Adolescent Issues

First-of-Its-Kind Study Finds Marijuana in Blood One Month After Abstinence

First-of-Its-Kind Study Finds Marijuana in Blood One Month After Abstinence

The legalization of marijuana in states like Colorado requires additional regulation to make the legalization safe for all residents. For instance, there are many adverse effects associated with the use of cannabis, such as an increased risk of psychotic episodes. In addition, cannabis use may impact other areas of physical and mental health. The legalization of marijuana may also significantly impact legislation related to its use in connection with operating a vehicle. The use of cannabis is connected to impaired driving and the cause of motor vehicle accidents, second only to alcohol for its role in dangerous driving. According to the National Roadside Survey, there were more drivers tested positive for drugs than for alcohol in 2007, and in 2009 more than 10 percent of young adults admitted to driving while under the influence of illegal drugs. In a study recently published online in Clinical Chemistry, researchers provided evidence that even when a daily smoker of cannabis ceases using the drug, it can be detected in the blood up to one month later. The researchers recruited 30 men who were chronic daily marijuana smokers. They were required to remain at a secure research unit for up to 33 consecutive days,...

Family Focused Therapy Highly Effective For Youths With Mood Swings

Family Focused Therapy Highly Effective For Youths With Mood Swings

Mood disorders are heavily influenced by not only genetic factors, but also family history and other environmental influences. The patterns of mood regulation that are learned in a family can have an impact on how a child or adolescent processes the emotions they experience. A recent study conducted by UCLA and Stanford researchers provides evidence that involving the family in the treatment of an individual with a mood disorder may lead to better outcomes.

Using Facebook to Identify College Students Suffering From Depression

Using Facebook to Identify College Students Suffering From Depression

Physical wounds are often easy to see or sense. A broken arm shows an obvious cast. A broken foot comes with a limp. What about a broken psyche? That’s often harder to spot, but social media could be a valuable window into the mental health of individuals who need help. College campuses have become swamped with students who need counseling, and there are often too few resources for that counseling, mostly due to budget constraints. The medications that are allowing today’s youth with mental issues to lead more ordinary lives are also allowing them to seek a college degree.

Teens Are Feeling More Anxious Than Ever

Teens Are Feeling More Anxious Than Ever

Is your teen what you would call a “worry wart?” Does she experience panic attacks? Does she avoid social situations? Does she seem anxious even when you can’t see anything to be worried about? If you can describe your teen with any of the above statements, it is possible that she suffers from an anxiety disorder. This is a class of mental illnesses that includes several types, such as generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and social anxiety, among others.

Signs That Your Child Is a Victim of Cyberbullying

Signs That Your Child Is a Victim of Cyberbullying

Bullying has always been a problem with kids, but something has changed. In modern times, there is a new component to these acts of aggression: the Internet. Especially with the advent of social media, teens have new avenues for targeting and bullying peers. It does not require much imagination to discern the harm bullying can cause: low self-esteem, depression, lack of friends, and, in some cases, suicide. Bullying In the Modern World Bullying refers to acts of aggression that are targeted at an individual. Bullying is more than just picking on someone.

How to Help a Suicidal Teen

How to Help a Suicidal Teen

Teen suicide is devastating. When a teen feels so desperate that he contemplates, attempts, or succeeds at taking his own life, the repercussions are far-reaching. No teen should ever have to get to that point, and no family should have to cope with the loss of a child to suicide. There are ways that you can help a teen who is suicidal. Whether it is your own child, a student, a friend of your child’s, or someone else, take the time to learn how to help. It could mean the difference between life and death. Teen suicide is more common than you might think. The statistics are grim, and the first step toward helping a suicidal teen is understanding that the threat is real and it is serious. Among Americans between the ages of 15 and 24, the third leading cause of death is suicide.

You Can Recover From Social Anxiety Disorder

You Can Recover From Social Anxiety Disorder

Hailey was 26 the first time she felt she was “truly breaking down.” She’d taken leave from her job as a medical records clerk due to an intense episode of clinical depression and anxiety, and although she’d been released by her psychiatrist to return to work, she felt unable to go back. Her symptoms seemed to be escalating rather than diminishing. For the first time, Hailey found herself afraid to answer the phone or even leave her apartment. Driving had even become difficult; she feared the scrutiny of other drivers and became terrified to the point of immobility whenever driving on a two lane highway. She despised social gatherings and felt uncomfortable even in one-on-one conversations with her peers at work. Being spoken to by a supervising doctor or nurse made her especially miserable. Hailey feared she would say something “wrong” and be scoffed at behind her back, or worse, fired for incompetence.

Multisystemic Therapy for Teen Substance Abuse Reduces Run-Ins With Law

Multisystemic Therapy for Teen Substance Abuse Reduces Run-Ins With Law

Multisystemic therapy (MST) is a form of therapy that relies on interaction with the family unit and the larger community to curb the antisocial behaviors that sometimes occur in teenagers. Unlike some other forms of therapy, it’s specifically designed to deal with teens who have highly entrenched behavioral problems that typically result in problems with the legal system. According to the results of an extensive study review published in 2013 in the journal Psychiatric Times, participation in a multisystemic therapy program can lead to significant reductions in adolescent use of alcohol, marijuana or other single substances, as well as combinations of these substances.

Impact of Alcoholic Parents on Teens with Substance Abuse Problems

Impact of Alcoholic Parents on Teens with Substance Abuse Problems

Despite what a lot of teens may say, parents do have a significant influence on their lives. Sometimes that influence is most apparent when a teen lives with an alcoholic parent. As children begin to grow and navigate the challenges of adolescence, parental substance abuse has a direct impact on their well-being, as well as their behavior. In some cases, the parent’s alcoholism influences a teen’s own substance abuse and subsequent need for treatment. No matter where teenagers live or who their parents are, they are wired to create an identity, form significant relationships outside the home, and, at times, act impulsively.  Adolescent behavior often also includes experimentation with alcohol, drugs, or other substances. Surveys have shown that approximately 70% of U.S. high school students have had at least one alcoholic drink, while 22% have had 5 or more drinks within the span of a couple of hours. That second statistic should cause any parent to be concerned.

Wake-Up Call for Parents: One in Four Teens Has Abused Prescription Meds

Wake-Up Call for Parents: One in Four Teens Has Abused Prescription Meds

New survey results released by The Partnership at Drugfree.org find  that one in four teens has misused or abused a prescription drug at least once  – a 33 percent increase over the last five years. The study is actually the 24th annual survey used by the organization to track and research drug use in this country. The survey involved 3,884 teens in grades 9 through 12 along with 817 parents. The margin of error for teen responses was 2.1 percent and the margin for parents was 3.4 percent.

School ‘Healthy Eating’ Programs Prove Dangerous for Some Children

School ‘Healthy Eating’ Programs Prove Dangerous for Some Children

The concern over obesity has led many schools to adopt curriculum designed to teach children how to make healthy food choices and incorporate exercise into their daily activities. For some children, the information may help them learn to make good decisions about food intake. However, a recent study by Canadian researchers shows that these healthy eating programs may be creating significant problems for some students. The researchers say that the programs may be creating for some children a sudden awareness of food restriction that was not present before.

Pot Smokers More Likely to Abuse Prescription Drugs

Pot Smokers More Likely to Abuse Prescription Drugs

The widespread misuse of prescription painkillers has prompted the medical community to look for ways to better understand and regulate them. The doctors, pharmacists and policymakers involved in seeking to promote responsible use of prescription painkillers intend to provide solutions that prevent misuse of the drugs, but without threatening the relief that they offer to millions of people who suffer from diseases associated with significant pain, such as many types of cancer.

The Top 10 Signs of Depression in Teenagers: A Guidebook for Parents

The Top 10 Signs of Depression in Teenagers: A Guidebook for Parents

At first glance, youth suicide statistics would not appear to be as alarming as one might suspect given the amount of publicity the problem receives. As of 2011, the suicide rate for individuals between the ages of 10 and 24 was at 7.8 per 100,000 people, which in raw numbers means that 4,000 to 5,000 American adolescents took their own lives during that year.

Why Are Schools So Often the Target of Horrific Violence? Dr. David Sack, CEO of Promises Treatment Centers, Gives Insight to MSN News

Why Are Schools So Often the Target of Horrific Violence? Dr. David Sack, CEO of Promises Treatment Centers, Gives Insight to MSN News

The actions of Santa Monica College library workers recalling a lesson from a recent workshop on how to respond during "active shooter" incidents are credited with saving untold lives June 7 when a heavily armed gunman entered the facility and began shooting. Just one week later, the nation marked the sixth-month anniversary of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School that claimed of the lives of 20 students and six faculty members. Only recently have educational institutions had to devise escape plans for "active shooter" incidents. Why are schools so often the target of such horrific violence? In an analysis of school shootings, the Secret Service and U.S. Department of Education report that 95 percent of the attackers were current students. The remaining 5 percent were former students. John Zawahri, the shooter in Santa Monica, had been a student at Santa Monica College. Adam Lanza, who shot up the campus in Newtown, Conn., had himself attended Sandy Hook Elementary. Dr. David Sack, CEO of Promise Treatment Centers, tells MSN News that school shooters had often been bullied, and that they tend to act out at schools because that's where most of their lives have unfolded. Lanza was bullied and beaten when...

Addiction Treatment to Gain Big Boost Under Obamacare

Addiction Treatment to Gain Big Boost Under Obamacare

Health care is a controversial and complex issue, especially now as political wrangling is hitting full tilt in states that are reluctant to accept Medicaid expansion on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Today, only one penny of every dollar that is spent on health care will go to assist a person facing debilitating addiction issues. For states that have accepted the healthcare overhaul offered by the Obama administration, which was signed into law in 2010, millions more addicts will become eligible for insurance coverage.

Teens, Younger Kids Can Get PTSD, Too

Teens, Younger Kids Can Get PTSD, Too

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a sometimes debilitating mental health condition that appears in the weeks following an overwhelmingly stressful life event. At one point, this disorder belonged to a larger group of conditions called anxiety disorders; it now belongs to a group of conditions called trauma- and stressor-related disorders. While most people probably associate the onset of PTSD with events that occur in adult life, teenagers and younger children actually develop the disorder with some regularity. When it appears in teens and younger kids, PTSD can manifest in ways that differ significantly from the form of the disorder that appears in adults. Potential Causes As a rule, both children and adults develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in the aftermath of events that have the potential to cause fatalities or produce serious bodily injuries. In children and teenagers,

Tanning Addiction a New Form of Substance Abuse

Tanning Addiction a New Form of Substance Abuse

Indoor tanning is a term that describes skin tanning achieved through use of equipment such as sun lamps, tanning booths, or tanning beds. Numerous studies have linked this practice to increased risks for developing several form of dangerous or deadly cancer. Despite growing public awareness of these risks, large numbers of people in the United States still continue to use indoor tanning facilities. According to the results of a study published in April 2010 in the American Medical Association’s Archives of Dermatology, significant numbers of people who engage in indoor tanning meet the same criteria used to identify addiction in people who drink alcohol or take drugs.

Wake-Up Call for Parents: One in Four Teens Has Abused Prescription Meds

Wake-Up Call for Parents: One in Four Teens Has Abused Prescription Meds

New survey results released by The Partnership at Drugfree.org find  that one in four teens has misused or abused a prescription drug at least once  – a 33 percent increase over the last five years. The study is actually the 24th annual survey used by the organization to track and research drug use in this country. The survey involved 3,884 teens in grades 9 through 12 along with 817 parents. The margin of error for teen responses was 2.1 percent and the margin for parents was 3.4 percent. The study suggests that many parents are blind to the immediacy of the issue of prescription drug abuse. This is not a problem that parents view as liable to occur in their home.

Don’t Believe the Rhymes: Trinidad James Idiotically Defends ‘Molly’ Reference

Don’t Believe the Rhymes: Trinidad James Idiotically Defends ‘Molly’ Reference

In an ideal world, rappers aren’t role models. The sad truth is that we are not living in an ideal world. In reality, teens look up to famous musicians, emulate their fashions, and dream of living their lifestyle. Trinidad James is a Trinidad-born rapper who found fame with his song “All Gold Everything” and is now the CEO of his own record label. After the Huffington Post published a thought-provoking article about drugs in the world of hip hop, James defended his own use in a recent interview—stating, among other things, that “people who die from drugs are just weak-minded.” Rap and Drugs  The Huffington Post article was written by deejay and producer A-Trak, who reveals his inner conflict regarding the relationship between rap and drugs. While he enjoys the music and what he sees as a newfound abstract musical expressionism that could be tied to drugs, he’s consciously aware that his involvement in songs with lyrics about drugs is a sort of silent endorsement. He references Lil’ Wayne’s recent health scare, Pimp C’s death and “raps du jour” that mention “Molly” or other drugs in a bid to stay up to date

Is Your Teen Obsessed With Religion?

Is Your Teen Obsessed With Religion?

Religion can be a very positive thing for a teenager. By practicing the family religion, or even an alternative religion, a teen can develop high self-esteem, focus on schoolwork, and develop a positive social life. Being devout is also associated with avoiding negative things like drugs, alcohol and crime. Most parents, in fact, would be pleased if their teen attended religious ceremonies regularly and prayed on a daily basis.

Depression in Kids Linked to Cardiac Risks in Teens

Depression in Kids Linked to Cardiac Risks in Teens

Depression is a serious mental health disorder frequently linked to adults in the popular imagination. However, mental health experts are well aware of the existence of depression in teenagers and younger children. According to the results of a study published in 2013 by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and the Washington University School of Medicine, teens with a history of depression have much higher risks for cardiac-related health problems in later life. These health risks remain in effect even if teenagers no longer have diagnosable depression symptoms.

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