The teenage years are exceptionally difficult for a wide variety of reasons. As a teenager, an individual is undergoing the transition from childhood to adulthood and is simultaneously experiencing a tremendous amount of chemical, biological, and social changes. Naturally, it is unsurprising that—as a group—teenagers are uniquely likely to suffer from various mental health and social issues.
If you are the parent of a teenager who is currently struggling, you may be finding yourself having difficulty knowing where to turn. Even if you have offered your teenager unconditional love and support, they still need additional help that you simply cannot provide on your own. As stigmas surrounding mental health continue to become deconstructed and as research regarding treatment options continue to advance, an increasing number of parents are considering residential facilities for troubled youth.
In this article, we will discuss the myriad of mental health benefits that only residential treatment centers are capable of providing. By making treatment your teenager’s highest priority, they can quickly be on the path to recovery and becoming the best version of themselves that they possibly can. There is no shame in seeking intensive treatment and, in some situations, this may certainly be your best option.
What is a residential treatment center?
As the name might imply, a residential treatment center (RTC) is a place where individuals are able to live while simultaneously receiving the mental health treatment that they need. Sometimes, traditional treatment methods such as individual counseling sessions once per week simply are not enough. These treatment centers are usually ideal for individuals who have sought treatment elsewhere but were ultimately unsuccessful.
There are many different reasons that you might want to consider an RTC for your teen. There, they will be able to have access to experienced and specialized treatment 24 hours per day. This means that any progress that has been made throughout the course of treatment is much more likely to be sustained. Furthermore, being removed from the primary sources of their issues—access to abusable substances, bullying in school, family issues, etc.—will make it much easier for your teen to focus and make recovery their top priority.
RTCs are able to offer the depth and breadth of treatment options that other places simply cannot provide. The best residential treatment centers for troubled youth will be the ones that are able to offer a wide array of different treatment options. Having access to customized treatment options—in addition to innovative industry practices such as dual diagnosis—makes it possible to obtain results that last.
What are some of the different conditions that residential treatment centers can address?
Because residential treatment centers are designed to address the most intense mental health issues, there are naturally many different conditions that these centers may specialize in.
- Substance abuse disorder (and the coexistence of substance abuse with other conditions)
- Severe instances of depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder
- Anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and other eating disorders
- Schizophrenia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and others
- Generally, any other mental health condition that prevents your teen from living an ordinary life
The length of stay and type(s) of treatment that will be administered will depend on the unique characteristics of your teenager’s condition. Most mental health conditions take place along a spectrum—rather than a binary—which is why having access to personalized care is so fundamentally important.
The Benefits of Group Therapy
Another benefit of residential treatment programs for youth is that they are highly conducive to effective group therapy sessions. Though group therapy may not be the ideal treatment modality for everyone, these sessions can create a supportive environment where lasting results can be achieved as a team.
Furthermore, many teenagers who are suffering from various mental health conditions may find themselves feeling incredibly alienated from their peers at work or school. Group therapy helps to draw on common experiences in order to find solutions that can be beneficial to everyone involved.
Increased Emphasis on Dual Diagnosis
Many individuals who are suffering from one mental health condition are very likely to be suffering from another. For example, individuals who are depressed are more likely to develop a substance abuse disorder and individuals who are experiencing substance abuse disorders are more likely to develop (or exacerbate) a state of chronic depression. Naturally, in order to treat these conditions, it will likely be necessary to focus on both at once.
Dual diagnosis (sometimes referred to as co-occurring treatment) is the practice of trying to treat the whole person and focus on every relevant condition. By adhering to the principles of dual diagnosis, residential treatment centers are able to distinguish themselves from ordinary rehabilitation centers by directly addressing the deeper issues at hand.
Innovation with Experiential Treatment
Another way that residential treatment centers have been able to creatively help the troubled youth of the world is through the recent introduction of experiential treatment. As the name might suggest, experiential treatment attempts to focus on healing through the ongoing introduction of positive experiences.
Positive experiences may include a number of different activities including art, music, hiking, creative writing, surfing, team-building activities, and many others. These experiences may be even more beneficial when introduced in a group-oriented environment. Not only do these experiences introduce a short-term distraction from whatever mental health condition is at hand, but they may also provide your teen with life-long coping mechanisms they can use in the future.
Finding the Residential Treatment Center that is Right for Your Teen
Naturally, due to the fact that a very large number of American teens suffer from one or more mental health condition, there are many different residential treatment centers available for you to choose from. In order to make sure that your teen is receiving the quality of care that they deserve, you should make an active effort to thoroughly research any of the treatment centers you are currently considering.
Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to help get pointed in the right direction:
- Is there a specialist on staff that is familiar with my teenager’s conditions?
- What are the values, mission, and objective of the residential treatment center?
- What are the different treatment modalities that are available there? Are they capable of providing customized treatment?
- Does this residential treatment center provide dual diagnosis (co-occurring) treatment?
- Does this seem like a place that is conducive to creating long-term results?
By taking just a little bit of time to compare the options you have available (you should also check to see if you’ll be at least partially covered by insurance provider), then you can be much more confident in your final decision as a parent.
Conclusion
If your teenager is currently struggling from one or multiple mental health conditions, you may need to begin the search for resources capable of creating lasting solutions. Fortunately, due to significant developments in the world of psychology, you are not without options. Residential treatment centers (RTC) around the world have yielded tremendously positive results for troubled youth and may be the source of hope that your teen currently needs.