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Did You Know?
Information Provided by Peniel
Peniel Drug & Alcohol Residential Treatment Facility is located
in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. We are staffed with certified drug & alcohol
counselors, social workers, nurses and other professionals. Peniel is
licensed by Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of Drug & Alcohol
Programs.
The purpose of the article it to enlighten, empower and bring hope
to those individuals, who are hurting, depressed and entangled in the
web of addiction. To you who see no way out and your situation as impossible
I offer a proven solution - PENIEL!
Peniel provides services for men and women 18 years and over, who are
experiencing drug/alcohol or mild emotional problems. It is a 13-month
inpatient treatment program with a 6-month aftercare phase. Our program
has served thousands of men and women and children during its existence
and has a tremendous cure rate of all individuals completing our program.
Peniel is proud of the state of many of our graduates, as a result
of their treatment and completion of their training; some graduates
are Pastors, entrepreneurs, college graduates, teachers, and a variety
of other professions. Peniel has crossed denominational, race and ethnic
barriers and is presently treating persons from nearly every denomination.
Peniel believes that addictions are absolutely reversible. Our treatment
model and approach is Bible Therapy. Bible Therapy has been copy written
by Peniel and is accepted and recognized as a viable treatment option
by the United States government. In addition to Bible Therapy, we use
a no-nonsense, intense treatment approach designed to create a permanent
change in the life of individuals caught in the web of addiction.
Peniel further believes that our long-term program provides the client
an opportunity to practice his drug-free lifestyle in a supportive setting.
Individualized treatment plans explore causal factors such as unresolved
conflicts, abuses, failures, and insecurities to name a few. Left untreated
this lifestyle can be fatal. Peniel addresses these and other areas
and presents sobriety tools that highlight the client’s strengths
and potentials as well as expose his weaknesses and negative thinking
and personal living patterns.
Addiction
Definition
Overcoming
Addiction
Prevention
Hands On-Hands Off
Treatment Of Clients
If You Think Your Child or Significant
Other is Using Drugs
What To Do
Other Resources
Addiction Definition
A compulsive need for a substance (such as drugs, nicotine, food or
alcohol) or an action (such as gambling, shopping, work, sex, internet
or exercise) that result in a loss of control and the continued use
of that substance or action in spite of negative consequences.
Overcoming Addiction
Peniel view for overcoming addiction has two avenues of approach. The
first is by way of prevention. If we can reduce or discourage people
especially our youth from getting involved with drugs and alcohol we
can reverse the trend and reduce the number of people who become addicted
every year.
Secondly, we must have effective treatment of the chronic addictive
person, that when applied changes his entire being including their spirit,
soul and body. Those persons who remain focused and apply the principles
and training will embrace life positively and become an asset to themselves,
their families and their communities.
Prevention
The National Center On Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University
Family and Youth Information
Year 2000 CASA National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse
IV Teens:
CASA’s surveys have consistently found that the family is fundamental
to keeping children away from tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs. The
200 CACA National Survey of American Attitudes is an attempt to assess
systemically the impact of parental conduct on the likelihood of teen
substance abuse. We believe it provides important insights that can
help parents instill their children the will and skill to resist the
lure of cigarettes, alcohol and drugs.
The loud and clear message of the survey is this: moms and dads should
be parents to their children, not pals. Mothers and fathers
who are parents rather than pals can greatly reduce the
risk of their children
smoking, drinking and using drugs. They can counter negative
media influences and the availability of marijuana and
other drugs in the teen’s
world. Whatever the family structure whether the teen lives
with both parents, a single mom or a dad, their risk of
smoking, drinking or using
illegal drugs in ”hands-on” household is dramatically lower
than that of the average teen.
The year 2000 survey included 1,000 teens ages 12-17 years. (526 girls
and 474 boys)
The most striking conclusions are these:
-
“Hands-on” Parents who establish a household culture
where
they consistently set down rules and expectations for their
teen’s behavior and monitor what their teen does, have
teens at substantially lower risk of
smoking, drinking and using illegal drugs than the average
teen.
-
For the sixth year, teens continue to say drugs
are their most
important concern. At least one-quarter of teens have a friend
or classmate who uses Ecstasy.
-
The good news in the year
2000 was that cigarettes are tougher
for teens to buy this year. The bad news is that marijuana
is easier.
-
For the first time this year 2000, the
survey asked teens whose
biggest concern was drug what it was that concerned
them most
about drugs. Fifty percent said drugs “ruin your life,” “cause
harm,” or are “addictive.” The fact that drugs
are illegal was of
concern to only two percent.
Parents: “HANDS ON” VS “HANDS
OFF”
For the past four years. CASA has identified parents as the key to
keeping kids drug-free. The 2000 survey made an even stronger case.
The extent to which the household culture is “hands-on”—the
more parents establish appropriate rules and standards of behavior and
monitor their teens—the lower the teen’s risk of substance
abuse.
In the year 2000 CASA correlated each teen’s risk of substance
abuse with a series of 12 possible actions the teen attributed to his
or her parents. CASA then categorized parents in three categories-“hands-on,” “half-hearted” or “hands-off.”
Teens living in “hands-on” households have parents who
consistently take ten or more of these 12 actions:
-
monitor what their teens watch on TV
-
monitor what they do on the
Internet
-
put restrictions on the music CD’s they buy
-
know where their
teens are after school and on weekends
-
expect to
be and are told the truth by their teens about
about where they really are going
-
they are “very aware” of
their teens academic performance
-
impose a curfew
-
make clear they would be “extremely upset” if
their teen used pot
-
eat dinner with their teens
most every night
-
turn off the TV during dinner
-
assign their teen regular chores
-
have an adult present when the
teen returns from school
The survey found:
-
Only one in four teens (27 %) lives with “hands-on” parents.
Teens with “hands-on” parents are at one fourth the
risk
of teens living with “hands-off” parents.
-
Nearly one
in five teens (18%) lives with “hands-off”
parents. Parents who fail to consistently set down
rules and
expectations and are at four times the risk of substance
abuse
of teens with “hands-on” parents.
“
Hands-off” parents consistently fail to set rules and monitor
their teen’s behavior (they take five or less of the previously
described 12 actions). Here are some examples of how
a teen’s
risk increases when parents fail to:
-
Monitor their
teen’s
television and Internet viewing, and restrict
the music CD’s they purchase. These teens are a twice
the risk
of those whose parents monitor these activities.
-
Know
where their teen is after school and on weekends
or expect
their teen to tell them where they are going
at night or on weekends.
Teens whose parents do not keep track of their whereabouts
are at
twice the risk of teens whose parents do.
-
Impose a
curfew. Teens without a curfew are at one and half
times
the risk of teens that have one.
-
Have dinner with
their teens most every night. Teens who do not
regularly eat dinner with their families are at
one and a half times
the risk of teens who have dinner with their parents
nearly every
night.
-
Closely monitor their teen’s academic performance.
Teens whose
parents are “very unaware” of how their teen is
doing at school
are at nearly three times the risk of teens whose parents
are “very
aware” of their teen’s schooling.
-
Give their
teen a clear message about marijuana use. Teens
whose
parents would “not be too upset” about their teen’s
pot use have
teens at more than triple the risk of teens whose parents
would be “extremely upset.”
Despite the conventional wisdom that many teens don’t want their
parents to establish rules and expectation, the survey
found that teens with “hands-on” parents are much more likely
to have an excellent relationship with their parents that teens with “hands
off” parents.
-
47 percent of teens living in “hands-on” households
report
an excellent relationship with their fathers compared
with
13 percent of teens living in “hands-off” households.
-
57
percent of teens in “hands-on” households
report an excellent relationship with their mother
compared with only 24 percent
living in “hands-off” households.
Treatment Of Clients
When prevention fails or not taken seriously by our young people then
eventually they will end up in treatment if not jail or the cemetery.
Three treatment views:
A. Society’s view
Most people see drug abuse and addiction as a
social problem.
(a) Economic status- only the poor or low income
uses drugs
(b) Race or ethnicity- only certain ethic groups are
prone to drug use.
(c) Geographic location- inner city or urban areas
have drug problems
B. Scientific View
Science teaches that drug abuse and addictions
are as much a health problem as social.
(a) Medication and behavioral modification
(b) Addiction brain disease
(c) Acute drug use modifies the brain’s function
C. Holistic Approach
Peniel’s philosophy is based on the belief that man
is born with a degenerate nature and the negative
seed in his heart influences his outlook on life.
(a) Born Again Experience “Salvation”
(b) Bible Therapy - Discipleship Training
(c) Academic, Medical, Recreational and
Vocation Therapy/training
There are four levels of care for patient placement in drug treatment:
-
Level I - outpatient treatment
-
Level II - intensive outpatient
treatment
-
Level II - medically monitored intensive
in-patient treatment
-
Level IV - medically managed
intensive
in-patient treatment
Peniel is a Level III - medically monitored intensive inpatient treatment
program that can be described as an organized service conducted by addiction
professionals and clinicians who provide a planned regimen of around-the-clock
professionally directed evaluations, care, and treatment in an inpatient
setting. This level of care include includes 24 hour observation, monitoring,
and treatment. A multi-disciplinary staff functions under medical supervision.
We are a program with 24-hour nursing care under the direction of physicians.
At Peniel there is an atmosphere of caring, professionalism, and trust
created by the dedicated staff. The goal of the program
is to serve with excellence and integrity. The knowledge
that each person can be “whole” is
Peniel’s motivating force. Biblical principles are incorporated
with practical application and are modeled by counselors
and other staff members on a daily basis, which demonstrates
to the resident the absolute
reality of freedom attainable through a drug-free life.
If You Think Your Child or Significant Other is Using Drugs
There is not easy answer if you suspect your child or significant other
is using drugs. Don’t ignore the signs. Here are some things to
watch for if you think someone may be drinking or using drugs:
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Low grades or poor school performance
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Withdrawal, isolation, depression
or fatigue
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Aggressive rebellious behavior
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Truancy
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Excessive influence by peers or change in friends
-
Hostility and
lack of cooperation
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Deteriorating relationships
with family
-
Loss of interest in appearance and personal
hygiene
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Loss of interest in hobbies and sports
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Change in sleeping and
eating habits
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Evidence of drugs and paraphernalia
-
Physical change such as: red
eyes, runny nose,
frequent sore throats, rapid weight loss, bruises
from falls
What To Do
Talk to your child or significant other. If you need help with this,
contact your doctor, a school worker or clergy member, your local hospital,
county medical health society or family counselor. Professional intervention
can help determine an appropriate course of action.
Keep in mind that the moment of disclosure is not just a moment to
punish. It should open a conversation of understanding and bond by working
together to solve the problem.
Other Resources:
Peniel Drug/Alcohol Program
The Weiner Nusim Foundation
P.O. Box 295
Easton CT 06612
Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse- Newsroom
Click here
Drug and Alcohol Services Information System (DASIS) October 5, 2001
The National Center On Addiction and Substance Abuse At Columbia University
Family & Youth Information - Click here
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