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In this issue:
The Power of Fatherhood
Can Boot Camp Help My Teen?
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It's not too late to sign your child up for a summer camp or wilderness program!
Since 1981, SUWS has been giving children and their families hope for a positive and productive future.
Phoenix Outdoor is a licensed wilderness-based substance abuse and chemical dependency treatment program for teenagers ages 13-17.
Adirondack Leadership Expeditions is a character development wilderness program that promotes personal growth through focused experiences. The forested, mountain setting removes urban distractions to allow students room to gain insight into their core values and accept responsibility for their choices.
Talisman Camps cater to children, teens, and young adults with issues such as attention deficit disorder and learning disabilities, Asperger's Syndrome, and high-functioning autism.
Turn-About Ranch is a place where old-time values such as hard work, honesty, respect, teamwork, and accountability are the standard. Teens thrive in the unique environment of this spirited working cow-and-horse ranch. The objective of Turn-About Ranch is to provide a hard-hitting, high-impact therapeutic program that will remold and turn around the lives of rebellious teens.
Call (866) 845-1391 to learn more about Aspen's programs for children, teens, and young adults.
"One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.”
George Herbert (17th Century English poet and clergyman)
Every Father's Day, after the handmade cards have been carefully put away for safekeeping (and the neckties perhaps a bit more unceremoniously stashed), many dads ask themselves the questions that motivate many of their actions – and occasionally plague their sleepless nights, "Am I doing this right? And am I doing enough?"
It's no secret that parenting a child is one of life's most challenging endeavors. And in the four centuries since George Herbert praised the power of paternal influence, more than a few cultural observers have called into question the value (and, in some cases, the very necessity) of a father's efforts on behalf of his children.
But those critics are arguing in the face of considerable scientific and sociological research, the bulk of which points toward a common conclusion: Fathers matter – and good fathers offer a world of benefits to their sons and daughters.
The Many Benefits of Effective Fatherhood
The National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) doesn't leave much room for interpretation when weighing in on the many benefits of effective fatherhood:
Research literature supports the finding that a loving and nurturing father improves outcomes for children, families and communities.
Children with involved, loving fathers are significantly more likely to do well in school, have healthy self-esteem, exhibit empathy and pro-social behavior, and avoid high-risk behaviors including drug use, truancy, and criminal activity.
Learn more about how fathers enrich their children's lives >>
You knew this day would come. Tensions have been building at home and you’ve reached your breaking point. You want – or rather, need – change and you need it now. Research says boot camps aren’t “ideal” treatment programs for troubled teens, but you’re way past ideal.
But for the sake of yourself, your family, and your teen, take a moment to consider what’s really happening in your home. In most cases, behaviors like substance abuse, breaking rules, disrespecting authority, and failing at school are masking deeper emotional issues that need to be addressed before peace can return to your household.
Depression/Anxiety – Sometimes adolescents act out with drugs or alcohol, skipping school, running away, defiance, and other troubling behaviors because of an undiagnosed and untreated underlying mental illness. Teens who are depressed, anxious, or who have thoughts of suicide are struggling with serious mental illness.
A short-term, highly confrontational teen boot camp that focuses on punishment and discipline is not the best place for these struggling teens. There is no scientific evidence to support boot camp-style programs; in fact, evidence suggests boot camps can actually harm sensitive, depressed teens.
Adolescents with psychiatric problems usually require longer, more intensive, and more individualized treatment. A wilderness program or private boarding school that offers intensive therapy and mental health assessments, combined with medication, family counseling, and esteem-building activities will improve the teen’s functioning and family relationships without humiliating or demeaning the teen. The best teen programs create individualized treatment plans and meet regularly with the teen and her family to set goals, assess the teen’s progress, and refine the treatment plan.
Five Tips for Making Summer Vacation Less Stressful for Parents and Teens
If ever an event is guaranteed to evoke divergent emotions, it is the start of summer vacation for high school students. As the calendar flips from May to June, students begin to celebrate their impending freedom and parents brace themselves for stresses and struggles that give a whole new meaning to the phrase "long hot summer."
But it doesn't have to be this way. Regardless of what previous summer vacations have taught you about the pressures that await your family, 12 weeks without school doesn't have to transform your living room into a battlefield.
No one is promising an entirely stress-free experience (I mean, we are talking about raising a teen here), but the following tips can help make summer less painful and perhaps even a pleasant experience for the whole family.
Summer Vacation Tip #1: Set a Schedule
There's a good chance that a significant portion of your teen's summer dreams involve, well, dreaming. From post-noon wake-ups to midday naps, extended snooze sessions can be among summer's most enticing opportunities for sleep-deprived, school-stressed teenagers.
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