Your teenage son has been arrested for drug possession. Again. You have always prided yourself on having a good family, an open relationship with your children, and sympathetic view of teenage rebellion. Your son was a “good kid” who made good grades and had an outgoing personality. Then you noticed that the grades began to slip and he communicated with the family less and less. His sunny disposition was a thing of the past. He became increasingly distant and secretive.

This is more than a little rebellion. You have tried hoping the problem would go away, family therapy, and tough love, Not only were you unable to make the problem go away it escalated. He violated parole, and has now been ordered to rehab. Where do you begin?

There are rehabilitation centers that specialize in adolescents and their families. In court ordered rehabilitation, the biggest obstacle to treatment is removed – the teen cannot deny he or she has a problem. Rehabilitation has the traditional components of detox, individual and group therapy and a twelve-step program. Adolescent rehabs also include education. This is important because these teens have often dropped out of school or are so far behind academically that they may never go back to school.

In-patient rehabilitation can last for weeks or months. The family is usually not allowed contact during the initial detoxification and very early phases of the program. Telephone contact will be allowed as the teen starts to gain control of his or her life. Because addiction affects the whole family, most centers include family therapy in the program.

The family will be an important component of aftercare. After completion of the in-patient program, continuing meetings and therapy are essential to helping make the rehabilitation permanent. This is important because returning to old friends and places often results in relapse.

Rehabilitation is not easy, but it gives a family hope of having their teen find a way back to them.