Troubled Teens Resources

Parents seeking support for their drug abusing teenagers must not only contend with the pain, cost and sorrow of their out-of control teen’s behavior, they have to grapple with the implications of abetting the state’s ability to interfere within the family. Communities across the nation are challenging the right of a given school to punish a student for personal behavior unassociated with the school.

“No parent or school official in Moorestown, or in any other South Jersey district, would admit supporting teenage substance abuse or other potentially dangerous behavior. Yet, the Moorestown school district’s initiative to regulate the risky behavior of students off campus has some parents asking if administrators are being too intrusive.
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It appears Moorestown school officials, like officials throughout New Jersey, are trying to meet the community’s insistence that they do more to crack down on student substance abuse and violence. Parents, judges and state officials throughout the nation have recognized that schools, who often are given the responsibility of surrogate parents, have a significant opportunity to help mold student behavior. But should schools have a say in how students behave once they leave school for the day, the weekend or over the summer?”
(source)

Parental Responsibility

A less intrusive method of intervention by far is for the parent to assume responsibility for their teen’s behavior themselves. If drug use is suspected, there are drug prevention kits available for parents to administer, though there are cautionary notes sounded as to the effectiveness of kits bought online and a parent will want to investigate all options.

An intermediary measure that still respects a family’s privacy from state intervention is to see if their local police or county officials offer drug testing, something similar to what has been instituted in this Michigan community.

“A new county program gives parents who suspect their teens of abusing drugs free access to drug tests.

“The program is funded through a Charlevoix prosecutor’s office grant, but test results are confidential and are not shared with law enforcement officials, said Scott Kelly, who heads the Bay Area Substance Education Services (BASES) teen center in Charlevoix.

“It’s for the family that wants to do some early intervention,” Kelly said. “I’d say we get four or five phone calls a week from concerned parents. There’s a whole lot of kids that are using and parents who are frustrated and don’t know what to do.”
(Source)

If parents want the sanctity and privacy of the family to remain unbreached by the state, parents will have to assume responsibility for their troubled teens so that institutions outside of the family don’t have to.