We might know that our child is a bully because we experience the bullying personally or with other immediate members of the family. Some of us receive phone calls from schools, coaches, and organizations. Others may not realize that some behaviors are indicative of bullying and though a child may not be “bullying” in the…
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You could be right. You could be wrong. Knowing the best thing to do when it comes to parenting a teen in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction doesn’t have to be a challenge. Here are four suggested ways to provide positive encouragement. Don’t inhibit them from taking healthy risks: Risk-taking is a common characteristic…
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Vulnerability is hard for most people. Being emotionally raw and open is challenging for most people. Most people go through their lives at a hindered level of emotional intimacy with themselves and with others. Part of the reason is that people are under the impression emotional vulnerability is a form of weakness and weakness is…
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Recent research has found that a single exposure to cocaine creates the phenomenon of craving in the brain. Scientists used brain imaging studies to test the activity of the reward system in the brains of people who had either no exposure to cocaine or single exposure to cocaine. Just one experiment with the drug resulted…
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Passive aggression is not about one person taking out their emotions on another person. Most often, passive aggression is really the result of one person not letting out their emotions at all and consequently taking that out on another person. Parents of adolescents and teens in recovery should be wary of passive aggressive behavior as…
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Shame is more than humiliation. Humiliation can sting for a second, ache with the strain of a belly laugh, and even haunt for a day or two until it passes. Shame is defined as the painful feeling of humiliation or distress which is caused by the consciousness of doing something wrong. Often, we don’t know…
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Confronting a child on something they have said is always an interesting encounter as a parent. Parents sometimes resort to a trope like “Because I said so” to exact their authority when it comes to common and not so common knowledge. Children, on the other hand, are in a great unknown of their minds. Without…
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Asking for help is one of the most brave and courageous things our child can do when it comes to drug and alcohol addiction. We go on quite the roller coaster ride of experience and emotion while our child is in treatment. Coming upon our first holiday with our sober teen or adolescent in recovery,…
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As the holiday season approaches, we find ourselves in reflection of everything that has happened in our lives and the lives of our children this year. If our child made the decision to seek residential treatment for a drug and alcohol problem, we are deeply grateful. During that time, they were introduced to the 12-steps…
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Treatment and recovery are two of the greatest gifts we could give our children and that our children could give themselves. Throughout the month of December, we can count with every step of the 12-steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, the things we are grateful for because our child is in recovery. Sharing: Parents don’t like to…
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