Does My Teen Have Paranoia?
What Clinical Paranoia Looks Like in Teens Your teenage son mutters about people following him. He says everyone is against him. Your teenage daughter is suspicious about friends and family. She insists people spy on her. Are they clinically paranoid? Do they have schizophrenia? Is it severe anxiety? Or is it nothing to worry about? […]
Behavioral Health Treatment Centers for Child Psychosis
Psychosis in Children and Teens When people hear the word psychosis, they rarely think about children. However, psychosis in children – sometimes called child psychosis – is more common than most people think. Which brings us to a second point: when people hear or say the word psychosis, they rarely know exactly what the word […]
For Parents: How to Understand Changes in Psychiatric Medication
Are psychiatrists guessing about what to prescribe? If you have a teenager with a mental health disorder that requires medication, you may become discouraged if the first medication their psychiatrist prescribes does not improve their symptoms or offer them any relief. We understand how hard that can be. The types of mental health conditions that […]
Why Is My Teen so Mean to Me? Part 5: Support for Parents
In this series of articles on teen defiance and chronic conflicts with parents called “Why Is My Teen So Mean to Me?” we’ve discussed the root causes of some of the most challenging behavioral issues teens develop. We’ve shared what kinds of treatment are available. We discussed immersive mental health treatment programs, such as intensive […]
Divorced? How To Co-Parent Effectively When a Teen is in Treatment
In the 21st century, divorce is common. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), about 40 to 50 percent of marriages in the U.S. end in divorce. At the same time, statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that millions of teens around the world have been diagnosed with an emotional, mental, or behavioral […]
My Teen Doesn’t Want to Go to Therapy or Mental Health / Substance Abuse Treatment, What Should I Do?
Your teen needs mental health treatment for a certain emotional, behavioral, or substance abuse problem. It could be depression, anxiety, trauma, ODD, DMDD, ADHD, prodromal psychosis, addiction, substance use, or any other mental health issue. The problem is, your teen does not want to go to treatment. Your teen could have a number of reasons […]
How Does Buprenorphine (Suboxone) Help Treat Teen Opioid Addiction?
The most commonly prescribed medication for teens with an opioid use disorder is Buprenorphine. Buprenorphine was approved in 2002 by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for adolescents age 16 and over. One qualitative study of more than twenty-thousand teens and young adults in the U.S. showed that buprenorphine […]
Pros and Cons of Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction
Your teen is addicted to heroin or other opioids. You’ve been getting lots of advice. Mental health professionals have told you about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), 12-Step programs (e.g. Nar-Anon), and adolescent drug rehab centers. You’ve also heard about detoxification (often referred to as detox), and Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT). For teens […]
The National Recovery Study: How Americans Recover from Alcohol and Drug Problems
The stories about alcohol and drugs we read in the press are almost always negative. For years, news about alcohol and drugs either revolved around celebrities checking in and out of rehab or the next new drug parents needed to know their thrill-seeking teens might try. More recently, the press is all about the opioid […]
How Art Therapy Will Help With Trauma
What does painting have to do with mental health? Lots, actually. Art therapy is a popular intervention for those with depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, low self-esteem, trauma, and more. PTSD and other childhood attachment issues like neglect are particularly amenable to art therapy. Many studies analyzing children with PTSD find that the participants in the treatment […]