What’s the big deal about phones? Why do we make a point of removing a smartphone from the first part of a young man’s therapy? I’ve already talked about different types of addiction, and why social media can be counterproductive in addiction therapy. But not all of our clients have addiction issues. Struggling young men […]
Where does addiction fit in with social media? If you type “define: addiction” into Google, the word is defined as: “the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity.” It is an excellent, concise definition. Too often we only equate addiction with the “substance” concept, disregarding the other two altogether, […]
Shall we demonize social media, or rely upon it? What is its relationship with therapy? Everyone’s got something to say about technology. It’s brilliant; it’s terrible. It’s the path to the future; it’s the path to doom. I don’t buy into either extreme. There are many, many technological advances – including social media! – that […]
How is this generation of adolescents different? The mere mention of the word “millennial” carries such incredibly negative imagery: struggling young adults, crippled by laziness and entitlement, fighting stagnant battles in virtual reality in their parents’ basements with little motivation for the battles that really matter, in the outside world. It’s particularly debilitating imagery for […]
There’s a fine line between “normal” and “mentally ill.” An important thing to consider about “Mental Illness” is that there is a fine line between the mentally ill and the being “normal”. We have all had rough times in our lives; there have been times when we were depressed, manic, irritable, or tangential. Remember those […]
What exactly is mental illness, anyway? I’ve always been fascinated with the concept of how we define mental illness. If we are looking for the textbook definition then it would be “…medical conditions that disrupt a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning.” –NAMI.org I prefer to use the more […]
One of the things that can take some time to understand is that you have control of your attitude. Even after being understood, achieving this control is incredibly difficult. The majority of us go through life allowing our emotions to be held hostage by life events and circumstances. This doesn’t have to be the case. […]
Reaching the peak of Mt. Katahdin is a memorable moment for anyone. It is another self-exploratory and defining trip for our students, and is an especially transforming experience for struggling young men. While our program does not allow for such a long hike as the entirety of the Appalachian Trail, we do occasionally hike the […]
The Allagash Wilderness Waterway, a place that many have sought for its pristine wilderness, solitude, and wildlife, is a great place to get back to the elements for a week or more. For all of these reasons along with accompanying therapeutic advantages, we have chosen the Allagash Wilderness Waterway as one of our culminating trips […]
Our society has done a disservice to its students, especially struggling young men, by largely separating community connection from academics. In fact, the most important experience any adolescent – or, for that matter, anyone who is an ongoing student of life skills (all of us!) can only truly learn what is important when it is […]