Has your teen been acting differently?
As teenagers go through late childhood into early adulthood, they go through plenty of changes. They’re becoming their future selves, so you can anticipate that they’ll have confusing stages.
Sometimes, though, confusing stages can be signs that something is amiss. Are you worried that you might need to contact a teen drug addiction center?
Committing your child to a drug rehab center for teens is a big decision, and you can’t take it lightly. We’re here to talk about the signs that might be necessary.
Keep reading for 8 signs that rehab for young adults may be in your teen’s future.
1. Weight and Eating Changes
This, like many of the signs that we’re going to mention, is also a common effect of growing up. It’s normal for children and teenagers to go through weight fluctuations and diet changes as they make their way to adulthood. With this in mind, note this change if it comes alongside several other signs on the list.
Certain drugs may make your child lose weight, like stimulants. If your teen is using marijuana, they may start eating more than they were before. Even if it’s marijuana, regardless of the drug, teen addiction is serious.
Before jumping to conclusions and calling teen drug rehab for young adults, talk to your teen about their diet (though weight is a sensitive issue, so tread lightly).
2. Significant Mood Disturbances
Any parent knows that mood disturbances are just a part of being a teenager. Still, if you notice significant mood changes beyond the typical woes of puberty, it may be a sign that your teenager is abusing drugs.
Young adult drug rehab centers have therapists on staff who understand the difference between typical teen moodiness and mood swings alongside addiction and withdrawal.
If you notice mood problems, talk to your teen and consider contacting the best rehab center for teens around.
3. Withdrawing from Friends
Most teens are social by nature. Has your otherwise extroverted teenager started moving away from their friends and social gatherings?
Again, this isn’t always going to be a red flag. Teenagers get in fights, grow apart, and find new social groups as they get older and gain new interests. That said, detaching from everyone all at once is unusual.
Your teen may have fallen in with “a bad crowd” that facilitated their teen drug addiction. Talk to your teen about why they’re no longer hanging out with certain close friends. Many will be happy to talk about whatever drama they have going on, but drugs might be the answer if there’s no clear reason.
4. Withdrawing from Hobbies
It’s also important to take notice if your child is withdrawing from their favorite hobbies and activities. Hobbies are important to teenagers, so if they drop something out of the blue, it’s a cause for concern.
Sometimes teens drop hobbies due to changes in interest. Other times, they may be dealing with stress from school or other mental health struggles.
Sometimes, though, they stop partaking in their favorite hobbies because they’re too caught up in their drug or alcohol use. They lose sight of their favorite sports, art activities, clubs, and anything else that they used to enjoy.
This is one of the top signs of teen drug addiction.
5. Poor School or Work Performance
Has your child always had good grades? What about average grades?
Again, it’s normal for teens to falter while they’re in school from time to time. As they get weighed down by other responsibilities, friend struggles, or the path of “finding themselves,” school sometimes falls by the wayside.
If, however, this is a sudden change, it might be a sign of teen drug addiction. Your child may not have the energy or drive to focus on school if they’re addicted to a drug.
This is also true if you notice that your teen isn’t doing well at work. Again, this could be the result of stress, but don’t ignore the potential of drugs.
6. Avoiding Family Time
All teens avoid their families for a while, so it isn’t a sure sign that you should contact a teen drug rehab for young adults right away. That said, if you’ve noticed a pattern of this behavior, it’s worth looking into.
Parents often start considering rehab for teens when they go long periods without seeing or talking to their children. Your teen may spend a lot of time out of the house or in their room.
Before contacting your local rehab center for teens, talk to your teenager to see what they have to say.
7. Lying or Secretive Behavior
Almost all teenagers go through a lying phase, especially if they live in strict households. Have you detected a pattern of unusual lying or secretive behavior?
Don’t confuse this with a normal unwillingness to share details. Teens start to desire more independence around this age, so some secretive behavior is normal. If you never know where your teen is, or you’ve caught them in lies (or worse, stealing), you may want to start looking into teenage drug rehabilitation.
8. Contact from Friends or Teachers
If your teen has good friends who they’ve left behind, those friends might be worried about them. While it’s considered bad etiquette to “narc” on friends, good friends may alert parents if they think something is wrong.
This is also true of teachers. If a teacher notices unusual behavior, they may reach out to you to talk about it.
They may not suggest a drug rehab center for young adults, but they will tell you what they’ve found and potentially offer resources if they have them.
Never assume that people are lying when they voice their concerns to you. It’s easy to think, “Not my child!” but this can happen to anyone.
Do You Need a Teen Drug Addiction Center?
Realizing that your teen may be addicted to drugs is stressful. As a parent, you want to help. The best way to do that is to find mental health assistance through a teen drug addiction center.
Your child can overcome their addiction and live a happy and healthy life.
Are you looking for a teen drug abuse and addiction treatment center for your teenager in Atlanta, GA? At Eagle Overlook Recovery, our experienced professionals want to guide your teenager toward healing.
Contact us for a free and confidential evaluation today.