Autonomy in Adolescents

Written By: Kenzie Bohnsack, Clinical Intern at ACS, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Program A desire forautonomy is experienced at two critical stages in life, toddlerhood and adolescence. Autonomy can be defined as feeling, behaving, and thinking independently, a sense of self-governance or freedom to make choices. During adolescence, youth begin to separate from their parents […]

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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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Trust: A Two-Way Street

Written By: Laura Cole, ACS Clinical Intern, Community Counseling and Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Programs In relationships trust is an essential component.  But, what is this sometimes seemingly “intangible” thing we call trust among parents and teens?  How is it built and maintained on this two-way street?  How does one repair when a breach occurs? […]

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Revisiting the “Tiger Mother” Phenomenon

Written By:  German Cheung, Psy D.  |  ACS Site Supervisor, Terman Middle School    “Tiger Mother,” a term that was hugely popularized by Amy Chua’s article in the Wall Street Journal in 2011, titled, “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior,” describes how parents hold suffocatingly high expectations for their child that often lead to conflicts in […]

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