This presentation will engage in discussion about adolescent substance use. Addiction and the effects of addiction will be explained. Vaping and whether it is a gateway drug, and vaping in the school system will be discussed. The role of parent/guardians, group therapy and group ideas will also be discussed. Various modes of treatment will be discussed along with when each would be appropriate to use. Examples, demonstrations and case examples will be given to discuss treatment and diagnosis of the adolescent client.
Objectives:
After completing this program, social workers, program administrators, and other participants will be able to:
3. Look at actual examples to discuss the treatment of the client
4. Discuss vaping and whether it is a gateway drug
5. Engage in discussion about vaping and the school system
6. Learn various modes of treatment and when each is appropriate
7. Talk about delivery methods for each mode
8. Discuss the role of parents/guardians
9. Talk about group therapy and group ideas
10. Demonstrate three different demonstrations for adolescent clients
11. Read various case examples and discuss treatment and diagnosis for each example
Presenter:
My name is Lauren Smalling, MSW, LCSW. I am a clinical social worker at Compass Health Network in Lebanon, MO where I work as a substance use therapist. I have worked for Compass for six and a half years and started as a case worker and then became an open access specialist before moving into the world of therapy as a substance use counselor. I have been a substance use counselor for the last two and a half years. It must have been fate that moved me into my current position, because I took over for another therapist who worked with all of the adolescents in Lebanon and surrounding areas, so I inherited the adolescent program. That’s actually a good thing, because since I was an adolescent myself, I have wanted to work with adolescents. They are my favorite population.
When working towards my current dream job, I had many social work jobs. I started working with individuals with developmental disabilities after graduating with my Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. While in college, I had worked as a waitress and found myself working at Waffle House where I met my husband who encouraged me to get my Master’s in Social Work so that I could work in mental health. So, we moved to Baton Rouge with my stepdaughter and her two kids, and I completed my coursework for my MSW in Baton Rouge, LA at LSU. After graduation, I gave birth to our daughter Dakota in 2013 and then started work as a therapist in 2014 and worked in two different Intensive Outpatient Programs before moving to Missouri towards the end of 2015.
When I moved to Missouri in 2015, I learned that I could not do therapy with my provisional license, my LMSW, so I went back to working with individuals with developmental disabilities until I decided to work at Compass Health Network, a place that provided me with professional development in the form of supervision, and I was able to obtain my clinical license, my LCSW, by September of 2020. I have been happily working at Compass Health Network ever since.