March Extra Post

I've been doing a lot of my own research lately, but it's more like watching TV Shows, documentaries, youtube videos, etc. and I recently came across a video that I thought was quite interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54na9_oMPKA

Lindsay Lohan is known as a "trainwreck" for "ruining her life" by letting drugs consume her, but she recently came out on the Oprah Show and talked about how she's managed to stay sober. I thought it was quite an uplifting story to look into instead of all the negative stories we tend to hear.

But besides that, the fourth interview is due next week! And i think I might have found a person to interview, but I am going to go again tomorrow to confirm.

It's at the American Recovery Center in Pomona. It's literally right in between my house and iPoly and i'm so mad that I barely found it. Better late than never though, right? But yeah, here's a picture!

Blog 18: Third Answer

Content:

Just like you did for answer 1 and 2 post your:

• EQ

How can a drug rehab counselor best help a teen with a history of substance abuse?

• Answer #3 (Write in a complete sentence like a thesis statement)

The best way for a drug rehab counselor to help a teen with a history of substance abuse is by combining medication with their treatment.

• 3 details to support the answer (a detail is a fact and an example)

- Detoxification is an important part of a treatment plan because it eliminates the drugs from the body and it also gets rid of the physical dependency. However, there are withdrawal symptoms and medications can be used to help the patient cope.

- They are effective in helping the addicted teen to stabilize their lives and reduce drug use.

Ex: Those addicted to heroin are given methadone during treatment.

-Drug abuse treatment must address brain changes caused by a long history of abuse, which requires the use of medication.

• The research source (s) to support your details and answer

SAMHSA: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

National Institute on Drug Abuse

• Concluding Sentence

The best way for a drug rehab counselor to help a teen with a history of substance abuse is by combining medication with their treatment because they help the patient learn to cope without the illegal drug by getting rid of the physical dependency.

Fourth Interview Questions

Content:

Post 20 open-ended questions for approval you want to ask an expert in the field of your senior project.  The focus of your questions should be on your many answers.

1. How can a drug rehab counselor best help a teen with a history of substance abuse?

2.What should counselors be aware of when helping a teen dealing with substance abuse?

3. What are the steps that need to be taken in order to put a teen into a treatment program?

4. Why are treatment programs necessary in helping a teen dealing with addiction?

5.  What is the best way to prevent a teen from relapsing during rehab treatment?

6. Are there different types of therapies that work better depending on the substance that is being abused?

7. How cooperative are teens during treatment?

8. How effective is Narcotics Anonymous?

9. Which drug is the most commonly abused amongst teens?

10. How do you keep teens motivated to continue treatment?

11, How big of a role does medication play in treating the addiction?

12. How big of a role does family counseling play in treating addiction?

13. How many different types of therapies are there?

14. Of those, which do you consider to be the most effective and why?

15. What is the best type of therapy to approach those who are dealing with addiction?

16. What are some questions to avoid when dealing with a client?

17. Which specific drug, in your experience, has the worst effect on the clients you've worked with and why do you think that is?

18. What are some stories that your clients have gone through that have stuck with you forever?

19. What is your number one priority when it comes to helping these struggling with substance abuse?

20. How many teens that complete treatment remain sober after?

Blog 16: Advisory Meeting #2

Content:

Just like you did for answer 1 and the objectives for Purther's textbook work for answer 2 post:

EQ

How can a drug rehab counselor best help a teen with a history of substance abuse?

Answer #2 (Write in a complete sentence like a thesis statement)*

The best way for a drug rehab counselor to help a teen with a history of substance abuse is by creating a personalized plan for the client's situation.

3 details to support the answer (a detail is a fact and an example)

1)No two addicts are the same and require different treatments to best fit their situation and to give the addict the best chance at success.

2) There are many different dimensions to addiction and effective treatment targets the one specific to the client's situation.

3) A personal recovery plan created by a professional minimizes the chances of relapse.

The research source (s) to support your details and answer

http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/treatment-approaches-drug-addiction

Concluding Sentence

Creating a personalized recovery plan to fit the addict's situation is the best way to help their problem with substance abuse.

Independent Component 2 Approval

Content:

Please review the component contract at page 12 of the senior project packet.   The independent component 2 is an opportunity for you to add a dimension of creativity and/or an additional outlet for research.  The goal of the component is for you to explore your answers in more depth.  On Friday April 25, 2014, you will be turning in the following to your blog to prove completion of this component:

·       Log of hours on an digital spreadsheet (with total number of hours included)
·       Evidence of the 30 hours of work (e.g. transcript, essays, tests, art work, photographs) as digital artifacts
·       LIA
 The senior team expects that your log will be on the right hand side of your blog with your WB, independent component log 1 and mentorship log.   In addition to this,  we expect that you will be able to prove the total 30 hours of work by submitting evidence to the blog by the due date. For this blog post and approval, please answer the following questions.

1.  Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.
I just plan on transferring my mentorship hours. I also plan to attend some open NA Meetings.
2.  Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.
Photos (like last time) and some documents.
3.  And explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.
At my mentorship, my mentor as well as her employees are always giving me information regarding how to deal with a client so thats covered. Attending open NA meetings will help me get a better understanding of what the addicted went through and how theyre staying sober.
4.  Post a log on the right hand side of your blog near your other logs and call it the independent component 2 log.
Okay.

Your answers to the questions should be supported with details and examples for the senior team to understand what you plan to do.   Once we review your Blog Post 15, your house teacher will discuss with you the approval of your plan.  If it is approved, please start working on it.  If it is not approved, your house teacher will explain why.  It is your job to address the concerns so you can get your component approved.

Lesson 2 Reflection

Content:

1. Positive Statement

What are you most proud of in your Lesson 2 Presentation and why?
-For this 30 minute presentation, I think I knew more information that came from credible sources that I actually backed up, as opposed to the 10 minute one where I forgot to even mention where I got my information from. I'm more confident in presenting my information because I actually know what I'm talking about.

2. Questions to Consider
       a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 2 Presentation (self-assessment)?

       AE       P          AP       CR       NC

       b.     Explain why you deserve that grade using evidence from the Lesson 2 component contract.
I met all the requirements needed for a P. Nothing more, nothing less. I made time, turned in my lesson plan, displayed my EQ poster, etc.

3. What worked for you in your Lesson 2?
I think people were more attentive during this presentation. I tried to keep it as entertaining and informative at the same time, and I think I did a decent job for the most part.

4.  (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your Lesson 2?
I would have changed the activity just by setting more rules and sticking by them. It needed more organization in my opinion.

5. Finding Value
What do you think your answer #2 is going to be? 
My second answer is probably designing a specific treatment plan based on the user's situation.

Independent Component 1

LITERAL

(a) I, Stephanie Salas, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.

(b) Cite your source regarding who or what article or book helped you complete the independent component.

For completing my independent component, I did an extensive amount of research using my mentor, Isabel Godoy, documentaries, books, and articles. I actually have a best source for each category. The website that helped me the most was the National Institute on Drug Abuse (www.drugabuse.gov), a documentary named "The World's Most Dangerous Drug," and a book titled "Substance Abuse: Information for School Counselors, Social Workers, Therapists, and Counselors." 

(c) Provide a digital spreadsheet (aka log of the 30 hours).   Post it next to your mentorship log.

Done.

(d) Explanation of what you completed.

For my Independent Component, I decided to create a blog where I would show all of the research that I've come across, post/reblog pictures & videos, as well as recommend and review books, music, and films that all revolve around the dangers of substance abuse and how to recover from it. I also include some experiences with my mentor, but only a few. Here's the link: http://armedwith4mind.tumblr.com/

INTERPRETIVE 
Defend your work and explain how the significant parts of your component and how it demonstrates 30 hours of work.   Provide evidence (photos, transcript, art work, videos, etc) of the 30 hours of work.  

This isn't the best picture but the one that i posted on my extra blog post didnt show up for some reason :-( Basically what was happening was that all the counselors met up together for a training and were asked to give feedback on how they thought they were doing and how the program could be improved. Alot of them got cut out but I got to sit in with a group and listen to what they had to say. Not gonna lie, it was pretty emotional but it was fascinating to see how much they care about helping their clients. At this training I learned how hard it is emotionally for the counselors, especially when the clients refuse to cooperate, which is often. Or when they think a client had successfully finished the program but then end up relapsing or dying from an overdose or violent crime. For 3 hours I got to hear what a counselor has to deal with everyday and it's not really not as simple as people make it out to be.

This is a picture of the SEA office located in Crenshaw. After the training, me and my mentor came here and had to print out and edit a couple of letters that we then had to deliver to the clients, notifying them that they were now enrolled in the program. This was the first and probably the only time I will have interacted with a client.

 

A couple of weeks ago I spent a good amount of time at the Cal Poly Library looking for some books that would give me more depth on the topic and luckily I found these 4. (titled Drug Addiction in Youth, A Handbook on Drug & Alcohol Abuse, Substance Abuse, and Drug Abuse (Current Concepts and Research.)

APPLIED
How did the component help you understand the foundation of your topic better?  Please include specific examples to illustrate how it helped. 

The amount of research I did was crazy, and honestly I came across a lot of information that I would have NEVER come across just from doing research checks. Did you know that methamphetamine was originally invented by the Japanese to give to their pilots so they would do well during WWII? Well I didn't, but I do now. And I thought that was crazy. I also learned how the demand for these drugs keep rising and rising, as well as the costs (for certain drugs) Did you know that 4 oz of crystal meth costs around $4,000? The crazy thing is people would actually be willing to pay that much.

Throughout my research one of the most important things I've learned is that addiction is a disease. Even if the person made the decision to try a drug, it was never their decision to become addicted because it was something that was beyond their control. Their body and brain have become so accustomed to the drug that they don't know how to function without it, and that is why they make the decisions they do. I was watching a show called Addicted, and in one episode, a 19 year old girl had become addicted to meth and had begun prostituting herself in order to pay for the drug. If she wasn't smoking meth, she was smoking weed. She was basically high 24/7. During multiple occasions while she was smoking meth, she would burst into tears and blurt out repeatedly that she didn't want to be like this but that she couldn't stop, and now I understand why. That information, in my opinion, is so vital when a counselor is considering treatment to offer their client.