Rehab for Teens

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences. It is considered a brain disease because drugs change the brain; they change its structure and how it works. These brain changes can be long lasting and can lead to many harmful, often self-destructive, behaviors.”

Teens

For teenagers, who lack complete control of their lives and still have developing brains, the control an addiction has over them and the very real changing of their brain functions are especially alarming.

Parents who worry about the health and safety of their adolescents, are right to seek out whatever help they can find when they believe their child to be an addict.

When considering rehabilitation for your teen, look for treatment programs geared toward the specific needs of your teen. For one, make sure the program is aimed at teens. But, also consider cultural, religious, and gender factors.

The more specialized you can make it, the more likely it is to work. For help finding the perfect program, contact Centers.com at 800-256-3490.

But, what makes teen programs so special?

Medications

Teenagers require a specialized treatment approach due to being in different developmental and social stages of their lives.

One component of rehab is detox, where a user’s body is cleared of all drugs over the course of a few days. For many addicts, this kicks in a terrible physical withdrawal. One remedy is medication designed to lessen the pain of detox.

In a rehab program devoted to teens, medication and dosage is designed specifically for the needs of an adolescent brain and body. This is not to say adult treatment centers don’t do this, but teen ones do it with consistency.

In addition to detox, medications can be used to treat comorbidity, when a patient has two or more concurrent disorders. These disorders may happen at the same time or one after the other. Comorbidity also implies connections between the illnesses that can worsen the course of both. Often, mental disorders are comorbid with addiction.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse notes: “Many people who are addicted to drugs are also diagnosed with other mental disorders and vice versa. For example, compared with the general population, people addicted to drugs are roughly twice as likely to suffer from mood and anxiety disorders, with the reverse also true.” A teen rehab facility will have more experience dispensing medications to an adolescent population with a comorbid disorder.

Therapy

In a rehabilitation program, therapy will play a key role in recovery. Teens may participate in one-on-one therapy or counselling. However, given that studies indicate drug abusing teens often fail to develop social skills, group therapy is often important as well.

Therapy asks teens to think about triggers like peer pressure and familial stress. Then, they develop soothing and coping methods to combat triggers before relapse occurs. Some methods include meditation and visualization.

By seeking help from a teen facility, problems specific to adolescents can be addressed in group and individual settings. As their developing bodies and brains require different attention than adult ones, therapy truly needs to be molded for teen audiences.

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Family counselling is also a component of therapy that can be specifically tailored for teens attending treatment as part of a teen program. Parents and teens may have eroded trust; siblings may feel ignored or mistreated.

The number of familial tensions can be many. A teen facility will be more adept at handling parent-teen and teen-sibling relationships and will likely have access to resources aimed at these dynamics.

The most important component of finding an appropriate facility is making sure that it addresses your teen’s needs. Some adolescents may need more medication and one-on-one time. Others may benefit most from the socialization of inpatient and group work.

If you would like help connecting with a treatment program that will meet your teen’s needs, contact Centers.com at 800-256-3490.