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Adolescent Intervention

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:08:00 +0000

Adolescent intervention can be difficult because of the unpredictable nature of teenagers and their extreme investment in trying not to get caught. Kids minimize their drug use because they are constantly trying to fly below the radar of parents, teachers and other authority figures. Adolescent drug and alcohol experimentation can be common, but misuse, abuse and even addiction are not normal and need to be curbed before the problem becomes life-threatening. Drug or alcohol users that are teenagers often have a difficult time admitting to the fact that they have a problem and their denial can result in anger, rage, and a desire to do exactly the opposite of what their parents would want. Interventions are used as a last resort, this means often times there is no second chance. So when using an interventionist with an adolescent it is important to have a back up plan such as a transport service that consists of licensed and bonded individuals that can physically transport the teen to treatment safely if things get out of control.

Please contact us for help finding an interventionist or adolescent transport service.

Adolescent Addiction Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 22:21:00 +0000

Adolescent drug treatment occurs in four stages. The first stage is Treatment Initiation, where the teen first enters treatment. This can be a difficult process for the whole family, and it is not uncommon for teens to be angry, scared, and severely resistant to going to rehab. Early Abstinence is the second phase of recovery. During the first few days of treatment, teens must adjust to their new environment and the daunting prospect of living life without drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes. This is the phase when teens are introduced to the recovery tools they can carry into the next phases.
After 90 days, teens move into the Maintaining Abstinence phase of recovery. This often involves a transition from inpatient treatment to outpatient treatment, sober high school, and sober living facilities. Gradually, the levels of supervision recede as teens accept more responsibility and demonstrate a commitment to recovery. With maintenance, recovering teens grow into recovering adults, which is the final stage- Advanced Recovery. Long-term sobriety provides a life of freedom and choices. Teens who get the opportunity to arrest their addiction and alcoholism early in life have their whole lives ahead of them, and what seems like a gaping canyon now can only be a minor bump in the road in retrospect.

Please contact us for help finding adolescent addiction treatment.

Adolescent Video Game Addiction

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:11:00 +0000

Video game addiction, or more broadly video game overuse, is excessive and/or compulsive use of computer and video games that interferes with daily life. Reports have been made in which teens play compulsively, isolating themselves from, or from other forms of, social contact and focusing almost entirely on game achievements rather than broader life events. There is no diagnosis of video game addiction yet, although it has been proposed for inclusion in the next version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Clinicians are presently using a 2-hour-per-day limit to define "gaming overuse", citing the American Academy of Pediatrics guideline of no more than 1 to 2 hours per day of "screen time". Because research is still in the preliminary stages for gaming treatment. The most effective treatment for adolescents seems to be, as with addictions or other dependencies, a combination of psychotherapy and twelve-step programs.

Please contact us for help with online addiction.

Dual Diagnosis and Eating Disorder Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:59:00 +0000

It’s not uncommon for many of us coming into rehab to be dual diagnosed. For me, I was battling both addiction and alcoholism along with an eating disorder. Sometimes dealing with the secondary issues can be a lot trickier than dealing with addiction. For me, getting clean was a no-brainer. My life was insane and using drugs was not and is not an option. My recovery in regards to addiction has been very simple, very black and white. I just don’t use. Things with my eating disorder, however, have been a lot more challenging. It’s an issue I have had to deal with during and after adolescent treatment. I have often felt discouraged and frustrated when my E.D. issues resurface during challenging times in my adolescent recovery. I sometimes wonder if I will ever have a totally “normal” relationship to food. I haven’t actively binged and purged, and I haven’t actively restricted since I went to treatment, but I have certainly gotten “weird” with food from time to time. I think my friends and family have also been frustrated and made nervous by the fact that my progress has been much slower in this area of my life. There have been many more stops and starts but progress is being made, however slowly. In treatment, I learned the beginning tools to get on the road to recovery from my eating disorder, and I continue to use them years later. That strong foundation is what keeps me striving for freedom and happiness today. Every day isn’t perfect, but I am clean and sober and as long as I have that, I am free to keep growing.

Good News for Starbucks Addicts!

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:19:00 +0000

Finally some good news for Seattle's Starbucks and all you coffee addicts out there!

No more store closings! Actually, the coffee giant's fiscal first-quarter profit soared and topped Wall Street's forecast Wednesday as the upscale coffee retailer boosted its outlook for 2010.

Visions Adolescent Treatment Centers

Progress Not Perfection

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:53:00 +0000

The most important thing I have had to accept since being in Dual diagnosis treatment is that I have to have a lot more patience with myself than I am used to. I have had to learn to forgive myself for not being perfect. I think going into treatment, both the teen and the families can fall into thinking that the teen will emerge “cured”. In my first few months home in Orange County, California, any time I felt weird or had an emotional day, all of us would get worried that everything was unraveling. What I have learned, is that that just isn’t true. I can have bad days, and I can have good days. A bad day doesn't mean I'm not recovering.
I can feel discouraged from time to time but the most important thing is that I pick myself up and keep moving forward. This is recovery to me- to be able to keep making the effort regardless of how I feel. I have had to redefine my definition of success. In treatment, I learned how to believe in myself, even when the going gets rough, and to use the tools given to me. The tools aren’t there for perfect days- they’re there for challenges and for growth, and growth is sometimes awkward and uncomfortable. I made a commitment to myself to change my life, and thanks to that, regardless of how difficult the changes may be, I have maintained the willingness to keep growing. It's not something I can really explain to my family, and in the beginning, that was really frustrating. I realized that I just had to show people my commitment to change, by continuing with the process long after treatment ended. That's the neatest gift I've received: the ability to keep using these tools for years after I was introduced to them.if you have a loved one that needs to be introduced to these tools please contact us at adolescent dual diagnosis treatment.

Dual Diagnosis Residential Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:18:00 +0000

Dual diagnosis residential treatment is often the last resort for parents of dual diagnosis teens, so it is important that you chose the right one. Residential treatment should be a safe place for teens to adjust to a new way of life without the use of drugs and alcohol, receive a proper diagnosis and medication management, continue with schoolwork to avoid falling behind, and explore group and individual therapy to treat all areas of a teen’s life.
Visions Adolescent Treatment Centers address all of these requirements and more, ensuring that teens experience exemplary care in a comfortable, homelike environment. At Visions, I went to group and individual therapy, and met with staff doctors, but I never felt like I was in a hospital. We had a good time, ate really good food, and went out and did exciting things like equine therapy and field trips to museums and recreational outings to the movies. As a dual diagnosis teen, it was helpful to address my borderline personality disorder and depression as well as my addiction and alcoholism issues. Being dual diagnosed can be challenging, but Visions helped me get some great tools to make my life fulfilling and awesome and my disorders manageable.

Privelege Doesn't Always Protect Us

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:51:00 +0000

Michael Douglas' son, Cameron, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to dealing mass quantities of meth and cocaine last year while holed up at the posh Hotel Gansevoort.

Cameron told the judge that after a New York City contact asked him to supply the drugs in 2006, he began supplying on a regular basis. And when asked by a judge if he knew what he was doing was wrong, he said, "Yes, your honor."

He also pleaded guilty to heroin possession after his girlfriend tried to sneak the drug into an electric toothbrush while he was on house arrest.

Douglas signed a plea agreement, but the details are unknown. Although, he is facing minimum prison sentence of 10 years.

So privileged and he still couldn't pull it together.

help for your son

Teen Bipolar Disorder Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 15:48:00 +0000

Being a teen with Bipolar Disorder can sometimes feel like you will never be normal. On the roller coaster of sadness and mania, it is hard to get anything else accomplished. Sometimes drugs seem like the best solution, but they usually end up exacerbating the problem. Drugs and alcohol already cause mood swings in teenagers, and these can often be an indicator of drug and alcohol abuse.
For some teens, the roller coaster doesn’t stop when drugs and alcohol are taken away, and for those, teen dual diagnosis treatment centers can be the most constructive solution. Dual diagnosis rehabs treat both teen drug and alcohol abuse and teen bipolar disorder. Sober teens can obtain a clear diagnosis and receive the best treatment while learning to deal with a dual diagnosis in a safe, nurturing environment.

J.D. Salinger's Holden Caulfield Was In Need of Teen Rehab!

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 05:41:00 +0000

As a formerly challenging and challenged teen, it seems important for me to note the passing of J.D. Salinger this week. Best known for his novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger chronicles the angst-ridden teen Holden Caulfield’s adventures in New York following his expulsion from private school. Caulfield basically wanders around in a semi-drunken stupor for a few days, visiting his sister and an old English teacher, and ruminating about all of the “phonies” and his dissociation with society and his family.
Sounds like someone needs to go to rehab. Getting kicked out of school? Check. Engaging in dangerous behaviors (ie: getting beat up by a prostitute’s pimp)? Check. Wandering around alone in a big city drunk for three days? Check. Drinking alone for three days? Check. Feeling alienated, disconnected, depressed, and hopeless? Check. I’m just saying.
It’s nice to find identification in literature. I know that without certain characters, my teen years would have felt a lot more empty and hopeless. I often envied the authors for their ability to put those strange hollow feelings into words. I wished I could describe that hole inside me, and J.D. Salinger had a way of honoring and explaining that feeling without making it cheesy or insignificant. I think that is part of the reason The Catcher in the Rye has resonated with so many readers for so long.

Teen Drug and Eating Disorder Rehab

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 15:36:00 +0000

Heidi Montag of the Hills recently exposed her obsession with plastic surgery and looking as perfect as possible to People Magazine. Montag received ten different procedures in ten hours, including an eyebrow lift, botox, liposuction on her stomach, neck and thighs, another breast augmentation, nose job revision, ears pinned back, chin reduction, and a buttock augmentation. She is 23 and barely recognizable. She claims that in order to feel best about herself, and to feel beautiful as a woman, this is what she needs to do.
I could go on and on about the pressures (especially in Los Angeles) on women to feel bad about their bodies. Montag may very well be an example of this. In teen drug and eating disorder rehab, I was confronted with my own body image issues. By taking the drugs away, which I had used for years to mask my insecurities, I was forced to deal with my issues head-on. I understand Montag’s desire to feel perfect and desirable, but fortunately I have obtained some level of sanity in that department. It is easy to think that, “If only I had bigger breasts, a smaller stomach, or a smaller chin, I would feel better all of the time,” but rehab gave me a dose of reality. There is nothing on the outside that can change my insides. Recoverlove myself no matter what my outsides look like.

Teen Dual Diagnosis Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:28:00 +0000

NPR reports that teens today suffer from more anxiety than they did during the Great Depression. Researchers cite inflated pressures, such as the need to have the right material objects and have the right appearances as the top contributors to teen anxiety. The pressure to have everything, be everything, and handle everything is certainly a huge stress in teen living.
Developing a strong sense of self can be difficult when ads pull you in every direction, college admission becomes insanely competitive, and body obsession consumes our culture. It’s no surprise that teens turn to drugs, alcohol, and prescription pills to take the edge off. It's also no surprise that teens develop body dismorphia and eating disorders. By addressing every aspect of a teen’s life, a dual diagnosis treatment center helps an adolescent drug and alcohol user find ways to cope in today’s busy world by addressing the underlying issues, and to develop the tools to keep them on the path to success.

Volunteer at the Midnight Mission

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:42:00 +0000

Yesterday I took a trip with the rest of the Visions kids to a homeless shelter called the Midnight Mission. While I was there I had a life-changing experience. After I left I felt like I made a difference in the world. I was serving beans, and there were easily over 400 people. There were kids, adults, and families. While I was serving, the people were very kind and loving. They were thankful. I started to run out of beans and I realized that the first 100-150 people got beans, zucchini, and a hard sandwich. After I had served all the beans, over 250 more people didn’t get any beans. I sat and I observed the less fortunate, remembering that I was hungry and had a nice dinner waiting for me in the car. Not only did I have a nice dinner but we were going to take a trip to Starbucks afterward. So, as I remembered what I had, I started to cry. I had this feeling that I have never had before, and I cannot explain what it was. I stood looking at the people and saw that there was no more food for them, and I started to really feel the pain; I cried. Then I went and took a timeout. One of the kitchen staff at the Midnight Mission asked me if one of the homeless said something mean to me. I couldn’t help but feel even more upset and sad because the people were so nice and far from mean. I could not express the love and pain I felt for these people. I watched as they fought over more food. I heard their voices yell for more food and all I could feel was sorrow. I have never felt a want to help others, but today I wanted to give everything I had to them. I watched as we drove down Skid Row and saw them on the cold sidewalk, sleeping on rock, their stomachs growling. I had a warm hot coffee sitting in my hands, warm in clothes, wearing shoes, and being around the ones I loved. I hated how I took for granted the people at Visions, but when I got to see how these people have no one, I didn’t want to go home. All I wanted to do was stay close with all the people that I had met at Visions. Coming to the Midnight Mission was the best thing I could have ever asked for. I got a culture shock and the best feeling I could ever ask for. I guess you could say that the feeling I felt looking at them at first was helplessness, because after I ran out of beans I could do nothing more and I wish I could have. But that feeling changed as I realized that these are strong people. These people are struggling for their lives and are making it through. One of the residents here told me that he didn’t feel bad for these people, that they did it to themselves or get treatment for their mental health issues. They didn’t have a chance. Their addiction got so out of hand that they ended up like that. I can tell you that if the kids here didn’t have the chance to come to treatment and learn about the disease of addiction and co-occurring disorders, they would be in the same f@#king position. So, for someone to say that to me was heart breaking. I could not believe and even explain what was really happening to these people. This was also a good time for me to learn that not everyone believes what I believe. I believe that these homeless people didn’t have a chance to have a better life. But that resident doesn’t, so I cannot sit and waste the time I did have with the homeless telling him how he was wrong. That was a big for me to just let that go. I knew in my heart that I helped and I gave them a smile. I helped someone out for once. I truly helped someone out without any reward, and I wish I could go all over the world and make a difference in someone’s life. There was this one man that particularly touched me. He was in line, and I said to him, “Hi sir how was your Christmas?” His reply back to me was, “It was as good as it could ever be.” A homeless person who had no nice Christmas dinner, no presents, no home, no and family to spend it with could be grateful. I think that I got more than what was necessary on my Christmas, but I didn’t feel that on Christmas. I realized this about a week later. It was amazing to me that someone less fortunate can be humble and not complain. It bothers me that my conceited attitude is what I have always turned to, and because I always act like I am the shit, that’s how I am looked at as a person. But I am not that person. I am a loving and kind person. I just have a hard time showing it. And yes, it may take a couple more times of Midnight Mission and more volunteer work for me to really understand that I have it good. I have everything I could ever want. Not only that, but I should be grateful that I have a chance to be helped with my addiction as a teen. If the homeless, who suffer every day can get clean all on their own, I have great hope for myself and other kids at Visions. It takes a lot of courage and strength to get through treatment, even with loving and open people and all the luxuries. It’s amazing that these people got clean with nothing but themselves and meetings. That must have been so hard. So hard that I can only look up to them. I have everything I could ever need. I have a great family. I cannot explain the gratitude I felt yesterday. I can only continue to help and love these people as human beings and not something different. They are not different. They are struggling and so is everyone. I thank God and Visions so much! I could not have had nor needed anything better than what I had that day. I will never ever forget my day at the Midnight Mission.

Contact us and we'll give you information on how to Volunteer at the Midnight Mission

Teen Depression and Suicide

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:02:00 +0000

The BBC in London reports that teens who have a bedtime later than midnight are 24% more likely to experience teen depression than those who have an earlier bedtime. Adolescents who reported they usually sleep five or fewer hours per night were 71% more likely to report depression, and 48% more likely to have thoughts of committing suicide, compared to young people reporting close to eight hours of sleep nightly, the study shows. Being well rested is an important aspect of a teen’s health and well-being as is adequate exercise. Lack of sleep is thought to contribute to emotional responses that can disturb judgment, concentration, and impulse control. Today’s teens face demanding schedules full of homework and extra-curricular activities, and getting enough sleep can seem impossible at times. The study suggests that parents can be an effective element in helping teens develop good time management skills and learn how to take care of themselves.

Good & Bad Things I Did In The Last Decade

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 15:49:00 +0000

Things I did in the last decade:

Started using drugs
Got expelled from school
Scared my friends and family
Crashed a car
Got stitches
Took multiple trips to the ER
Lost privileges
Lied a lot
Destroyed relationships
Became a teen runaway
Got sent to teen drug rehab
Got clean
Stayed clean
Made new friends
Repaired relationships
Got to help others
Finished high school
Applied to college
Celebrated multiple years clean
Got to travel
Got my driver’s license
Got a job
Learned to love myself
Have made steady self improvements
Have learned to be honest
Have learned to take care of myself
Developed self respect

Visions Adolescent Treatment Centers.

It’s college Application Time

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:48:00 +0000

It’s college application time and being a young recovering addict can add a bit more stress to an already stressful situation for any teen. While most teens look at going away to college as a chance at freedom and unlimited partying, as a recovering alcoholic and addict, the idea of leaving my established support system and being surrounded by college binge drinking makes me uncomfortable. Fortunately, in adolescent treatment, I learned the value of how to set up safe situations for myself.
Many colleges now offer sober college experiences, or “dry” dorms, or floors of dorms where students agree not to drink, smoke, or use drugs. AA and NA meetings are available across the country whether it be in New York, California, Dallas Texas, etc. There are nationwide calling plans and internet access allow for an easy connection to sponsors and 12-step support. As I research schools, I am also checking out the availability of 12-step meetings and housing options at each school. I am considering living off-campus in order to avoid crazy dorm life. Some schools even offer scholarships to students who pledge not to drink while in school. I feel that with my strong recovery foundation, I will be okay no matter where I go, as long as I take the steps necessary to keep my recovery a priority. I am used to being a teen that doesn’t drink, but sometimes it is hard to explain my sobriety to people who don’t know me. I am excited to be going to college. Before I got sober, I didn’t think I would be able to do it. Sobriety is the reason I have the freedom to go to school, and remembering that will help me succeed wherever I end up attending college.

Another OD, James Owen Sullivan Dead At Age 28

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 14:44:00 +0000

The drummer with Avenged Sevenfold, a rising force in the heavy metal scene, died on Monday at his home in southern California, the group and authorities said.

James Owen Sullivan, nicknamed "The Rev," appeared to have died of natural causes, Huntington Beach police Lt. John Domingo told the Orange County Register. He was 28. The Orange County Coroner's Office is investigating, the paper said.

"It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that we tell you of the passing today of Jimmy 'The Rev' Sullivan," the band said on its Web site. "Jimmy was not only one of the world's best drummers, but more importantly he was our best friend and brother."

Avenged Sevenfold, which Sullivan co-founded in 1999, hit No. 4 on the U.S. pop album chart in 2007 with its most recent album, a self-titled release that went on to ship more than 500,000 copies, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

In recent years, Avenged Sevenfold tried to live down its reputation for debauchery. Sullivan, in particular, had raised eyebrows after a 2006 cover story in metal magazine Revolver described his penchant for drugs and a cocaine addiction.

Our thoughts are with her family and friends during this extremely difficult time.

Visions Treatment Centers.

I Spent Christmas In Rehab

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 13:13:00 +0000

I remember one Christmas where I was so loaded that the nutcrackers started walking around during dinner and I couldn't look up from my plate. Then there was that other year that I threw a tantrum and locked myself in the bathroom through dinner. Oh, and that other year where I nodded out for most of the day on prescription drugs and later threw up in the front yard. Ah, memories. It seems like the holidays tend to bring out the beast in active addicts, for one reason or another. My addiction really put a damper on the holidays for myself, and also for my family. It became a time that we all dreaded, rather than looked forward to.

Then one Christmas, I got sent to rehab. I wasn’t too excited to spend the holidays in rehab, as you can imagine, but at the time, it ended up being the best holiday my family or I had had in years. Instead of a car, or a pony, or a new ipod, I got the gift of recovery. Thumbs down, I thought. Totally lame. I didn’t want to do the crafts, I didn’t want to go to group, and I surely didn’t want to stop using drugs and alcohol, but as time went on, I began to change despite myself. The staff’s patience and love gave me the room and tools to find the best, truest version of myself. I’ve had some really good holidays in Jackson Hole, Wyoming since then, all thanks to that one year I got to go to rehab for Christmas.

drug rehab.

Brittany Murphy DIES! Was it Drugs or an Eating Disorder?

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Actress Brittany Murphy passed away on Sunday morning in Los Angeles at the age of 32.

Her husband Simon Monjack is outraged at the rumors that his wife died from a drug overdose or causes related to an eating disorder.

People just don't typically die at 32 of natural causes!

Murphy reportedly went into full cardiac arrest and her husband, immediately called paramedics to save his wife.

Murphy was announced dead on arrival at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after paramedics and doctors could not revive the 8 Mile actress.

Our thoughts are with her family and friends during this extremely difficult time.

Visions Adolescent Treatment Centers

Dual Diagnosis Treatment For Adolescents

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:43:00 +0000

Adolescents are often referred to treatment for substance abuse but are not referred to a program for appropriate diagnosis and treatment of any underlying cause for their drug and alcohol use. The issue is that many teens have symptoms of a mood disorder that may in fact lead to self-medicating with drugs and alcohol.

Families know how difficult it is to find treatment for an adolescent who abuses drugs or alcohol but also is diagnosed with a co-occurring disorder; i.e., ADHD, depression, or bipolar disorder. Traditionally, programs that treat a mental health diagnosis do not treat teens with substance abuse issues, and programs for substance abusers are not programmed for people with mental illness. Adolescents are often caught in this treatment or services gap.

It is important to find a program that is designed and staffed in a way to treat adolescent with a dual diagnosis. you should ask the fallowing questions when looking for a dual diagnosis treatment center:

-Do you have a Medical Director and what is their role?
-How much time does your Medical Director/Psychiatrist spend working with your child?
-Are your therapists licensed professionals (many programs save money by using inexperienced trainees)?
-Are your clinicians at the facility full time?
-What is the facilities daily staff to client ratio?
-How many staff are actually on site at any given time?
-Does the program provide neuropsych testing?
-Does the program provide weekly clinical supervision meetings for the case management of your child?
-Do your therapists, counselors and Medical Director work together as a team?

Not everyone is a candidate for residential dual diagnosis treatment programs. It all depends upon the severity of the problems. For people whose drug or alcohol addiction is not severe enough to warrant residential treatment, an outpatient treatment program in might be the solution.

If you or a loved one needs dual diagnosis treatment please click here- underlying cause.

How To Prevent Relapse During The Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:19:00 +0000

The holidays are thought of as a time for family, giving, and cheer. The Holiday season also comes with a ton of family stress, holiday depression social pressure and let's face it a lot of drinking and drug use! For the recovering alcoholic or drug addict this time of year is one of the most dangerous “triggers” for relapse. I've known many an alcoholic or addict that succumbed to the triggers that the holiday season brings. It is Important to have and use a plan to prevent relapse during the Holidays.

-Go to meetings...lots of them!
-Fellowship (hang out with sober people)
-Keep phone #s of sober friends handy and use them if you think you may drink
-Be of service (volunteer not just in AA or NA but in your community). There is nothing like helping someone else with their problems to help us forget about our own.
-Remove yourself from situations you do not feel comfortable in.

If this is your first clean and sober holiday it may be a good one to spend the majority of your time with your new found friends that are in recovery rather then your family. Nothing against family, there's just a lot of stress that comes along with them and family just doesn't have an innate understanding of what your going through.

If you or a loved one is in trouble please click here for help during the holidays!.

Perez Hilton's View on Teen Drug Use

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:33:00 +0000

Oh, you kids today!

Marijuana is becoming increasingly popular among teens in the US, which is supposedly attributed to the national debate over medical marijuana and researchers believe it makes it seem safer to teens.

Teens also feel this way about abusing prescription drugs, which may make them more popular in the future.

But booze remains the most popular drug of choice for teens with 43.5 percent of 12th graders admitting to drinking in the past month.

Some things never change!

Borrowed from perezhilton.com celebrity gossip. Even he is paying attention to this issue and the way it affects teens, thank you for taking notice Perez!

If your interested in help for yourself or your teen please click here adolescent drug treatment

Is My Kid Using Drugs?

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:33:00 +0000

Experts that work in adolescent drug and alcohol rehab say the best way to determine if your children are using drugs or alcohol is to talk to them. There are many resources available to parents for help in talking to your kids about drugs. The problem with that approach is if your children are using drugs or drinking while underage, they are not likely to admit it. Kids usually come into treatment minimizing their drug use. They have been trying to hide their drug use from their parents, teacher, coach, etc... If your child is using drugs or alcohol, it's more than likely they are doing all they can to cover up that activity so that they can continue to participate in their drug use. What you want to do is look for warning signs that your child is using drugs. Some of these are as fallows:

-Change in behavior
-Change in appearance
-Change in friends
-Trouble at school
-Drop in grades
-Tired all the time
-Loss of sleep
-Red eyes
-Dilated pupils
-Glassy eyes
-Slurred or incoherent speach
-Weight loss
-Smoking cigarettes
-Lying
-Stealing
-Will not participate with family
-Loss of passion for hobbies
-Drug paraphernalia

Remember that teens try new things and experiment, but a decline in appearance or behavior, or any combination of the signs listed above, especially if it lasts for a while, is a sign that something is wrong. It’s not always drug use that causes these changes. Their may be mental health problems like depression, too. If you notice a change in your child don’t overreact and accuse him or her of using drugs, but if you do see a combination of the above indications it's time to look for help. Please contact us by clicking here is my child using drugs?

Teen Prescription Drug Abuse

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:13:00 +0000

ALT="PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION"

Please click here for more information about adolescent drug treatment or teen prescription drug abuse.

Tips For Finding Treatment For Teens

noreply@blogger.com (Visions Adolescent Treatment Center) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:01:00 +0000

Tips for finding treatment for teens:

1.) Does the program specialize in adolescents? Teen addicts face a very different set of circumstances than adults. A program that focuses on teen recovery provides the essential facet of peer identification and support.

2.) Does the program provide treatment for the entire family? Teen drug and alcohol abuse affects the entire family. Proper counseling for the family is necessary to ensure a productive environment upon the teen’s return home. Also, it is important that the family get to process the anger, fear and frustration that comes with dealing with a teen in active addiction. Both teens and families must learn to break old destructive cycles and habits.

3.) Does the facility treat all aspects of the disease? Addiction affects the mind, body, and spirit. Good drug programs should offer group and individual counseling, medical supervision, and a nurturing program to continue beyond treatment, such as an introduction to 12 step fellowships like AA and NA.

4.) Does the program offer aftercare? Experts have concluded that a “soft landing” into the outside world after treatment greatly aids in ongoing sobriety. This can include sober living houses, sober high school, and outpatient treatment.
Visions Adolescent Treatment Center works to address all aspects of teen addiction, working with the teen and their family to create an individualized program geared towards lifelong success.

Please click here for more information about adolescent drug treatment.