At Integrity House we know that the adolescent years can be very difficult. They are filled with uncertainty and lack of direction that leaves one feeling a sense of helplessness and hopelessness, wondering if life will ever get better. Integrity House  is a licensed & accredited residential treatment center for troubled teenage girls, ages 12-17, who are experiencing difficulties within their homes, schools, or community.

The Mission Statement of Integrity House is to provide teenage girls with the tools needed to make smart choices and build healthy relationships throughout their lives.

The philosophy of our program uses an approach to modify behavior patterns to set a foundation for change . One objective of Integrity House  is to provide a safe, positive environment where each teenager is able to learn and apply the values of responsibility, respect for authority, self respect and self motivation.  These tools in hand, your daughter is able to return to her home, school and community with positive and lasting results.

If only one word could identify our mission statement that word would be INTEGRITY.

Integrity House offers help for Teen Pregnancy.

Teen pregnancy is one of the most difficult experiences a young teenage girl and her family might ever face.  It interrupts school, family, relationships and dreams for the future. Teen Pregnancy can create an emotional crisis resulting in feelings of shame and fear, and feel like you will crumble under the pressures in your environment. The stress of how to break this news to her parents and her “boyfriend” might be even greater than the pregnancy itself, and finding help may seem like an impossible task.

The pregnant teen might think no one can help or feel too embarrassed to search for help. Integrity House wants to help. Denial will not take the pregnancy away; instead, time is lost that could be invested in prenatal care and counseling. There are options, and making a choice may be simple or difficult, depending on your situation.

There are many decisions to make.  Integrity House will assist the pregnant teen and her family with keeping the baby or giving the baby up for adoption. Options include adoption by family members, working with agencies in your state or locally.  Integrity House has facilitated many successful adoptions both opened and closed.

Integrity House has a mechanical baby we use so the pregnant teen can experience the responsibilities of taking care of a newborn.  The baby cries and the pregnant teen must determine if the baby is hungry, needs to be changed, bathed, burped etc.  The baby cries in the middle of the night as well.  A babysitter (a staff) must be hired when the pregnant teen attends Equine Therapy or goes on an outing, etc.  The mechanical baby is a great learning opportunity for the pregnant teen and other clients at Integrity House as well.

Integrity House will monitor medical checkups, diet and exercise with the goal of a healthy baby, healthy mom and a successful birth.

Teens will exhibit behaviors of defiance, anger and disrespect. An occasional missing curfew, a door slam or rolling of the eyes is not an indicator that things will get worse. Often the escalation of defiance leads to Authority Problems outside the home and in school and with the law and law enforcement.

Teens are moving toward becoming independent young adults, often without a road map. They may start by breaking rules of the home: coming in past curfew, staying up past an established bedtime; staying out all night; not doing their chores, smoking and drinking. Then they refuse to do what you ask and have no problem telling you ‘they don’t have to listen to you.’ You set limits. You have your teen’s best interest at heart. You want them to succeed. You fear for the consequences of their choices.

Angry teens are quite a challenge for parents and siblings in the home. If your teen has not expressed anger inappropriately in the past and then begins to slam doors, yell or scream at you or others in the home or become destructive, you need to address the behavior. You cannot let it continue. The expression of anger can be violent, lashing out physically at young siblings and sometimes parents. Teen with anger problems often throw or break things. The anger can erupt at any moment and seemingly without cause. This sets the family on edge and wary of every action for fear of an angry response from the teen. The teen needs help in expressing anger and frustration appropriately.

An occasional rolling of the eyes or muttering how unfair the rules are is normal.

Disrespect is often taken personally. You feel insulted and offended. An occasional rolling of the eyes or muttering how unfair the rules are is normal. As a parent you need to understand this behavior is just an expression of frustration. Rebellion is part of becoming independent. It is not personal. On the other hand, disrespect is deliberate, hurtful, demeaning and rude. This type of behavior should not be tolerated. Remember, you are not alone. The parents of every other teen are experiencing the same thing.

When the behavior of a defiant, angry and or disrespectful teen results in parents and those close to them waiting for the next emotional outburst or a feeling intense anxiety whenever the teen is around; a problem exists. Parents become exhausted, feeling as though they’ve “tried everything” to get through to their teen and nothing is working. Such troubled teens are often left to their own device, to succeed or fail. This creates a cycle of frustration, anxiety, and conflict that is doomed to intensify to the point of someone – the teen, the parent, or both – reaching a breaking point.

Outside intervention is needed. Integrity House, a residential treatment center, deals with this type of behavior daily. Our staff consistently applies the rules and work with your teen daughter to look at her behavior, acknowledge it, see how it affects her and the people around her and examine how she could respond to the same or similar situation in a more appropriate manner in the future.

Call us today. Our Admissions Staff will be happy to discuss your situation.

Has your daughter run away or threatened to run away?

Statistics

According to the National Runaway Switchboard:

• between 1.6 and 2.8 million youth runaway each year
• almost 75% of the runaways are female although some research concludes runaways are approximately 50% male and 50% female
• female runaways are more likely to seek help
• the major reason youth cited that they run away is because of an intense conflict/argument at home

According to Hubpages.com:

• 1 in 7 teenagers between the ages of 10 and 18 will run away from home this year
• Teens leaving home are usually running from something rather than to something

According to a Family and Youth Services Bureau Report about runaway and homeless youth:

• 35% had used drugs
• 26% had attempted suicide
• 33% were assaulted/and or robbed on the street
• 66% had trouble meeting basic needs
• 80% had attempted or committed a theft-related activity

There are fluctuations in the statistics but they are still staggering.  Teens that run away are placing themselves in danger.  They make poor choices where to sleep, do not have proper hygiene, do not get enough sleep, may trade sex for food, clothes or a place to sleep.

Why do teens run away?

• Problems at home
  • Difficulty with parents, step-parents or guardians
  • To avoid consequences
  • Abuse in the home
• Problems at school
• Problems with friends
• Alcohol or drug use
• Oppositional Defiant behavior
• Fear for possible physical or sexual abuse
• To escape problems in their life
• Etc.

The reasons for running away vary and there isn’t one particular reason why nor is there a quick fix to prevent your teen from running away.

Early Warning Signs

What to look for:

• Attempts to communicate result in arguments, raised voices, interruptions, name calling, hurt feelings and failure to reach an acceptable agreement with your troubled teenager.
• The teenager has a network of friends who are largely unsupervised, oppositional, defiant, involved with drugs and other antisocial behaviors.

• An increasing pattern of impulsive, irrational and emotionally abusive behavior by either the parent(s) or the troubled teenager.

Prevention Strategies:
Dr. Michael G.Conner, Psychologist and Engineer, Mentor Research Institute, Portland, Oregon, suggests the following steps to take to reduce the risk of  teen runaways and focusing on supportive communication as part of an overall troubled teen prevention strategy:

• Keep the conversation flowing and positive – Never dare your teenager to run away because you think they may not
• Never use sarcasm, name-calling, labeling (brat, immature, selfish, stupid, etc.,)a
• Never raise your voice or yell – especially when your teenager is raising their voice or yelling.  Stay calm, quiet, make eye contact, and don’t respond if your child is angry, shouting or in a rage. Wait until they are calm.
• Never interrupt your teenager when they are talking or trying to explain something – even if you disagree. Wait until they are done. Remind yourself that simply listening and telling your teenager that you understand does not mean you will agree when they are finished, nor does it mean you will do what they want.
• Communicate understanding – Tell your teenager that you understand what they are saying or “I’m not sure I understand, tell me again.”  When you don’t agree and you are certain that you understand your teenager’s point of view (and your troubled teenager believes you understand) tell your teenager. “I think I understand, but I don’t agree with you. I want to think we can understand each other, but we don’t have to agree.
• Never explain yourself or argue if your teenager expects you to justify the fact that you do not agree, ask “Is there anything else you want to tell me.”
• You can also agree with your teen, but that does not mean you have to let them do whatever they want.
• If you get overwhelmed or upset, tell your child “I’m overwhelmed and a little upset. I need a break and a chance to calm down and think about this.” Then tell them you want a 20 minute (or so) break before continuing the conversation. Be sure to take a break.

Integrity House provides a safe, secure and supervised place for your teen daughter.  It is not possible for you to watch your teen 24 hours a day,however, the staff at Integrity House can and does.  We also lock and alarm the doors and windows so everyone remains safe.

Integrity House has qualified mental health professionals that provide individual, group, equine and family therapy to address the issues associated with the reason(s) why the teen ran away in the first place.

Integrity House is here to help.

Integrity House helps girls that suffer from Teen Depression

Teen Depression may be displayed through insomnia, fatigue, appetite disturbances and anxiety. Troubled Teen girls struggling with depression may experience an inability to think clearly, notice and remember details, and make good decisions.  In addition, Teen Depression can affect emotions, cause feelings of sadness, despair, guilt, worthlessness, and apathy.  It can lead to alcohol or drug abuse, suicide attempts, and other socially inappropriate or self-destructive behaviors.  Teenagers face a host of pressures, from the changes of puberty to questions about whom they are and where they fit in.  The natural transition from teenager to adult can also bring parental conflict as teens start to assert their independence.  With all this drama, it isn’t always easy to differentiate between Teen Depression and normal teenage moodiness.  Making things even more complicated, teens with depression do not necessarily appear sad, nor do they always withdraw from others.  For some depressed teen girls, symptoms of irritability, aggression and rage are more prominent.

Signs of Teen Depression

• Sadness or hopelessness
• Irritability, anger or hostility
• Tearfulness or frequent crying
• Withdrawal from friends and family
• Loss of interest in activities
• Changes in eating and sleeping habits
• Restlessness and agitation
• Feelings of worthlessness and guilt
• Lack of enthusiasm and motivation
• Fatigue or lack of energy
• Difficulty concentrating
• Thoughts of death or suicide

Teen Depression can impact interpersonal (social and family) relationships, causing aggression, withdrawal, moodiness, etc. The behavioral symptoms of depression are not only varied, they are often misunderstood, and therefore are often addressed ineffectively by parents, school officials, and juvenile authorities.

Teen Depression, left untreated, can lead to serious outcomes.  Integrity House offers a place for teen girls to look not only at the symptoms but the cause of the depression and get back on track with productive, happy lives.  Dealing with underlying causes/issues of Teen Depression is necessary to make the changes they need to building healthy relationships.  We understand and want to help not only your teen but your family through this often fearful time in your lives.

Integrity House helps adolescent girls that suffer from Teen Depression