December, 2009
Promises Professionals’ Program Offers High-Quality, Confidential Addiction Treatment
Promises’ addiction treatment program for doctors, attorneys, and other professionals offers recovery in a supportive and highly effective environment, and works with boards and other licensing bodies to ensure successful integration back into their practice or career.
An Interview with Susanne Tarleton, Director of Outpatient Services
By Meghan O’Dell
With nearly 24 years of experience working in the addiction treatment field, Susanne Tarleton brings a wealth of knowledge, creativity, and heart to her job as the Director of Outpatient Services at Promises Treatment Centers. A licensed clinical psychologist with a doctorate in clinical psychology and a certification in drug and alcohol counseling, Susanne has been an integral part of the Promises treatment team for 11 years.
After working as a clinical psychologist at St. John’s Hospital and Cedars-Sinai, Susanne was introduced to the founder of Promises, Richard Rogg, and was asked to be the Clinical Director of Promises in Malibu, a position she held for ten years. “I could do things at Promises that I couldn’t do in hospitals, and that was very inspiring for me,” she said, explaining that she also developed the equine therapy program at Promises, which was the first in the region. “We started the equine therapy phenomenon, and now it’s standard treatment at many treatment centers.”
One of the reasons Susanne became a psychologist is that she started seeing so many other symptoms in addition to substance abuse, such as depression and anxiety. She wanted to learn more, which led her to specializing in dual diagnosis. Susanne also trained in trauma work, including EMDR and somatic experiencing. Many people who suffer from addiction have experienced trauma and turn to alcohol and drugs to self-medicate, so identifying trauma is an integral part of treatment.
Last year, Susanne was presented with the opportunity to become the Director of Outpatient Services in West Los Angeles. “They wanted the program to have a strong clinical foundation, so I was excited to accept,” she said, explaining that she’s been in this position since July 2009. “We recently moved into a wonderfully spacious building, which is very conducive to giving clients the space they need to recover. I think the environment has so much to do with how people heal,” she added.
In Outpatient Services, clients experience the next stage of recovery—the transition back to work, home, and life in general. They are taught life skills and can participate in yoga, a nutrition group, and a life coaching program. “We are preparing people for what comes next,” Susanne explained. “Clients are assigned a primary clinician just as they are in residential treatment, and they also have a family therapist,” she added. “We’ve really expanded family therapy, as addiction doesn’t just affect the individual—family members need to be just as involved in treatment.”
Susanne notes that the most important element is the client’s connection with the individual therapist. “While group is also important, clients form a connection with their therapist or counselor and that connection is what helps them throughout the program,” she explained, adding that feedback surveys show that the clients agree. “But the connection with peers and the 12-step community is also very important,” she added. “Our mission is to help people connect with ongoing recovery, because as they step down, they need to be more engaged with the outside world. They need to build a life outside of meetings, but they also need to integrate the 12-step model into their lives and use the resources we equip them with.”
Many times clients want to extend their time in the outpatient program. “They form a connection and a bond, and I think it’s because we treat the individual and give special attention to their specific needs,” Susanne said. “The staff is like a family, and the way we communicate and interact is key to helping clients. It also makes clients feel supported and comfortable. The clients know that the staff is very skilled and professional, but they’re also very human and accessible,” she added, noting that Promises provides a great deal of structure without being rigid. “That compassionate understanding is very attractive, and people will tell us Promises is like no other place they’ve been,” she said, adding that the creative, individualized treatment at Promises makes it stand out among other treatment centers.
Susanne noted that the outpatient program doesn’t just treat Promises clients—people from the community or those who have been through other treatment programs are welcomed with open arms. “Some people think we are simply the next phase of treatment for Promises patients, but we’re much more than that,” she explained. “We also have a lot of fun—we take recovery very seriously but we also know that life needs to be fun; it needs to be celebrated.”
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Genes Examined in Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder can be a debilitating condition for those who suffer from its effects. As a result, scientists continue to examine this condition, its origin, treatment and even potential prevention.
According to a release out of Science Daily, the malfunctioning circadian clock genes could be responsible for bipolar disorder in children. According to researchers in BMC Psychiatry, four versions of the regulatory gene RORB were associated with pediatric bipolar disorder.
Associations Explored Between Chronic Pain, Depressive Symptoms in Adolescent School Performance
Adolescents have much to distract them during their school days. A sudden awareness in the opposite sex, new independence as they gain freedom from more restrictive elementary school schedules, and pressure to do well academically and in extracurricular activities keep adolescents’ minds busy. What happens if you throw an additional major circumstance into a child’s life?
Recent research says that adolescents who struggle with chronic pain can have depressive symptoms that lead to problems with school functioning. A study done by Logan, Simons, and Kaczynski at Harvard University Medical School examined the dynamics of the challenges adolescents face when dealing with chronic pain.
SAD Long-Term Treatment Effects Studied
Seasonal affect disorder (SAD) is a very common – and often overlooked – condition. This severe form of depression occurs for millions of people every year in the fall and winter seasons. University of Vermont psychologist Kelly Rohan wanted to study the long-term effects of different treatments of this disorder. Rohans findings were summarized in a recent release in Science Daily.
High Blood Lead Linked to Major Depression and Anxiety
Young adults with higher blood lead levels appear more likely to have major depression and panic disorders, even if they their exposure to lead levels are generally considered safe, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
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Certain Antidepressants Change Personality
A new study suggests that antidepressants like Paxil do more than just make people feel less sad and stressed. Such drugs may alter two key personality traits linked to depression—neuroticism and extraversion—independently of their effect on depression symptoms.
“Medication can definitely change people’s personalities, and change them quite substantially,” says the lead author of the study, Tony Z. Tang, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. The findings show that “those changes are very important,” he says.
Military Children Suffer More Emotional Challenges than Other Children
A new study shows that children in military families may suffer from more emotional and behavioral difficulties when compared to other American youths. The study also found that when a parent is deployed overseas, older children and girls struggle the most.
Science Daily reports that RAND Corporation researchers found that having a parent deployed for a longer period of time and having a non-deployed parent who has struggled with emotional problems were important factors associated with whether military children would struggle themselves, according to the study, which was published online by the journal Pediatrics.
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New Causes of Childhood Obesity Found
Scientists in Cambridge have discovered that the loss of a key segment of DNA can lead to severe childhood obesity. This is the first study to show that this kind of genetic alteration can cause obesity. The study, led by Dr. Sadaf Farooqi from the University of Cambridge and Dr. Matt Hurles from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, looked at 300 children with severe obesity.
Physically Fit Young Adults Get Higher IQ Scores
A new study by Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University Hospital reveals that young adults who are physically fit tend to have a higher IQ and are more likely to go on to university.
The results were recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The study involved 1.2 million Swedish men doing military service who were born between 1950 and 1976. The research group analyzed the results of both physical and IQ tests when the men enrolled.
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