resources

Addiction is a life-threatening disease. As with many near-death experiences, recovery brings forth gifts from the soul. Treatment and intervention do work.

Today’s teens are at risk. Substance use and abuse has been with us for thousands of years, but powerful drugs have never been so available to our youth.

Parents have long worried whether their kids at college are drinking too much or getting stoned. But alcohol and marijuana aren't the only substances they should be concerned about: In recent years, a growing number of young people have begun abusing prescription opiates.

As more teens and young adults abuse dangerous substances—and get cagier about hiding the evidence—more parents are willing to consider testing their child for drugs. Under certain circumstances, we solidly support this decision.

The costs of early heavy drinking, experts say, appear to extend far beyond the time that drinking takes away from doing homework, dating, acquiring social skills, and the related tasks of growing up.

Addiction therapist Larry Fritzlan insists that parents draw the line and set consequences for their out-of-control teens.

Parents need to be the pack leaders—it makes kids CRAZY if no one is in charge.

Helpful information for parents

A Developmental Model Overview

Worksheet explaining what anxiety is, its potential manifestations, and ways in which one can manage it.

Four slides depicting different family system recovery patterns

A modified version of a chapter in the book Family Therapy: An Overview, by Goldenberg and Goldenberg (1990)

Helpful information for families in recovery

The addict or alcoholic, someone who is dependent on chemicals, typically lives in an “enabling system.” Addicts are surrounded by individuals, relationships, behaviors, beliefs, structures, traditions and values that support the ongoing use of substances.

Based on an Al-Anon publication.

A response by Dr. Kevin McCauley, M.D. to the article posted on Slate.com, “Medical Misnomer: Addiction isn't a brain disease, Congress.”

Music video: a story of addiction and recovery

A daughter tries to redeem a brutal, embarrassing death.

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States. It is a dry, shredded green and brown mix of flowers, stems, seeds, and leaves derived from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa.

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States. It is a dry, shredded green and brown mix of flowers, stems, seeds, and leaves derived from the hemp plant  Cannabis sativa.

Alcoholism and drug addiction are diseases that usually start in the teen years. They are life-sabotaging and potentially fatal brain diseases. Scientists have known this for many years. Addiction to pot, Cannabis Dependence, is real.

Gaming is harmful and destructive when a gamer chooses playing games at the cost of health, or interpersonal, educational and age-appropriate developmental activities such as sports, dating or having a job.

For most of human history, there was little chance of overdosing on information, because any one day in the Olduvai Gorge was a lot like any other. Today, though, we can find in the course of a few hours online more information than our ancient ancestors could in their whole lives.