Introduction
Rarely does a post-treatment adolescent get into a recovery process
and never use a mood-altering substance again. Early recovery is like
crossing a river on slippery stepping stones. Even when the course is
set, stones tip. Other times, maintaining the course is threatened by
the powerful current and environmental distractions.
Nancy L. Ferguson, a certified alcohol and drug counselor and school
social worker, wrote this curriculum after school personnel witnessed
students fresh out of treatment struggling with recovery only to relapse
and drop out of school.
In this time of managed care's fiats for abbreviated treatments,
students return to the school environment usually still toxic from the
drugs they were taking before treatment. They have not had an extended
education about chemical dependency with time for reflection on their
own relationship to chemicals. They have not had time to bond and
develop a trusting relationship with their treatment counselor.
Treatment rarely ends with a discharge staffing for a seamless
transition back to home and school. More likely, the student just
reappears at the school.
According to the Department of Education:
- Drugs erode the self-discipline and motivation necessary for
learning;
- Drug use is closely tied to truancy and dropping out of school;
- Drug use is associated with crime and misconduct that disrupt the
maintenance of an orderly and safe school conducive to learning.
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