Prescription drug abuse among teens is a concern across the country, and the results can be tragic. All too often, trouble begins when teens experiment with leftover meds in the bathroom medicine cabinet. There are several reasons why kids turn to prescription drugs. Teens often take drugs to get high or to relax, cope with stress, help them sleep, boost energy, or improve concentration at school. Opiates are a problem
Borderline personality disorder in teens is marked by high levels of impulsivity, repeated self-harming and suicidal attempts, conflicted relationships with others, and high emotional sensitivity and reactivity. But what causes this disorder? Experts can’t point to one single cause of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in adolescents. Mental health professionals believe it is caused by several factors, including genetics and environmental issues. This is what DBT’s Biosocial Theory suggests. Some adolescents
Your adolescent is upset about something or another. Maybe he or she is crying. You know what the experts say: validate, validate, validate. Because children and teens are not always looking to problem-solve. They’re looking to be validated. But what exactly does it mean to validate, and how do you do it? Dialectical Behavior Therapy suggests that there are six levels of validation. With so many ways to show your
The time has come. Your child, or adolescent, is asking for a phone. But not just any phone will do, of course. They need a smartphone. Preferably the latest model. “Everyone has one,” they’re telling you. (Which may not be 100% true, by the way.) But before you go and purchase said smartphone, you decide to research online. (For that we say, good going!) And here you are, wondering about
As the nation wrestles with the opioid epidemic, health scientists work to find new, evidence-based methods to help people struggling with opioid addiction. Research shows that a combination of Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), therapy, and social support is the most effective way to treat opioid addiction. The benefits of MAT are significant. Over 40 years of research shows that MAT decreases: Opioid use Opioid-related overdose deaths Criminal activity Transmission of infectious
Recent research indicates that adolescents (12-17) who misuse more than one substance – or engage in polysubstance use – may be at higher risk to develop substance use disorders in adulthood. Some evidence also suggests that this same age group may be more likely to move from polysubstance misuse of cigarettes and marijuana to polysubstance misuse of non-medical use of prescription drugs (e.g., opioids or benzodiazepines) with illicit drugs (e.g.,
Yoga in the United States Yoga is a form of exercise that comes from India and is reputed to be at least four-thousand years old. The original Indian yoga was deeply related to spiritual practice, and included heavy doses of prayer, chanting, devotional singing, and seated meditation. The type of yoga practiced most commonly in the U.S. in the 21st century, however, bears little resemblance to the yoga practiced long
In the U.S., there are almost as many approaches to parenting as there are families. Bedtimes, dinner times, screen time, you name it: some parents are rigid and some are strict. The same is true for supervision: some parents might let their eight-year-old child ride a bike to a friend’s house several blocks away all by themselves, while other parents never let their kids out of their sight for a
At the end of school last year, your teen was sitting pretty. The solid final report card looked like this: Math: A Science: B+ English: A History: A Spanish: B A solid GPA. A little over 3.5. That’s good. So far this year, things seem to be going well, from everything you can tell. Your teen is happy with their classes and happy with their friends. That’s why you haven’t
Before you hand your teen a phone, you need to have a talk with them. Just like the conversation about the birds and the bees, this kind of talk is of paramount importance in your teen’s life. This talk is about stranger danger…on the internet. As a parent, you have a responsibility to keep your teen safe. Just like you’ve taught them, since they were young, to always look two
