It is no surprise that drugs and alcohol are a constant danger in society in the 21st Century. As an intrinsic element of our culture, we use drugs to relieve pain, for recreation, and to feel at ease with ourselves. We sometimes forget that mild drugs like coffee and tea are so popular, not only because of the taste, but also because of the stimulant effects they give us. It is when the use of drugs are abused and illegal drugs are taken, that lives are destroyed leading to Addiction treatment and Alcohol treatment.
Clients receiving Addiction treatment younger than ever before
But what is perhaps more worrying is the fact that statistics clearly show that the average age of people admitting themselves to a drug and alcohol unit is continually decreasing. In many rehabs the average age is around 25 and the clients have started taking drugs many years before. Drugs and alcohol is so much part of youth culture it is almost inescapable. It has suddenly become accessible even to the youngest child. Drugs and alcohol are readily available, and peer pressure sends the message that it is almost expected.
Are young people likely to have special issues when in rehab?
The short answer to that question is unfortunately yes. The government in the UK does not put strong laws around children taking alcohol in this country just because of a silly nanny state stance. The main reason why children should not take alcohol and drugs at such an early age (and certainly not to excess) is the body is still maturing - it is not fully grown. Drugs will cause damage, physically, emotionally and spiritually to a body which is still growing.
When a child starts to abuse drugs and alcohol from a very young age it distorts their perception of reality. Because they are so young they have not had a chance to build up a strong enough experience of life, to allow them to cope with the way that drugs warp their world view. This makes comprehending and dealing with every day issues difficult. On top of this, if the child uses drugs and alcohol as a crutch (perhaps as "Dutch courage" or to block out conflicts they would rather not face) the child becomes an adult without having first learnt essential life skills. Also because children are not fully formed in mind or body, substance misuse more often than not stops emotional growth. Emotions remain childlike and regressed even into early adult life. The Pre-frontal cortex of the brain which deals with areas such as decision making could well be affected as it does not form fully until the age of 25.
The Challenge for Addiction treatment
There is sometimes a tradition in Rehab and alcohol treatment that you cannot cure the individual until you deal with the addiction itself. And that is probably true, but it is quite clear from the facts stated above that young people who have been taking illicit drugs form an early age need something extra to enable them to return to as normal a way of life as possible.
One of the major issues for the Addiction counsellor and support worker is not just to motivate and prevent the addict from taking drugs again but helping them to replace it with new life skills that will ensure they are able to cope outside of Rehab. Now Drug rehab centres that offer successful techniques also offer Life Skills training as part of their addiction treatment.
One to one counselling focusing on emotional issues allow the individual to work through the times when they are most vulnerable to taking drugs. Are there negative feelings where alcohol or drugs seem to be the knee jerk solution? Are there emotions which rise to the surface that they can't cope with - so alcohol is used to repress them? Anger management is also useful. Sometimes the young person has not learnt how to control their more aggressive emotions and this causes problems when alcohol is used to quell the storm.
On the other side of the coin is "Assertiveness training" which helps the young person with skills on how they can stand up for their own needs without having to revert to alcohol drugs or aggression. Perhaps the most important part of Addiction treatment for young people is to learn how substance misuse can affect the body emotionally physically and spiritually. This knowledge is often a key in motivating recovery behaviour but can only be successful if there are positive life skills to substitute the drugs with.
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