Recognizing and Treating Substance Abuse Within A Residential Treatment Center For Teens

Many teens naturally become more private as they grow older, no longer sharing every detail of their lives with their parents. While this withdrawal is tough, it is an important part of your teen’s development. However, some troubled teens become secretive because they are hiding a substance abuse problem. We want to help you identify the difference between a natural desire for privacy and substance abuse issues, as well as covering how a residential treatment center can help your child make important changes.

Signs Your Teen Is Abusing Drugs

Unless you catch your teen in the act of using drugs or have them take random drug tests, you will need to look for several different signs to see if they are involved in substance abuse.

• Check your medicine cabinet - Many parents immediately think of street drugs when discussing teen substance abuse. But many teens find their fix at home, abusing opioids prescribed to other family members.
• Teen’s location is unknown - If your teen regularly disappears, and you don’t know where they are or when they will return, this can be a sign they are abusing illegal substances or engaged in other activities your teen knows you wouldn’t approve of if you knew about them.
• Personal changes appear - Watch your teen for a variety of personal changes that seem to have no explanation such as bloodshot eyes, poor personal hygiene, smokey smells clinging, and frequent fatigue or hunger.
• Drop in activity levels - If your teen’s grades have dropped, this can be a sign of substance abuse. Often, as their grades drop, teens who abuse drugs also lose interest in activities they used to like to do.

Residential Treatment Centers Help Teens Overcome Substance Abuse

Once you have identified that your teen has a substance abuse problem, it is vital to give them the help they need. Attending a rehab center is an essential step, but if your teen returns home after a short stay in rehab to detox, there is a high likelihood that your teen will relapse. Instead, you should consider a residential treatment center for troubled teens as the next step in your teen’s recovery. There is a variety of ways that a residential treatment center can help your teen make important changes in their life.

• When in treatment, your teen will receive daily therapy to help them uncover the root cause behind their substance abuse.
• Academics will be addressed, helping your teen recover from the damage their drug abuse did to their grades.
• Teens attending a residential treatment center learn new skills such as culinary arts, music, community service abilities, and more, helping troubled teens replace bad habits.

If your teen has struggled with substance abuse and has not been able to make permanent lifestyle changes, contact us. Our program advisors can answer your questions and tell you whether Liahona Treatment Center is right for your teenage son.