A concerned mom recently wrote into a Southern Utah advice column seeking help with her teenage daughter. At 16, her daughter's attitude and friends are beginning to change. While she doesn't want to judge either her daughter or her friends, she wants to make sure she's okay.

"Kids do change at this age and sometimes for the worse. In many cases, it's a phase, followed by another phase, and then another, and so on, until your child finds who they really are... One of the main purposes of adolescence is to form a personal identity that one can claim as their own."

Advice columnist Dr. Scott Jakubowski acknowledges the mom may have valid reasons for worrying. He suggests that she watch for signs - change in appetite, drop in grades, isolation, or defensiveness - that could indicate a problem with drugs. If the mom has reason to suspect her daughter is experimenting with drugs, Dr. Jakubowski urged her to get professional help as soon as possible. Source: The Spectrum

Labels: advice, awareness, drug_use

It what may be considered an unusual strategy, a school system in England has begun using a soap opera to teach teenagers about issues like gangs, drugs and pregnancy. The series, called "L8r", was developed by the Worcestershire Teenage Pregnancy Partnership.

"The DVD series, designed by young people in London, is backed up with chatrooms so teenagers in Worcestershire can debate the lives of the central characters... The series is designed to encourage youngsters to relate to the characters and see the impact decisions can have on their lives in the hope they will delay having sex."

The Partnership also offers free and confidential advice to both teens and parents. Read more at WorcesterNews.co.uk.

Labels: advice, consequences, teaching

Family doctors and pediatricians may want to screen teenagers for drug and alcohol abuse whenever teens go to their doctors and not just during routine check-ups, according to a new study from the Children's Hospital in Boston.

Dr. Knight and his colleagues found that 23% of 2,133 teens in his study screened positive when they were at the doctor because of illness or injury. Only 11% screened positive during routine check-ups.
"Screening should occur whenever there is an opportunity and not just during well-child visits," said Dr. John Knight, director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research.

Doctors argue that there is not enough time during a typical fifteen-minute doctor's visit to do such assessments. Dr. Knight counters by saying his six-question test takes only a few minutes.

This study appears in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

SunHawk Academy is a boarding school for troubled teens in Utah that is geared to helping teenagers who are experiencing drug and alcohol addiction. Visit SunHawkAcademy.com to learn more about their adolescent residential treatment program.

Labels: advice, assessment, drug_testing