Diary of an ACS Intern – Being a Therapist while Sheltering in Place

Written By: Casia Ravi, Clinical Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program attending to every verbal and, especially, nonverbal cue while sitting in someone’s presence is a significant part of the role of a therapist. Sheltering in place because of the coronavirus has offered those of us working in mental health the opportunity to quickly get […]

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Resolving Conflict in Your Family

Written By: Samantha Rivas, Clinical Intern at ACS, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program don’t let your neighbors fool you: we all have family conflict. Whether it’s between the parents, parent/child, sibling/sibling, or some other relative, family conflict exists for every unit, and it is stressful.  Conflict between family can come up for multiple reasons. Maybe […]

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How To Help A Sensitive Child During the Holidays

Written By: Catherine Wohlwend, ACS Site Manager at La Entrada Middle School, On-Campus Counseling Program The holidays can be stressful for anyone, but if you have a child that is highly sensitive, anxious, dealing with a loss or just simply struggling, the holiday season may not be the magical time that we see curated for […]

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Anxiety: How to Help your Teen Cope

Written By: Antonina Taranova, Trainee at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program what should parents know about anxiety? One in five adolescents may develop an anxiety disorder over the span of their adolescence. Such anxiety disorders can have a dramatic impact on the daily life of children and constitute a risk factor for more severe mental disorders […]

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Back to School: Managing Stress

Written By: Samantha Rivas, Clinical Intern at ACS, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program The alarm goes off. It’s time to pick out what to wear, get to school on time, see both new and familiar faces, get an excess amount of academic assignments, attend after-school programs, and juggle the obligations between family, friends, school, work, […]

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Understanding Family Conflict and Learning How to Find Peace

Written By: Tarra Symons, AMFT at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program What comes to mind for you when you hear the phrase “family conflict?” Do you think of words like friction, strife, hostility, frustration, falling-out, and shouting? These are all possibilities, but these approaches to managing disagreements within a family make finding resolutions very challenging. Developing […]

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Why Do Our Teens Use Cannabis (and What Can We Do About It)?

Written By: Ingrid Ammondson, PhD, Program Director, ACS’ Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program Any of you who have attended parent education seminars at your school or at Adolescent Counseling Services already know that adolescence is an exciting (and sometimes dangerous) time of physiological, psychological, and spiritual growth. So much so that we might imagine placing […]

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When it’s Time to Exhale: Thoughts and Reflections on Coming Out in the 21st Century

Written By:  Ryan Fouts, LCSW, Outlet Program Director, ACS’ Outlet Program In honor of National Coming Out Day, celebrated annually on October 11th since 1988, here are some thoughts, reflections, and reminders about coming out in the 21st Century. 1. Coming out is a gift. It’s easy to see coming out as a scary, hard thing (because […]

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Understanding and Managing Student Stress

Written By: Dara Gray Tynefield, AMFT at ACS, On-Campus Counseling Program Eustress vs. Distress For our students, the excitement of a new school year often gives way to a full routine of classwork, homework, extracurriculars, sports, clubs, arts, friends, family, jobs… and while the positive stress of a full and productive schedule is not inherently […]

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Parenting Teens: Some Secrets to Staying (Somewhat) Sane

Written By:  Charlotte Villemoes, LMFT, Site Supervisor, ACS On-Campus Counseling Program The cuteness is gone, and so is the desire to hold your hand on the way to school and cuddle up at bedtime. The kid who used to look to you for answers for anything from “Why does the earth spin?” to “Why do […]

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