Is My Teenager Too Young to Hit Rock Bottom?
One of the heartaches you may have to endure is seeing your teenager struggle with the lengths they will go to with their drug and alcohol abuse. You may feel helpless to see them in the lowest moments of their life and wonder when will will they finally hit their bottom. The fear of the unknown weighs heavily on you because you know that someone who battles an addiction either gets sober, or they end up in jail, an institution, or in the grave. Your teen is still young, so these are terrifying ramifications for them to have to face at such an early age that is nearly impossible for you to wrap your brain around.
The truth is hitting bottom must first happen before someone thinks to get sober. A common denominator for most people who end their substance abuse is that they must hit a breaking point getting them low enough to want to stop using or drinking. They become sick and tired of being sick and tired, so they put some effort into changing their path of addiction to one of making better decisions. Some people just wake up one day and know this is the day they can no longer abuse drugs and alcohol and get the help they need. For others, they must encounter some terrible truths such as jails, institutions, or near-death experiences to finally get beaten into a state of reasonableness.
No one is too young, or too old for that matter, to hit rock bottom. If your teen has a substance abuse disorder, they are putting themselves in harm's way to have to face same consequences that adults have to face. Although these circumstances are deplorable, drugs and alcohol affect people in the same way when they are under the influence. People who struggle with substance abuse can either lose their inhibitions or cannot fathom having to face withdrawal which can lead them to make awful choices with horrifying results. Teens are not exempt from any part of the vicious cycle of addiction, unfortunately.
With their naivety, teenagers may think the things that people do to hit rock bottom could never happen to them, but they can. Teenagers are just as susceptible as anyone else to display reckless behavior that can take them down through the abuse of drugs and alcohol.
Stonewater Adolescent Recovery Center has a program that can help the whole family to begin to heal. We offer essential recovery support skills to show the teen and their family how to implement a strong network that can reinforce healthy living.
Call us today to learn how you can help your teen: 662-598-4214