When a teen is recovering from a substance abuse disorder, they must learn how to rebuild relationships that may have suffered while they were using drugs and alcohol. This can be difficult because, many times, trust is lost, leading to dysfunctional family and friend interactions. One way to rebuild these broken relationships is to help your teen set boundaries and communicate effectively. We will explore how this can be done and how a teen treatment center, such as Ember Recovery, can help.
What is a Boundary? Learning To Define What it Is with a Teen Treatment Center
Boundaries are physical and emotional limits people set to protect themselves and maintain their well-being. When teens set healthy boundaries, it helps them define who they are and have safe relationships. This lets other people know how your teen wants to be treated. It also helps to create a healthy space if your teen feels crowded or overwhelmed in a relationship [1].
As teens learn to set boundaries, they become more in touch with their feelings, which allows them to communicate more effectively. Opening the lines of communication can help teens stay on the path to recovery when they know there is someone they can talk to.
The Importance of Setting Boundaries During Addiction Recovery at a Teen Treatment Center
Teens need to set boundaries because it helps them to develop healthy friendships and relationships. Setting boundaries also keeps teens safe and helps to protect their mental health. Being in an unhealthy relationship, whether platonic or romantic, can damage a teen’s mental health, leading to depression, anxiety, and other issues.
Learning to set boundaries is crucial during addiction recovery because it prevents others from invading your teen’s personal space and teaches others to treat them with respect. As your teen sets boundaries and begins to stick up for themselves, they will have a better sense of self and realize their goals, which can help during the healing process. They will also gain the self-confidence needed to persevere.
How to Set Healthy Boundaries During and After Teen Treatment Center
Setting healthy boundaries is not easy for adults, and certainly not for teenagers. Teenagers may have trouble expressing and dealing with their feelings, making it difficult to set boundaries. Here are some tips to get your teen going in the right direction:
Define What’s Important
To set boundaries, your teen needs to know what’s important to them. What do they believe in? What values do they hold close? Answering these questions can help them to learn how to set boundaries. When something goes against their beliefs, it’s time to step back and put a boundary so the other person knows what they’re doing is not alright.
Teach Your Teen to Trust Their Instincts
Allowing your teen to always trust their intuition is essential. If something feels wrong, then it probably is. Help your teen stay true to who they are without fear of being dramatic when something doesn’t feel right to them.
Learn to Say “No”
Many teens may feel guilty by saying no to a request. Learning to say no without feeling guilty is critical during and after recovery. As your teen figures out how to reject someone’s request without feeling guilty, they will begin to see self-respect. Others won’t be upset. Instead, they’ll start to understand the boundary being set is essential. This will allow them to feel more comfortable setting boundaries as time passes.
Be Assertive
Help your teen to use “I” statements to describe their feelings. This provides ownership for their feelings as they learn to set boundaries. It also shows confidence in others, which will help them to respect the boundaries set.
Set Digital Boundaries
With the extensive use of technology, teaching teens the importance of setting digital boundaries is essential. Let them know that it’s not okay for people to violate their values online through sexting, bullying, or other means.
As a parent or guardian, you can also help to teach your teen to set boundaries by doing the same. Be sure they see you sticking up for yourself so that others are not taking advantage of or mistreating you. As they see that you don’t tolerate that behavior, they will learn that they shouldn’t either.
Examples of Healthy Boundaries
As your teen explores how to set healthy boundaries, here are some examples to get them started:
- Treat yourself and others with respect
- Be able to say no without feeling guilty
- Say yes because you want to, not because you feel obligated to
- State your feelings in a straightforward way
Doing these things can help spark healthy conversations and relationships during recovery.
Examples of Unhealthy Boundaries
Just as it’s essential to recognize healthy boundaries, it is equally as important to recognize an unhealthy boundary. These actions can lead to toxic relationships:
- Allowing yourself to be put down or mistreated by others
- Letting others tell you what to believe
- Impulsive behaviors
- Forcing your beliefs on others
By seeing the difference between healthy and unhealthy boundaries, your teen can begin to set boundaries to aid in their recovery process. Remember that learning to set boundaries is a marathon, not a sprint. Be sure your teen understands that this is a learning process that will get easier with time.
Are You Looking for a Teen Treatment Center? Let Ember Recovery Help
As a teen treatment center in Cambridge, IA, Ember Recovery provides a variety of programs and treatments to help teens overcome their substance abuse disorder. Our programs help to treat the addiction as well as mental health issues that may be present.
Our programs not only focus on treatment but also aftercare so that teens can remain sober and learn to deal with triggers and temptations in the real world. Our aftercare program can help teens set boundaries that will help their recovery and prevent relapse.
To learn more about how Ember Recovery helps teens battling substance abuse, call us today or reach out online. We are always here to help.
Sources:
[1] https://www.verywellfamily.com/boundaries-what-every-teen-needs-to-know-5119428
Andrea Dickerson is a Licensed Therapist and Certified Substance Use Counselor who has worked in behavioral health since 1997. Currently, Andrea is the Director of Behavioral Health, overseeing the Ember residential treatment programs and YSS outpatient counseling clinics throughout Central and North Central Iowa. She became a Motivational Interviewing (MI) trainer in 2006 and provides MI trainings throughout Iowa.
Andrea specializes in working with adolescents and their families and enjoys seeing the family relationships grow through therapy. Andrea is also a CARF International Surveyor, going around North America ensuring behavioral health organizations are meeting required standards.
In her free time, Andrea enjoys cheering on the Iowa Hawkeyes and Chicago Cubs, as well as being an active member of Soroptimist International of the Americas (SIA), a global organization that provides women and girls with access to the education and training they need to achieve economic empowerment. She has been a member of the SI of Des Moines club since 2012 and has been actively involved at the regional level, currently serving as Co-Governor of the Peaks to Plains Region.
Through her involvement in SIA, Andrea has been actively involved in the Dream Programs, coordinating annual Dream It, Be It: Career Support for Girls projects, which give girls the tools they need to achieve their education and career goals, empowering them to break cycles of poverty, violence, and abuse.