use them regularly until they decide they do not need them and want to stop. An addict will not be able to stop – this is the difference between addicts and non-addicts. Addiction sees those with the disease continuing to drink or take drugs for the rest of their lives until they receive help. It is also the reason why many professionals will not label a teen as an addict as they may just be going through the adjustment to adulthood.

Getting help
A teenager may not qualify for diagnosis as an addict yet drug use and compulsive disorders such as eating disorders, self-harm, promiscuity and other risky behaviours are a clear message that there is a problem. Whether it is addiction or not, help is available.

Signs to watch for if you suspect your child is taking drugs are:

Declining school marks and truancy Weight loss or gain Large or pin-prick sized pupils Secretive behaviour Abandonment of old friends for a ‘new’ group Lack of finances, never having money, borrowing money Money going missing in the house Disappearance of their expensive personal possessions Isolating, spending a lot of time in their room or out of the house Violent outbursts and rage Lack of interest in things which used to please them Smell of solvents or thinners on their clothes or in their mouths Glass pipes, burnt/broken light bulbs, rolling papers, tinfoil, hypodermic needles, melted lighters, plastic ‘bankies’ in their possession

Help is available for teens using drugs. It can be very beneficial for them to undergo drug addiction counselling at a drug and alcohol treatment centre if the problem is serious. A centre which encourages clients to follow a 12 Step programme of recovery (such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous), and provides one to one counselling and therapy groups and a healthy lifestyle will have the best results.

It is never a good idea to force a teenager into recovery from drug addiction or other compulsive behaviours, neither is it a good idea to put them into a rehabilitation programme simply if you discover your child has taken drugs – this may do more harm than good. If your child has begun to develop a serious addiction problem and cannot cease their use of drugs and other compulsive behaviours, then treatment is a good idea.

Oasis Counselling Centre in Plettenberg Bay, South Africa, is a centre for drug addiction counselling as well as other types of addictions offering therapy, a 12 Step programme and a healthy lifestyle.

Drug Addiction Treatment Facilities for Teens

August 26, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

In order to recover from drug alcohol addictions, a strong decision and a professional drug rehab is required. As there are number of drug rehabs, find out list of specialized drug rehabs that are having years of experience in treating drug addicts.

Teen drug addiction treatment includes methadone maintenance, drug-free programs and psychological treatments. These drug addiction treatment facilities are offered to any kind of alcohol abuse in teens. Public and private sectors are offering various addiction treatment facilities for struggling teenagers, which is very helpful and supportive to recover from addictions.

All the treatments are professionally designed with years of experience in treating drug addicted teens. Specialists design a treatment approach for each individual based on the initial analysis of teen addiction. Majority of drug rehab centers provide various result oriented facilities such as boarding programs, day programs, individual support, good playgrounds, clinical facilities which bring a new change in teenagers.

The boarding facilities of these rehab centers are very attractive and helpful. Most of these boarding rehab centers offer twenty four hour helpline services to drug addicted teens. Drug addiction treatments offered by Christian rehab centers are flexible for any kind of alcohol abusers. These Christian rehabs offer price less services to affordable cost. Most of the alcohol rehabs are state funded and offer various flexible financial options to drug addicted teens. They provide some special facilities for families with low income and experiencing various types of addiction problems.

The counseling services offered by the alcohol rehabs help teen addicts and families to understand the importance of alcohol addiction treatments in a specialized drug rehabs. Most of the addiction treatment centers offer same kind of facilities for boys and girls experiencing addictions. There are some single gender addiction treatment centers are also available for the disordered teenagers.

These single gender centers are very helpful for girls. They provide all necessary and modern addiction treatment facilities to teens with the help of drug addiction treatment specialists. The staff members of these centers are very caring, helpful and experienced in changing most of the addicted teens to responsible individuals.

Most of the drug treatment schools are very old and have good experience in helping addicted teens. Number of addiction treatment centers is increasing day by day as the addicts are increasing rapidly. At this crucial time choosing a recognized and experienced drug rehab is essential to come out of these drug addictions with a professional approach.

Get detailed information about teens addiction treatments and specialized drug rehabs for teens. Find more teens drug addiction treatment information in detailed from http://www.drugrehabscenters.com/

Drugs and Teens: What Can Parents Do?

July 12, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Borrowing a sports analogy, the best defense against teenage drug use is a good offense.

Parents need to equip themselves with solid information about teen drug addiction , a realistic view of their child and access to professional help if there are any early warning signs of drug use and find a good drug rehab.

Warning Signs of Teen Drug Addiction:

School: Is your child keeping up with his/her school work? Have they lost interest in going to school and look for excuses to stay home? Call the school and keep track of your child’s attendance in class. I coach football and basketball for middle school and high school. I get attendance records and if a teen has missed class, they don’t play in the games.

But do you know your child skipped second period math class?

Are there days when you think your child has gone to school, but the attendance records do not match up?

Children who are in trouble with drugs will often begin failing classes, not turning in homework assignments or in general just fall behind. “I can’t believe Johnny is failing math, it was always his favorite subject.” A new pattern has emerged and it isn’t pretty. Schools have open campuses, allowing kids to come and go. They can easily slip into the community and get into trouble.

Health: As a person slips into teen drug addiction a variety of physical signs point to drug abuse. Are they listless all of the time? Kids don’t want to get up in the morning anyway, but they don’t always refuse to get moving. Weight loss and weight gain are signs. Are there changes in eating habits? The eyes are an indicator. Has the life gone out of their eyes, or is there a major change?

Appearance: This can be a difficult area to discern, as fashions change and often times what adults feel is acceptable dress may not have anything to do with current trends. Watch for changes in dress.

Does a child lose interest in how they look? Kids want to fit in and there is peer pressure influence on the way they dress. Girls, especially, are bombarded with images on appearance. Has there been an attitude shift? Have grooming habits changed?

Attitude and Behavior: As children enter their teen years it is natural for them to want to break away from the family. When kids go to extremes to make sure you don’t know who they’re with or what they are doing, the red flag should go up. When they become secretive and guarded, when their privacy at home prevents your open access to them, look for something beyond mere adolescent rebellion.

Money can be a sign. If their only interaction with the parents is to ask for money, and when asked why they need money they refuse to answer, or become indignant, that is an indicator of possible drug abuse. Worse yet, they may steal items from home to buy drugs.

Communication is Essential

Communicating with teens can be a challenge, especially because they are beginning to spread their wings and desire independence from mom and dad. Stay calm.

The most common mistake parents can make is trying to force ideas and values on the defiant teenaged mind.

I was that way. There’s a leadership responsibility that always needs to be in evidence, and parents need to be parents. Trying to be “best buddies” is not a good strategy. However, parents need to meet their children where they are at. That means trying to understand the situation from your child’s perspective.

Teenagers will probably come up with some very wrong reasoning, seriously flawed ideas and their whole world view will likely be counter to that of their parents. But they have a NEED to be heard and respected.

It’s one thing to accept an opinion counter to your own, and it’s quite another to approve of it. Try working with your teen’s ideas and concepts, and have an open and non-threatening discussion about them. You can establish rules of engagement with your teen and agree that both of you are allowed to express ideas and opinions without fear of retribution.

The key is to remember that the parent needs to be the one in control. As a chaplain, I do a lot of counseling work and my approach is entirely patient-centered. They establish the themes of the conversation, but even though I am not deciding the topic, or necessarily directing the conversation, I am still in control.

Remember that your teenager, like a patient in a hospital, is probably going to be very myopic. He/she will see things only from their perspective.

Take a step back and see the entire situation. Go with their feelings, their concerns and walk down their path. Share the experience.

Parents are the front line of the fight against teen drug addiction. Don’t push that responsibility off to the schools. Rather, partner with the school counselors, teachers and administrators, never forgetting that you are the one responsible for your teen. If drug abuse or addiction enters your home, seek professional help and form another partnership in the effort.

Be in control. Be honest. Be alert. Be proactive.

Have you ever wondered WHY your teens are more susceptible to drug abuse and addiction? Teenage drug abuse is common; read why…

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Open Eyes: Home Drug Testing Empowers Naive Parents and Protects Their Kids

June 5, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

When kids don’t listen to their parents, they often suffer from consequences that could have been avoided. They tend to make poor decisions when think they can get away with something and often possess a false sense of certainty that bad things won’t happen to them.

Warning signs and advice from their parents, who have learned from experience, are ignored. Kids don’t always realize that foresight to them is hindsight to people who’ve experienced the same things.

When it relates to the topic of teens and their willingness to experiment with drugs, parents would be well advised to follow the very advice they bestow on their own kids: learn from people who have been there.

In the past, the words “My kid would never do that” have historically been followed by “Where did I go wrong?” “How could I have missed it?” and “I had no idea” only AFTER police or school officials provide the proof … and consequences of teen substance abuse. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Christy Crandell, the author of Lost and Found: A Mother and Son Find Victory over Teen Drug Addiction, is a proponent of the new trend of home drug testing because talking to kids about drugs isn’t always enough. Parents can talk to their kids and tell them to “Just say no,” but kids still struggle with what to say next when the peer pressure gets even stronger. The words “No thanks, my parents test me” have become an increasingly popular and socially acceptable excuse that can stop pushy peers in their tracks.

Dr. Michael Reznicek, one of our nation’s leading authorities on the subject of home drug testing, urges the use of a parent child contract. He believes that parents must inspect what they expect, but only after clearly communicating and consistently following through on those expectations, which is where many parents fall short. As part of the contract, he urges the inclusion of rewards as well as consequences tied to the results of home drug tests.

Ever since kids started doing drugs, parents have been at the bottom of the list of people who knew about it. However, that may change quickly for parents who embrace the growing trend of home drug testing.

Mason Duchatschek has interviewed thousands of parents, teenagers, school board members, counselors, school principals and superintendents. He is the president of TestMyTeen.com based in Fenton, Missouri. http://www.testmyteen.com