Adolescent Counseling Services

A Conversation With Your Teens

in Behavioral Norms / Community Counseling / Cyberbullying / E-News / Facebook / Mental Health / Monitoring Media / Online Monitoring / Online Safety / Parent Tips / Parent-Teen Communication / Parenting / Setting Boundaries / Social Media Abuse / Tumblr / Twitter  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By:  Monica Ippolito, ACS Clinical Intern, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Community Counseling Programs If any parents of teenagers happen to be of Generation X, then you can reminisce with me about the cartoons we grew up watching. Cartoons like G.I. Joe, She-Ra, He-Man, The Care Bears, The Smurfs, and Inspector Gadget all had […]

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Resilience – How to Help Our Teens Stay Strong

in E-News / Mental Health / On-Campus Counseling / Parent Role Models / Parent Tips / Parent-Teen Communication / Parenting / Perfectionism / Teaching Mindfulness / Teen Motivation / Teen Self-Image  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: Charlotte Villemoes, ACS Site Supervisor, On-Campus Counseling Program I have the privilege and the pleasure of listening to teens every day. They tell me stories about their lives, stories that often move and inspire me. Many of them describe hardship that seems close to unbearable, yet the vast majority somehow perseveres and moves forward. […]

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LGBTQQ Youth and Health

in E-News / LGBTQ Issues / Outlet / Recent Trends / Risky Behaviour / Sexuality  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: Rodrigo Garcia-Reyes, Outlet Program Spanish-language and Education Coordinator  22 states, including California and the District of Columbia require public schools teach sex education. 35 states and the District of Columbia allow parents to opt-out on behalf of their children.  A 2011 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) survey indicates that more than […]

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Additional Support for Parents when Adolescents Lie about Drug Use

in Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment / Drugs & Alcohol / E-News / Parent Tips / Parent-Teen Communication / Parenting / Prevention / Recent Trends / Treatment  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: Mayra Vargas, MFTI, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program Parental instinct is key to supporting their teens with their drug use/abuse. Parents sometimes ignore their “gut instinct” that lets them know something is happening with their adolescent.  Often a parent will tentatively ask about these issues, and the teen will say ‘everything is fine’ — […]

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Adolescent Counseling Services Announces Service Area Expansion

in ACS News  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Programs to be offered in San Mateo County and North Santa Clara County locations PALO ALTO, Calif. — Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS), a community-based nonprofit agency dedicated to the healthy social and emotional welfare of local youth, announces its service area expansion to San Mateo County. ACS will now offer therapeutic services in Redwood City […]

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Anatomy Of Addiction: How Heroin And Opioids Hijack The Brain

in Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment / Drugs & Alcohol / E-News / Prescription Drugs / Recent Trends  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

By:  Jack Rodolico, NPR Health News   “I ended up sniffing a whole one, and I blacked out… it ruined me that time. But I loved it.” When Jack O’Connor was 19, he was so desperate to beat his addictions to alcohol and opioids that he took a really rash step. He joined the Marines. […]

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Substance Abuse in the LGBTQQ+ Community

in Drugs & Alcohol / E-News / Gender identity / LGBTQ Issues / Outlet  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: Dafne Luna, Outlet Program Coordinator The use of recreational drugs and alcohol in this community is incredibly widespread and, unfortunately, is sometimes encouraged as a cultural norm. For many queer and trans* youth, drinking is almost a rite of passage into Queer culture. There are very few places, meetups, and activities where large […]

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ACS Practices Mindfulness!

in Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment / Co-Occuring Disorders / Community Counseling / Drugs & Alcohol / E-News / Mental Health / Parent Tips / Prevention / Recovery / Treatment  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: JoAnn Kukulus, MFTI   |  ACS’ Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program & Community Counseling Program Recently I had the opportunity to become trained and certified to implement a group and individual curriculum called “Mindfulness-Based Substance Abuse Treatment for Adolescents,” which the ACS programs are beginning to utilize.  This relatively new evidence-based curriculum, founded by Sam Himelstein […]

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Adolescent Counseling Services hosting Substance Abuse Symposium

in ACS News / Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment / Community Counseling  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS), a community-based nonprofit agency delivering comprehensive mental health services to help individuals grow and thrive during the challenges of youth, is presenting a free community symposium on adolescent addiction.  Protecting Our Developing Youth: Adolescent Addiction, Prevention & Recovery will be hosted on Saturday, March 5, 2016 from […]

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Love and Parenting

in Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment / Community Counseling / E-News / Parent Role Models / Parent Tips / Parent-Teen Communication / Parenting / Society Norms  by Adolescent Counseling Services 0 comments

Written By: Alex Basche, ACS Clinical Intern, Community Counseling Program and Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program   Love: it can make your heart skip a beat, spawn butterflies in your stomach and has been called by some as the “ultimate drug”. We’ve seen it on TV, heard it lauded in songs and read about it […]

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