These are the things the teen programs will not tell you. If they did, they would go into Chapter 11.
http://www.peele.net/lib/panic.html"Up to 70% of kids in the highest risk conditions do not become substance abusers.3 These teenagers can build on their strengths (known as "resilience" or "protective" factors) to prevent the negative factors from dominating their lives. Resilience factors include having a strong relationship with an adult and confidence-building experiences at school, work, or other extracurricular activities. Such factors build self-esteem, a sense of personal control, a desire to be healthy, and a link to mainstream activities and values.
What does this mean for parents? It means that you can help your child build resilience to avoid drug abuse."
"Parents can play an important role in preventing and dealing with drug abuse. They do so by fostering healthy and responsible attitudes in their children.
The best drug prevention program is simple: supporting, educating, and caring for children. This prevention program starts in the family and continues in school and social activities."
"Give your child the respect and leeway to follow through on ? and take responsibility for ? his/her own decisions.
We're asking you to do a lot: We're asking you to let your child make mistakes. In practice, you need to judge which experiences your teenager can safely manage. But we as parents have to allow our children to face situations that require them to use self-control and good judgment. In these situations, children will have to consider their options and the consequences of each option. They will make their own decisions ? decisions for which they take responsibility. This ability to make good decisions is important, considering that parents can't always be around to protect their children. When we realize that about 90% of high school seniors say alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana are easy to get,8 we see that children must be able to make choices on their own in order to stay out of trouble."
"Remember, you and your child have the right to ask questions of a potential therapist.
There are many therapists; some are good, some are not. Listen to what your instincts tell you and what your child says after talking to a therapist a few times. We emphasize 'what your child says' because it is important to check in with your child's feelings, to make sure that he/she does not feel shut down or manipulated."
"Inpatient treatment programs are rarely justified for children's healthy development.10 They can even harm children by giving them identities as alcoholics or substance abusers, and setting them up for relapse.11 The programs also foster relapse by isolating children in a setting that's very different from the setting they'll face outside treatment. This is the case for a parent who says, "My child does very well in treatment, but the second he comes home he heads right over to the local marijuana dealer's home." "
Inpatient treatment programs are rarely justified for children's healthy development.10 They can even harm children by giving them identities as alcoholics or substance abusers, and setting them up for relapse.11 The programs also foster relapse by isolating children in a setting that's very different from the setting they'll face outside treatment. This is the case for a parent who says, "My child does very well in treatment, but the second he comes home he heads right over to the local marijuana dealer's home."
"Inpatient treatment programs are rarely justified for children's healthy development.10 They can even harm children by giving them identities as alcoholics or substance abusers, and setting them up for relapse.11 The programs also foster relapse by isolating children in a setting that's very different from the setting they'll face outside treatment. This is the case for a parent who says, "My child does very well in treatment, but the second he comes home he heads right over to the local marijuana dealer's home."
http://www.peele.net/lib/surprising.html"this fatalistic thinking about addiction doesn?t jibe with the facts. More people overcome addictions than do not. And the vast majority do so without therapy. Quitting may take several tries, and people may not stop smoking, drinking or using drugs altogether. But eventually they succeed in shaking dependence."
"Every year, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health interviews Americans about their drug and alcohol habits. Ages 18 to 25 constitute the peak period of drug and alcohol use. In 2002, the latest year for which data are available, 22 percent of Americans between ages 18 and 25 were abusing or were dependent on a substance, versus only 3 percent of those aged 55 to 59. These data show that most people overcome their substance abuse, even though most of them do not enter treatment."
"How do we know that the majority aren?t seeking treatment? In 1992, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism conducted one of the largest surveys of substance use ever, sending Census Bureau workers to interview more than 42,000 Americans about their lifetime drug and alcohol use. Of the 4,500-plus respondents who had ever been dependent on alcohol, only 27 percent had gone to treatment of any kind, including Alcoholics Anonymous. In this group, one-third were still abusing alcohol."
Please parents. DO NOT buy into the teen industry propaganda.
Signed, A Concerned, Ethical Social Worker
