Troubled Teens Resources

The typical teen of today is being bombarded from every direction.  They are under pressure to perform academically, to complete responsibilities at home, to compete athletically, and the list goes on.  It is not a widely known fact that the teen of today is more up to date on current events than generations past.  Today’s teen is aware of global problems and conflicts, the economic devastation, and the political separation that our county is currently working through.  When you add the typical teen issues to the increased information that today’s teen is receiving it is no wonder today’s teen finally reaches a boiling point.   

The teen implosion can manifest itself in many ways.  Some teens will become withdrawn and possibly work themselves into a full blown depression.  Some teens will begin to look for ways to relieve some of the pressure they are experiencing through drug abuse.  Very few will seek out a parent for help and advice.  The most frequent form of help sought by a teen comes in the way of advice from their peers.  If a teen asks a friend that is abusing drugs for advice the advice they give will obviously be to try some drugs.  The teen may begin to experiment in sexual activities.  The best advice and help is obviously the teen’s parents but if the parent does not have a close relationship with their teen they will never come to them with their problems.  It is important that a parent is vigilante to their teens changes in attitudes and moods. 

Even a good teen left unassisted will begin the downward spiral until they earn the label of troubled teen.  The troubled teen may not have a Mohawk or any visible signs of rebellion.  It is usually not until the troubled teen has hit rock bottom and is basically crying out for attention that they will begin to display extreme hair and clothing styles.   One warning signal for parents for a child that is moving in a negative direction is their choice of friends.  If you observe that your teen is hanging with kids with radical hair styles or clothing choices, it is usually only a matter of time until your child begins to dress and act like the peers he is “hanging out” with.  It is naïve to think that a teen is associating with a group of troubled teens and not engaging in the same activities the negative peers are engaging in.

Schools for troubled teens do not give their students the luxury of free time. Teenagers with addictions and behavioral problems are given priveleges based on performance and behavior. One privilege treated like gold in many teen boarding schools is access to the internet. Unlike many naive or indifferent parents, staff is well aware of the inappropriate and harmful information teens can dig up on the net.

If your teen has unrestricted access to the computer in your home, you would do well to monitor their use. Just find some teen chat rooms or go on MySpace and you’ll get an idea why the internet is not the best place for teens at risk to spend their time.

“A new study from the Caron Treatment Centers analyzed more than 10 million online messages written by teens and found a number of conversations about drinking, taking drugs, and having sex. The study was based on a computerized search of blogs, public chat rooms, message boards, and other Internet sites. Research firm Nielsen BuzzMetrics said that about 2 percent of posts specifically mentioned alcohol or other drugs.

Common discussions included trading information about using drugs without getting hurt or caught and debates about legalization and the drinking age. Some teens discussed their partying and sexual activities. Often, newer slang for drugs was used to avoid raising red flags among suspicious parents.

Bad information on drugs abounds online. Some teens have found themselves in the Emergency Room after following misinformation regarding supposed safe drug combinations. There is no way for teens to differentiate good vs bad information.”

(source)

Girls boarding schools must be experiencing quite a bit of business these days if a close friend of a teen age daughter serves as a barometer.

“I don’t care what she calls me, she will not have girl friends who think oral sex is just a form of affection. I will not have it. I caved for her nose piercing, I caved in and let her have a tattoo but I am not going to cave on this. She going to an all girls boarding school and learn something more valuable than how to shake her booty.”

Jan was incensed to find graphic materials in her daughter’s room depicting oral sex. She was even more enraged upon discovering that her daughter’s best friend’s mother had supplied the material in the hopes of “being open.”

If today’s sexual climate causes you grave concern, your apprehensions are not misplaced. Study after study records the debilitating effects on teens who pursue sexual activity that they haven’t the least maturity to cope with. And this recent study confirms that peer influence is a strong factor in a young teens sexual activities

“Young people select friends whose attitudes about sex are consistent with their own attitudes. The effect of friends’ attitudes on sexual behavior was stronger for females than for males.

High-risk sexual behavior in adolescents appears to be influenced by the sexual attitudes of peers, and young people select friends whose attitudes about sex are consistent with their own attitudes.”

(Source)
Troubled teen boarding schools for girls are designed to provide programs that inculcate a sense of pride based on accomplishment, not sexual prowess. If an all girl’s school is not an option, do not put your head in the sand regarding your teen daughter’s sexual activities. Ask questions and be absolutely firm aboput the standards that you expect her to keep.