Troubled Teens Resources

The constant stream of pharmaceutical commercials aimed at adults do little to help a parent teach a troubled teen that medication isn’t the first or best answer for solving problems. In a culture and society that emphasizes instant gratification, teaching an at-risk teenager that restraint and discipline are virtues becomes an increasingly uphill battle. A specific problem with prescription pills is the veneer of safety that they offer. A drug abusing teenager is likely to think he is safer taking a pharmaceutical than he is with a street drug.

Just as a parent has to accept the reality of malicious strangers and predatory sex offenders as given threats in their at-risk teen’s everyday life, parents need to be aware of a constant underlying theme in film, in advertising and in music is to “get high” or “feel better”. A combination of peer pressure and society’s unfortunate obsession with the quick fix can cause a teen to conclude that self-medicating is a normal and acceptable way of dealing with upset and pain.

“According to the most comprehensive study on U.S. teenage drug abuse, the intentional abuse of legal medicines continues to be a “pernicious problem”.

“Overall prescription drug abuse has become a more important part of the nation’s drug problem,” said Dr. Lloyd Johnston, who runs the ongoing University of Michigan study.

Last December, the survey found that 9 percent of 16- to 18-year-olds intentionally abused prescription narcotics such as Vicodin in 2006.

“The use of Oxycontin has doubled among 8th graders (12- to 14-year-olds) since 2002,” Johnston said.

Other common household drugs popularly misused included dextromethorphan, found in cough syrups.

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, a not-for-profit lobby group sponsoring the briefings, said parents are part of the problem.

“The problem in general is the parents’ attitudes (were) as bad as the kids on this subject,” said Steve Pasierb, chief executive of the Partnership.

“The parents think they know all about drugs so they say, ‘At least it’s not heroin’,” he added.

“Kids like it because it’s hot and it’s new, they believe it’s safe and there’s relative ease of access.”

And taking tablets from home medicine cabinets is cheaper than buying drugs from street drug dealers.
[…]
“Kids see prescription drugs differently,” said Dr. Herbert Kleber, a former U.S. drug policy adviser to the White House. “They’re more pure and have a guaranteed potency.”

Kleber said most of the kids get information online on what drugs to take. “There are numerous Web sites they can go to learn the pros and cons,” he said.”
(Source)

There are many a weary parent who could relate to the distress that Britney Spears has put her family through with continuing relapses into self-abusive and addicted behavior. It is unfortunate that the first stint at rehab the troubled teen undergoes doesn’t always end in success - such is the pernicious hold drug addiction has on it’s users.

While considering a boarding school or other residential treatment program, the last thing a parent needs to hear is that it might not be enough. It is not a commentary on the effectiveness of boot camps or boarding schools but a testament to how thoroughly addiction becomes part of addict’s life.

“In fact, the Partnership For A Drug Free America sums it up this way: “To be sure, some people can quit drug use ‘cold turkey,’ or they can quit after receiving treatment just one time at a rehabilitation facility. But most of those who abuse drugs require longer-term treatment and, in many instances, repeated treatments.”

The severity of the addiction determines whether or not the abuser is given treatment as an outpatient or as participant in a residential program. Residential programs are extremely effective for those with severe addiction because they intensify the amount of treatment the participant receives on a daily basis.”

The excerpts above are from a Fox News piece - well worth the read - that goes over the differences between residential treatment programs available at brat camps and boarding schools and the alternative of choosing an outpatient therapy program. Often a parent’s choice is dictated by finances and other
variables. However, with all of the resources on the internet as well as assistance obtained from their teen’s school counselors and therapist, parents will discover that they will be very well prepared to choose which boarding school or treatment program best serves their troubled teen.