Adolescent Services

Adolescent services that are offered through professional drug and alcohol treatment centers provide a far superior quality of recovery program than adolescent services offered through schools, churches or civic organizations. Adolescent services presented through these public avenues do have some merit, however, the main objective of these programs is to concentrate primarily on the prevention of drug and alcohol abuse through education . Many of these programs that offer adolescent services are under funded and taught by teachers or clergy who are not properly qualified to talk about chemical dependence or the behavioral traits that cause addictive tendencies . Too often with these types of adolescent services substance abuse is labeled as “demented” and considered to be a weakness of mind or spirit rather than a disease. Studies have proven that 90 percent of college freshmen who have been through the adolescent services taught through educational programs in high school lack very basic factual information about drugs and alcohol.

Adolescent services offered through professional treatment centers go well beyond the prevention stages of treatment by including education balanced with a firm schedule of private one on one counseling, the interactive dynamics of group and family therapy, aftercare and follow up by encouraging the adolescent to participate in a twelve step program of recovery or a sober living environment.

The success of drug and alcohol counseling depends greatly on the harmony between client and counselor. If a trusting, positive relationship can be established counseling can be very effective with adolescents in the early stages of dependency. A professionally trained counselor knows that having to rely on the adolescent for accurate information can be misleading. That is why they are more qualified in asking the right questions and being able to define a lie better than the parent . They are also more likely to recognize how extensive and internally deep seeded the problem really is. Counseling alone will not stop a truly dependent teenager from using without the counselor being able to utilize some control over the client’s environment. Recovery cannot begin until abuse stops. That is why adolescent services that treat clients in a drug and alcohol free environment have a much better success rate than most outpatient programs.

Professional treatment centers are also necessary for adolescents who need detoxification for their substance dependence. Withdrawal symptoms from certain types of drugs (opiates, barbiturates, amphetamines) can be physically hazardous and may require medical supervision . Psychological symptoms of prolonged substance abuse can often mirror certain mental disorders (schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, etc. ).The procedure of dually diagnosing the adolescent’s drug history and frequency of usage can greatly improve the therapeutic process by allowing ample time through abstinence for these symptoms to dissolve.

Deciding on adolescent services can be one of the most important decisions a family can make concerning their child’s future. There are many options available through state funded and county programs, but the experience and knowledge gained through privately operated treatment centers allow more flexibility and latitude to pattern a form of recovery that is best suited for the young client and the family involved.

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