Teen drug addiction treatment
Hello!
I'm looking for resources to help our 16-year-old teen daughter who has an addiction problem. All the posts are all quite old...10-15 years old. I'm I searching incorrectly? I'd like to see relatively recent posts (from the last five years) on the subject.
Aside from that, if you have a recent experience with a treatment center, addiction counselor or any other information on the subject we'd be happy to have it.
Thanks much.
- V
Sep 5, 2019
Parent Replies
I feel for you. I have a child going through this right now. We are Kaiser members and we are attending a multi-week outpatient program at Kaiser Union City. It is loosely based on the AA meeting-based support/counseling model. They don't follow the 12 steps, but the program combines education, support groups (with just parents or teens and together), and individual counseling. One of the key tenants is following a set of "golden rules" about not using, following parent's rules, attending school, etc. If the teen does not adhere to those, then they are given consequences which involve basically taking away privileges for a fixed period of time. There is also an emphasis on testing for drugs and alcohol and applying consequences for if the teen tests positive. It adds a lot of structure and support to what has been a chaotic time for parenting and coping with a child who abuses. I've witnessed other families being successful in the program, but we are not there yet. It seemed like a better first action than shipping off our child to a program, because the rest of his life would stay steady. However, we do have the option of sending him to a Kaiser-contracted inpatient program if the outpatient is not effective enough.
To get into the program, call Member Services (number on the back of one's Kaiser card) or ask your child's pediatrician.