Pubdate: Thu, 12 Oct 2006
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Copyright: 2006 Times Colonist
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Jim Gibson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hr.htm (Harm Reduction)

A ROAD TO RECOVERY

Finding The Right Peer Group Can Lift Teens Out Of Drug Life

They're young. They're invincible, or so they think. And there's a 
lot of experimenting -- often with drugs -- in their teenage lives as 
they grope toward maturity.

For some, this initial "trying" drugs jumps from an experiment to a 
lifestyle. It's a lifestyle that isn't easily shaken.

"They really struggle," says Susie Girling of the Youth Empowerment 
Society (YES), whose five detox beds are the first stop on the rough 
road to recovery for many capital region's teens. "They tell me 'I 
had to change all my friends.' That's really hard. Your peer group is 
important to kids."

It's doubly hard for street kids. Often peers are all they have, 
according to Tracey Johns of Victoria Boys and Girls Club, which has 
five separate support recovery beds throughout the region plus one detox bed.

"That's their social network," says Johns. They feel disloyal 
abandoning it for recovery.

Yet new friends are essential for recovery. The problem is finding 
them, according to James Drinkwater, an addictions counsellor in 
private practice. "They have to have people they can hang out with 
who aren't using."

Vancouver Island has no residential recovery programs for those under 
19. Waits at Vancouver's Peak House can stretch to four months for 
its eight-week program. Narcotics Anonymous is open to young people, 
but many aren't comfortable there because of the age difference.

Ideally, Drinkwater looks for several people -- friends or family -- 
available on short notice to help the young client through the 
inevitable trouble spots. Even just one would do. "One person who 
really believes that (the young person) can accomplish the things they want."

Yet those in recovery don't easily reconnect with those from their 
pre-drug days. One roadblock is their embarrassment for having a 
serious drug or alcohol problem, according to Lisa Roy, a youth and 
family counsellor within School District 61.

Also, those in recovery have changed a lot. In some ways, they are 
more mature than their earlier friends, making it that much harder to 
reconnect.

"They've had to address the issues which made them susceptible to try 
crystal meth or alcohol," she says. This means the sort of 
soul-searching most other teens put off until later in their lives.

Boredom is a huge problem for young people in recovery, says 
Drinkwater. "They need excitement. You can't go to the rave and be clean."

Johns concurs. "Can you imagine being 15 or 16 and you've been 
addicted to crack cocaine. How do you picture a Saturday night without it?

"It's hard to compete with a drug that makes them feel good for a short time."

But finding that alternative -- perhaps meditation or high-energy 
sports -- isn't easy or a ready fit for all, according to Drinkwater. 
Almost wistfully, he says, "I'm hoping there will be a movement of 
young people who will aspire to be happy and healthy without drugs."

Total abstinence isn't always easy, says Drinkwater. Instead teens 
opt for the harm-reduction mode -- limited use of a less problematic drug.

"Typically, a kid will say, 'Cocaine got me in trouble. I don't have 
a problem with pot,' " says Reg Fleming, a Vancouver Island Health 
Authority family therapist.

Johns recognizes abstinence is the ideal, but not always practical 
with young people. "It's not realistic to say to a kid who uses pot 
to cope with depression for me to say 'You can't use at all!' They're 
going to say 'OK, goodbye,'" says Johns. Her compromise is no drug 
use, possession or paraphernalia in the recovery home.

Fleming recognizes lapses happen, particularly in a society where 
invitations to do legal and illegal drugs abound and coping skills 
are rarely taught young people.

"It is difficult to make a lifestyle change like this and make it 
work. Mistakes happen," says Fleming, aware of the need to keep their 
hope alive.

"You can learn from mistakes," he assures clients who assume a slip 
kills any chance of recovery. Instead, he'll ask what they thought 
tripped them up. If, for example, the client says he missed the drug, 
then they'll discuss what it was they missed about it.

"My job is to get the client to think for themselves," he says.

That's something Girling sees happening when young users weigh the 
pros and cons of detox and recovery with counsellors. "They end up 
telling us they need to quit drugs because it's bad for (them)."

That's a promising start. At the same time, they need to explore the 
triggers that might entice them to use again. Counsellors will help 
them rehearse responses to trigger situations.

The real challenge comes when they go to parties with friends. They 
don't like to say no to drugs. They fear being rejected.

Most friends are supportive, says Fleming. Sometimes their support is 
for a questionable reason, according to one young client, who found 
his abstaining means "more (drugs) for the rest of them."

Addiction counsellors can't readily peg those who will succeed in 
recovery. A promising indicator is how the young person ends up in 
recovery. Generally, says Fleming, they are referred by family, the 
judicial system and schools.

"Next to mothers, kids are our biggest referral agents," says 
Girling. "It means they are taking some responsibility for their 
health and well-being."

Fleming is encouraged when a young person arrives with goals such as 
finishing Grade 12, getting off probation or getting parents off 
their back. The goals should be theirs, and not blindly those of 
parents or counsellors.

"You have to start working on the things the kid wants to start 
working on at first," one teen told Fleming. "If you do OK at that, 
maybe we'll trust you with the more serious stuff."

This might not be just drugs. Fleming cites anxiety and depression 
ahead of drugs for bringing young people through the door.

"We find people addicted to drugs, once they give up drugs, they've 
other issues," says Drinkwater. It's those issues that next need addressing.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman