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 […]
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. […]
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 […]
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 […]
Written By: Deborah Sloss, LCSW | ACS Site Supervisor, On-Campus Counseling Program Most of us have experienced anxiety at some point in our lives. Some people even feel a moderate amount of anxiety spurs them to action. However, for others, anxiety can start to interfere with their day-to-day functioning. According to the National Institute of […]
By: Christine Miller, ACS Clinical Intern, Community Counseling Program and Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program Have you ever noticed that your friends, family, children, or even yourself, feel “down” when the days grow shorter and the weather becomes colder? Maybe you feel irritable, sad, experience a change in appetite or sleeping patterns, or have […]
Written By: Kelly Sumner, LMFT, ACS On-Campus Counseling Program Site Supervisor I need to start here by acknowledging that I am not a parent and thus do not understand first hand the pressure parents face to raise their children into well-adjusted, successful, happy, moralistic, responsible members of society in today’s world. It’s a […]
Written By: Ann M. Stillingfleet, ACS Clinical Intern, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Community Counseling Programs Image: Torben Hansen, Marijuana Joint We all too often hear teens tell us that anxiety and stress are their most persistent issues at home, in school, with peers and with their perception of themselves. We also hear the […]
By: Katie Luce, LMFT, ACS School Site Supervisor Image: Placid Children and adolescents may have fewer responsibilities than their parents, but childhood and the teen years can still be one of the most stressful periods in life. The demands of school, homework, extracurricular activities, and even daily family living can make children and adolescents feel overwhelmed […]
By: Mayra Vargas, ACS Intern, Community Counseling Program Communication between adolescents and parents is one of the most difficult things in the realm of family relationships. Adolescents in the teen stage begin to explore and experiment with their own identities, and that can sometimes cause a shift in the parent-adolescent relationship. Sometimes, parents don’t know how to communicate with […]