Treating Teens with Co-Occurring Disorders – Unique Challenges and Considerations

Treating Teens with Co-Occurring Disorders – Unique Challenges and Considerations

Treating teens with co-occurring disorders is often more challenging than treating adults due to several factors. Adolescents are still developing cognitively and emotionally, making them more vulnerable to the effects of substances and mental health disorders. They also face unique pressures related to identity formation, peer influence, and family dynamics. Accordingly, teens may need more individual and family interventions. The treatment plan must take into account the stage of development of the adolescent and include family therapy in case of system issues. It is especially important to prevent such situations because timely intervention can change a young person’s destiny (Colizzi et al., 2020).

An influx of prevention-friendly measures like conducting school campaigns, community-focused programs, and educating families can go a long way. For example, methods such as teaching coping skills and resilience enable teens to deal with life challenges by avoiding substance use (Liu et al., 2023). Notably, a teen with anxiety may decide to use marijuana so that they can feel relaxed during activities that are socially related. If this teen is provided with intervention from the time with the help of therapy sessions and with the support of the family, they are unlikely to seek solace in substance use and thus can escape substance use disorders.

References

Colizzi, M., Lasalvia, A., & Ruggeri, M. (2020). Prevention and early intervention in youth mental health: Is it time for a multidisciplinary and trans-diagnostic model for care? International Journal of Mental Health Systems, 14(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13033-020-00356-9

Liu, X.-Q., Guo, Y.-X., & Wang, X. (2023). Delivering substance use prevention interventions for adolescents in educational settings: A scoping review. World Journal of Psychiatry, 13(7), 409–422. https://doi.org/10.5498/wjp.v13.i7.409

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DB 6.3

The teenage years are historically filled with turmoil both internally and externally. Some teens may develop a reliance on alcohol, marijuana, or prescription medications to cope with their life experiences. Anxiety and Mood Disorders can often accompany a substance dependence diagnosis if the teen develops an addiction while trying to cope with the pressures of this stage of life development. In thinking about the reading and videos for this unit, do you think it is more “difficult” to treat teens who have co-occurring disorders than adults with the same diagnosis? What are some issues which you believe to be “different” for teens versus adults with co-occurring disorders? How should human service providers approach the treatment of teens differently than adults? Where might prevention efforts have made a difference based on the article below? Please provide real-life examples to help support your claims.
Substance Use and Dependence Among Teens:

https://postu.idm.oclc.org/login?auth=prodbb&url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,url,cpid&custid=ns017336&db=aph&AN=35275966&authtype=cookie,cpid&custid=ns017336&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Dual Diagnosis in Adolescence
https://namicobb.org/dual-diagnosis-in-adolescence/
NOTE: You must make at least 1 substantial posting and 2 substantial replies to this thread. You must participate in the Unit discussion board (making postings/replies) at least 3 days per unit to qualify for full credit and also have at least 1 posting by Wednesday at midnight. You also must use APA style in your posting and replies so please use in-text references and provide a reference to give proper credit to the authors.

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