It’s difficult enough raising adolescent children, and then you discover the reason for their recent behavior issues is due to alcohol abuse or drug abuse.  You cringe at the thought of admitting them to alcohol and drug treatment because, beyond the shock you feel, it seems like yet another burden to tackle.  But it is important, and you know it, and telemedicine may be the solution for your hesitation.

Adolescent alcohol abuse and drug abuse can tear the closest families apart.  It starts with failing grades, behavior problems, and new friends who give parents that “bad feeling”.  A gradual increase of difficult situations explodes when parents discover substance abuse among their youth, and exhaustion generally follows.  So many parents will just want to give up.  Adolescent alcohol and drug treatment seems beyond the breaking point.

Although it is logical to make an attempt at solving a problem, procrastination takes over for most parents of substance abusers due to stigma.  “What will the extended family/friends/neighbors think?”  When they get past that hindering feeling and call an alcohol and drug treatment center, they learn about the time and emotion involved and put it off again.  All the while, their teens are going further down a road toward alcoholism or drug addiction, crime, injury, and possibly death.  Time is of the essence.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles offers telemedicine as an answer to both the stigma and time issues.  Teens can attend counseling sessions via video conference from home, using a computer with a webcam.  Parents can attend family meetings in the same manner.  We even have the technology to conduct group sessions over a secured internet connection.  This cuts the time and cost of travel to our locations, and saves you the need to explain the daily family trips to others.

Our providers use the TherapyLiveVisit application, powered by MDLiveCare, which works in any web browser.  If you have a computer with internet access and a webcam, you can use Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Chrome, or any other browser to access the application.  LiveVisit operates behind several layers of encryption, so you can be certain that your consultations will be completely confidential.  

The term “telemedicine” encompasses all forms of health care including mental health treatment and addiction treatment.  In many cases of youth alcohol abuse and drug abuse, there are co-occurring mental health disorders that had gone previously undetected.  Tarzana Treatment Centers is recognized as a leader in providing mental health treatment to adolescents.  Our telemedicine staff includes addiction counselors and mental health professionals, as well as medical professionals.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides a full array of health care services including adult and youth alcohol and drug treatment.  We specialize in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, and have two primary medical care clinics in the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence, drug addiction, or co-occurring mental health disorders, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles has taken pride in our efforts to remain current with health technology advancements.  We have now partnered with MDLiveCare to provide telemedicine services.  This will enable us to offer alcohol and drug treatment, mental health treatment, and medical care via video conference technology, which will allow access to more individuals who need these services.

Please click the link below to read the press release:

MDLiveCare® Health Services, Inc. Announces Agreements in California, Florida and Illinois as It Continues Building National Provider Network and Licensing Relationships

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides adult and youth alcohol and drug treatment.  We specialize in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, and have two primary medical care clinics in the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence, drug addiction, or co-occurring mental health disorders, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Tolerance, as it relates to alcohol dependence and drug addiction, is often misunderstood by many in the general public.  In the manner that drug and alcohol tolerance functions, it can be a safety mechanism to the body and, at the same time, deadly.  This makes awareness of the subject critical for anyone who engages in alcohol abuse or drug abuse, as well as those in recovery.

It can easily be assumed that tolerance means that an individual can drink more alcohol without getting drunk, or handle drug use in a seemingly controlled manner.  With this assumption comes the belief that these “abilities” are an example of the natural differences that exist from one individual to another.  While this is partially true, the nature of alcohol and drug tolerance is much more complicated.

Alcohol tolerance is the example with which most people can relate.  Consider the amount of alcohol you need to drink before you feel the effects, or “buzzed”.  Let’s say this is 2 beers.  If you drink 2 beers every day, over time you will feel less of an effect.  If you want to feel the same effect, you must drink more alcohol.  The amount of alcohol needed for the same feeling will continue to increase as you add more alcohol.  

The same concept works with drugs.  Alcohol abuse or drug abuse can result from tolerance since individuals will chase that feeling by drinking or using more on each occasion.  If the cycle continues with regular daily alcohol or drug intake, the body can become physically dependent and alcoholism or drug addiction is the result.  

On this road to addiction that we just followed, the brain has protected the body from overdose, with tolerance, by adjusting to the higher levels of substance use.  This benefit of drug tolerance can become a dangerous consequence, though, for recovering individuals who relapse.  The addicted brain still needs a large amount of drugs for an effect, but the body returns to a lower tolerance of what is essentially a poison.

At the time of first use on a relapse, the brain will dictate the most recent amount of drugs used to get a desired effect.  If the formerly recovering addict is not careful, this amount can easily cause a drug overdose or even be fatal.  Many drug addicts are not aware of this fact, and will even ignore warnings from fellow drug users because they don’t realize the consequences they face.

While alcoholics are less likely to overdose on alcohol during first use on a relapse, they may experience what is known as a lack of tolerance.  At this point, a drunken feeling may result from only 1 drink.  Lack of tolerance can actually occur with anyone who drinks alcohol, but it is typically coupled with alcohol dependence.  Of course, that 1 drink will still not be enough to satisfy alcoholics and they can become a danger to themselves through inebriation and alcohol’s effect on the body.

This information is good to share with teens, friends in recovery, or anyone you may know who engages in alcohol abuse or drug abuse.  Too many see tolerance as a benefit both early in substance use and in addiction.  Tolerance is explained in effective alcohol and drug treatment as part of addiction education groups to prevent accidental overdoses among those who may relapse.  Bringing this awareness to the general public may save even more lives.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment and addiction education.  We specialize in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, and have two primary medical care clinics in the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence, drug addiction, or co-occurring mental health disorders, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Teen drug addiction does not only occur with drugs like heroin and methamphetamines.  Prescription opiate and benzodiazepine abuse can quickly lead to addiction, and we should not forget about marijuana and alcohol which are still drugs.  Parents need to be aware of these facts so they can easily spot the signs of impending drug addiction with their youth.

Don’t be fooled by the idea that if you don’t catch your adolescent using strong drugs, then it is not a big deal.  Granted, finding evidence of heroin or methamphetamine use can scare any parent into contacting the closest drug treatment center.  Too many parents, though, do not take the same drastic action with other drugs, and may simply resort to grounding or other minor punishments.

Alcohol and marijuana are the best examples.  Many parents still believe it is okay to allow teen alcohol use in the home, in hopes that they will not drink outside the home.  In most cases they will and put themselves at risk of injury and death.  Adolescents, in most cases, simply don’t drink responsibly like adults.  Getting a buzz is the purpose as opposed to having a social moment with friends.

The 21st Century has seen an equalizing with alcohol of the social acceptance of marijuana.  The drug has become normalized with such a high percentage of the population having smoked pot in younger days.  If marijuana use caused them no major problems, parents may allow their teens to use it or just wave it off as typical youth behavior.   What they don’t know is that marijuana is now much more potent and addictive, and can also lead to injury or death if they drive under the influence of pot.

Now prescription drugs like Hydrocodone (Vicodin), Oxycodone (Oxycontin), and benzodiazepines (Xanax and Valium) have become popular with adolescents.  Adolescent prescription drug abuse is largely driven by a low perception of risk.  Teens believe there is no danger that comes with the high, as long as they take the drugs in controlled situations.  But drug addiction can take hold quickly with these drugs, which can lead them to try heroin addiction since it is cheaper and more potent.

Drug addiction treatment usually begins with drug detox or alcohol detox.  Drug withdrawal symptoms include flu-like aches and intestinal problems among others, and alcohol withdrawal can be fatal in serious cases.  It is best to avoid the need for medical detoxification before teen drug treatment.  The way to do this is to treat all teen drug abuse equally, and seek treatment at the earliest signs of use.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment, as well as prevention education.  We specialize in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, and have two primary medical care clinics in the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence, drug addiction, or co-occurring mental health disorders, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

It’s no secret that a certain percentage of teens will recreationally use alcohol or drugs before they finish high school.  We would all like to wave a magic wand and put a stop to it, but that is just a dream.  We can only do our best to teach adolescents the damage that alcohol abuse and drug abuse will cause in their lives.

Sometimes it seems like a futile effort.  Some of our youth will engage in substance use no matter what they are taught, or even if they face legal and academic consequences.  Many of them begin using out of curiosity or peer pressure, and others do so in order to escape negative feelings.  Some are even undiagnosed with mental health disorders, and find comfort in self-medicating.

The consequences of teen alcohol and drug abuse are evident to anyone whose primary work is in service to adolescents.  At schools, we see promising students suddenly miss homework assignments or watch grades drop on tests.  Youth organizations and similar groups notice that some kids just stop attending meetings and functions.

Sadly, there is no magic wand that will put an end to adolescent substance abuse.  Prevention is an effort that must continue, though, because teens will otherwise not hear our message of consequences.  They will be left only with reasons to try alcohol and drugs, and none make them think first about future problems.  Although it may seem like a lost cause, at times, lives are saved every day.

In times of doubt, remember that when teens engage in alcohol abuse or drug abuse they increase the likelihood of future problems with alcohol dependence or drug addiction.  Each and every adolescent that hears this message gets the opportunity to live into adulthood alcohol and drug free.  At the very least, we can attempt to delay the start of substance use until after adolescence.

It is also important that we know when to refer teens to youth alcohol and drug treatment.  There is often a delay because of the mistaken parallel between adolescent substance abuse and adult substance abuse.  In actuality, teens need to at least speak with an addiction counselor at the first sign of abuse so the true nature of the problem can be understood in each case.

Adolescent alcohol and drug treatment helps teens to discover why they use alcohol or drugs.  This allows them to grow by dealing with life problems instead of escaping with substance use.  When mental health disorders are discovered, the treatment center should include in-house care for co-occurring mental health disorders.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment, as well as prevention education.  We specialize in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, and have two primary medical care clinics in the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence, drug addiction, or co-occurring mental health disorders, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

The dawn of a new year tends to bring a surge in adolescent alcohol and drug abuse.  The obvious reason is that most teens experience a major change in environment when they return to school after an extended period of free time.  This can cause problems with brain development and grades, so it is important to consider youth alcohol and drug treatment at the first sign of abuse.

We all know that drug and alcohol abuse are, in general, symptoms of other issues.  Education can often help teens to understand that substance abuse is not the solution to problems.  But when a pattern begins to develop alcohol and drug treatment should include more.  

For adolescents who need more than addiction counseling services, family services and psychological professionals should be available to ensure comprehensive treatment.  If teens do not receive the treatment they need when they seek it, they will surely return to substance abuse as an answer when issues resurface.

Many teens in alcohol and drug treatment also suffer medical conditions, including HIV.  So the presence of HIV services and primary medical care in treatment provide a continuum of care under one roof.  This provides ease-of-access that promotes stress reduction and improves teens’ chances of long term recovery.

For Native American teens, alcohol and methamphetamine abuse continues to be a major problem.  Providing access to traditional ceremonies is very helpful for their spiritual recovery.  The simple addition of medicine wheel and talking circles can enhance recovery.

Teens need special care available to them when they seek alcohol and drug treatment.  If they don’t get the treatment they need alcohol or drug abuse starts, they are likely to struggle with alcoholism or drug addiction in adulthood.  So treatment should come from a provider that can offer all services.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides mental health treatment, primary medical care, Native American services, and HIV services as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.   If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles is committed to providing integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  This means that when patients enter treatment in one of our facilities, they will have access to the many other healthcare services we offer.  And more access to services from one provider means better outcomes in alcohol and drug treatment.

A recent report by California State University, Long Beach, Department of Criminal Justice to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation highlighted that we are truly committed to success in treatment.  The study paid close attention to several details in substance abuse treatment, and noted specifically how we help patients with special needs.

In particular, Tarzana Treatment Centers understands the importance in making all levels of mental health treatment available to our patients with co-occurring disorders.  We were noted in the report as being “…the most capable program to address co-occurring disorders statewide.  The program is efficient, organized, and well-run despite the fact that they serve some of the most high-needs clients in the state.”

Our alcohol and drug treatment program is also recognized as providing the highest level of care in HIV Services, as mentioned in the report.  These services include education, specialized primary care, housing, and mental health services, among many others.  Patients can be referred to services as early as their first day in our medical detoxification unit.

We are continually enhancing and expanding programs so that patients can count on us for the services they need.  As drug use trends change, drug treatment modules must be altered and added.  It was stated twice in the report that we have an answer to the rise in methamphetamine addiction rates.
 
Cognitive deficits that result from methamphetamine addiction can last up to two years after use is stopped.  While the disease of addiction has many constants where treatment is concerned, meth users need to re-learn memory skills and may require visual cues.  We assess patients entering methamphetamine treatment for needs in these areas and treat accordingly.

Another example in this area that was not on the report is the recent changes in teen drug use trends.  Teen prescription drug abuse is rapidly growing.  At the same time, perceptions among adolescents that these drugs risk little harm are on the rise.  

Tarzana Treatment Centers takes steps to slow these trends through treatment, family groups, and education.  Our expertise in prescription drug detox has proven to be valuable as demand has increased for adolescent drug detox.  The ability to provide both medical detoxification and youth alcohol and drug treatment improves outcomes for long-term recovery.

If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction or alcohol dependence, you can count on Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles to provide all of the services you need.  Our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare goes far beyond what has been written in this article.  For more information, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

A few years ago parents were shocked to discover that teens reported they had easier access to marijuana than alcohol.  Sadly, the shocking news has compounded today.  Not only do teens report that marijuana is as easy to obtain as cigarettes, but alcohol is now considered harder to get than prescription drugs.

Knowing this, parents need to realize that there is nothing they alone can do about teen access to drugs.  The supply is there, so parents should focus on educating adolescents about the dangers involved with drug use.

Obviously, there is a market for all of these drugs or they would not be so readily available.  Studies have shown that teens have a general perception that marijuana and prescription drug use comes with little risk.  In order to discourage teens from using them, parents must correct that notion.

The best defense to youth drug abuse is for parents to educate themselves about overdose, drug-use causing injuries, and how adolescent drug and alcohol abuse affects brain development.  Planting these seeds of wisdom makes teens think before they engage in alcohol or drug use.

The University of Maryland, College Park, has posted data from the 2009 National Survey on American’s Attitudes on Substance Abuse that details drug availability to teens.  The text is below, with a link to the website for CESAR (Center for Substance Abuse Research) following.  Parents can also get more information from our blog’s adolescent drug abuse category.

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Teens are equally likely to say that cigarettes or marijuana are the easiest for them to buy, according to data from the 2009 National Survey on American’s Attitudes on Substance Abuse. Slightly more than one-fourth (26%) of teens said that cigarettes were the easiest for someone their age to buy and the same percentage cited marijuana. The third most prevalent response was prescription drugs (16%), followed by beer (14%). Ten percent of teens reported that they thought all four substances were equally easy to buy. When the parents of these teens were asked which substance they thought was easier for teens their child’s age to buy, more than one-third reported cigarettes (37%), 22% reported marijuana, 12% reported beer, and only 9% reported prescription drugs (data not shown).

-- www.cesar.umd.edu –

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles makes a daily effort to find treatment news articles that we can share with our readers in the youth alcohol and drug treatment community.  The external content was found among other articles of equal informational and educational quality.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles is participating in Recovery Month 2009, in part, with articles about recovery during the month of September.  Most individuals suffering from alcoholism and drug addiction begin their recovery with alcohol and drug treatment.  So it is our pleasure to help bring awareness to the general public about the benefits of recovery to individuals, their families, and everyone with whom they interact.

Adolescent alcohol and drug treatment does not end when a patient completes a program.  The entire family needs to continue recovery through support groups, and by working to make changes in the home.  Many parents will run into trust issues during this time, and find it difficult to keep drugs out of their households.

Recovery is a daily process.  Families join their teens in recovery by working on their own co-dependencies in support groups.  Any family affected by drug addiction would benefit with this course of action.  But the teen addiction recovery process brings another element in that parents feel responsible if drugs re-enter the home.

Advancements in technology have made it difficult to maintain a drug-free home.  It is very easy for a teen to purchase drugs over the internet at online pharmacies.  But that’s not all.  There is a growing list of sites that not only promote drug use as healthy, but also “educate” visitors about lesser known drugs and how to obtain them.  These sites actually promote the sharing of experiences with substances that can cause serious damage or death.

Until now, web monitoring software and services have targeted pornography.  WebSafe plans to change that trend.  This new website offers services and software that aim to prevent teens from using home computers to reach sites that sell drugs or discuss use.  The services reach far beyond these and include the ability for parents to video conference with each other and get expert advice from professionals.

The WebSafe website requires free registration to join.  Some information about the site’s purpose is below, followed by the link.  Families impacted by teen drug abuse can certainly benefit from the resources that are now available, making long-term recovery possible for their children.  

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Managing the problems of addiction is complex.  We have introduced the LIFEGUARD product as a first step in our creation of a broad community of consumers and professionals exploring the challenges of substance abuse.  And while we recognize that user control software is not for everyone, we hope that you will join with us and become a vocal member of a community of concerned individuals that want to help each other understand and manage this complicated and chronic disease.

It’s time to use the web for what it does best – connect people, information and institutions – which we think our collection of information services will allow you to do.  Our RESOURCES  service is a starting point and one of the nmost basic things we will be bringing to our growing community membership.

-- Source: https://www.websafeparent.com/websafe/ --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment that includes family groups and alumni support.  If you or your teen needs help with drug abuse, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

There are many detrimental effects that drug abuse and drug addiction can have on an adolescent.  Even prescription drugs cause negative side effects to adults when they are used properly.  So abuse and addiction of any kind of drug have serious negative effects.

It is important for the adolescent body to develop unimpeded in order to become a healthy adult body.  Drug abuse and addiction interferes with this process.  Depending on the substance being used, and the age of the user, substance use can cause the following:

• Alter normal brain development and/or cause lasting brain damage that will affect the young person’s moods, tolerance to stress and frustration, and intellectual capacity.
• Negatively impact the development of healthy self-esteem and healthy social relationships.
• Hinder the development of healthy and adaptive coping strategies.  Because drugs and alcohol inhibit one’s sense of time, using drugs and alcohol can provide temporary relief or a “quick fix” to pain, and lead the individual to avoid developing lasting solutions and problem solving strategies.
• Substance use can lower inhibitions and negatively impact a person’s judgment, which may lead to unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, aggression, and violence.  In other words, individuals may find themselves engaging in dangerous behaviors that put them at risk for engaging in activities that can negatively affect how they see themselves.
• Continued use of alcohol and other drugs can lead to addiction and dependence.  While not shown to be a linear logical progression of use in every user, many substance users do move on to harder, more dangerous drugs the more they become immersed in the drug culture.  Alcoholism is considered, however, to be a progressive illness that results in more detrimental physical and social deterioration over the course of time.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides adolescent alcohol and drug treatment as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare.  Alcohol and drug detox is also available in cases of alcohol dependence and drug addiction.  If you or a loved one needs help with adolescent alcohol abuse or drug abuse, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.