In the United States, 1 in 6 children ages 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year.1 And in California, 13.71% of adolescents reported experiencing a major depressive episode (MDE).2 For some parents and caregivers, it can be easy to dismiss depression or anxiety as just a phase. But when it’s long-term – and substance use comes into play – know that help is possible at Discovery Mood & Anxiety Program Pacific Place in Long Beach, California.
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Healing Co-Occurring Disorder at Pacific Place
Pacific Place is a 16-bed, all-gender facility that specializes in treating young people struggling with co-occurring substance use and mental health issues. The patients are on gender tracks based on how they identify in a safe and supportive atmosphere where they can focus on themselves. Our ESTEEM System™ provides adolescent patients with individualized care to help them develop the skills and confidence they need to create the life they want.
Getting a Well-Rounded Treatment Experience
Along with utilizing traditional talk therapy, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), patients are also immersed in experiential therapies such as:
• Art therapy
• Music therapy
• Psychodrama therapy
• Holistic therapy
• Sound bath therapy (currently halted until COVID-19 restrictions are fully lifted)
When not in therapy, patients have access to a basketball half-court, spacious outdoor area, ping-pong table and supervised field trips. The philosophy at Pacific Place is to help young people understand that fun can be had while sober and that any “boredom” they experience may actually be due to sadness, frustration or another intense feeling.
Tackling Substance Use with the 12 Steps
At Pacific Place, patients develop self-awareness about their urges for substance use and high-risk behaviors and learn coping skills and tools to manage them in healthy, appropriate ways. The program utilizes a 12-step model to help patients identify their struggles with substance use and transfer what they learn in and around their home. In fact, most of the staff members at Pacific Place are in recovery themselves and practice the 12 steps every day. This experience gives patients the chance to interact with someone who has been in their shoes and helps patients see that success is possible.
Involving Family from the Start
When one member of the family struggles with a mental health disorder and drug or alcohol abuse, the entire family feels it. That’s why family and/or the support system of a patient is involved throughout the duration of treatment. Family programming – which includes online or in-person family sessions with the patient, multi-family groups and visitations on weekends – supports family growth and reconciliation.
Adventure Therapy for the Soul
Our center works with Serene Waters Adventure Therapy to incorporate experiential therapy into our program’s treatment plan. Patients engage in mindfulness activities, have meaningful conversations with the group facilitator and participate in an experiential activity such as surfing or hiking. The group facilitator will design a theme for that activity and then discuss this with the patients prior to the activity and then again after the activity during the debrief. Patients have reported this as a helpful part of their overall recovery. The benefits that patients have gained from adventure therapy include learning a new positive activity that they want to engage in for the future, learning a new way to think about their recovery or struggles, and pushing themselves in a physically and emotionally uncomfortable way that made them feel more confident in themselves.
Educational Support
Therapy is at the forefront of what we do but that doesn’t mean education takes a backseat. At Pacific Place, each patient has 20 hours per week dedicated to schoolwork. Our educational liaison provides supervision and support to help patients focus on their studies. Even if a patient needs a lot of catching up to do, the school support program aims to get them back on track and build confidence along the way.