Teens do better in anti-drug counseling programs led by other teenagers than those led by adults, according to a new study from the University Of Southern California Keck School Of Medicine.

Researchers asked 550 high school students to take part in surveys before and after they completed drug counseling for tobacco, alcohol, marijuana or cocaine use. Those who took part in peer-led programs reduced their abuse by 15% compared to those in traditional programs.

Professor Thomas Valente said, "We found that social-network-tailored prevention curricula can be very successful in achieving long-term behavioral changes in teenagers."

Labels: counseling, influences, peers

As of 2005, approximately 1.8 million people annually were seeking treatment for substance and/or alcohol abuse. Any one of those people can attest to how difficult it is to recovery from an addiction. A substance abuse counselor can play a vital role in a person's recovery.

"The substance abuse counselor is there to help you get through the period of coming off the substance and getting better... Many people are reluctant to talk to a counselor because it makes them feel weak or that the counselor is there to make too much out of nothing."

On the contrary, substance abuse counselors are there to listen, and to help people discover the reasons behind their addictions – a necessary step on the road to recovery. Read more at SubstanceAbuseSupport.com.

Labels: counseling, therapy, treatment