From Experimentation to Addiction: Definitions, Considerations, and Interventions for Teenage Substance Use

Adolescence is a time of change, when young people are establishing their independence and discovering their place in the world. It is also a time when this independence can lead to both mental health concerns and substance use. This training will help clinicians understand the importance of utilizing a co-occurring lens when treating adolescents, and clarify the distinctions between experimentation, misuse, and addiction. 

The course will include brief, practical overviews of motivational interviewing (MI) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), emphasizing their relevance and adaptability in teen-focused treatment. Additionally, participants will gain tools for effectively incorporating substance use discussions into family therapy and will review local and community-based treatment options.

This training is designed to increase clinical confidence and competence when working with adolescents and families navigating substance-related issues.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this session, participants should be able to:

1. Differentiate between substance experimentation, use/misuse, and abuse/addiction in adolescents, and identify clinical indicators for each stage.
2. Recognize the significance of a co-occurring disorders framework when assessing and treating teen substance use.
3. Demonstrate approaches for integrating substance use discussions into family therapy sessions, with attention to systemic and developmental considerations.

Instructor Credentials

Briana Simmons, LICSW, is a clinical social worker at Bradley Center Acute Residential Treatment, where she has spent the past six years working with adolescents and their families affected by mental health and substance use challenges. She earned her master of social work from Simmons University, following a clinical internship on Bradley Hospital’s Adolescent Inpatient Unit (2018 to 2019), where she developed a strong foundation in adolescent behavioral health. Simmons' work focuses on empowering young people to build emotional regulation and recovery skills, while actively engaging families as part of the healing process. She incorporates evidence-based practices, including dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), to support both adolescents and their caregivers in navigating complex behavioral health needs. Currently pursuing her licensed chemical dependency professional (LCDP), Briana is passionate about improving outcomes for youth impacted by substance use through collaborative clinical care and professional education.

Claire M. Szeker, LICSW, is a licensed clinical social worker with a master’s degree in social work from Fordham University, where she specialized in children and families. She brings over a decade of experience working across the full continuum of hospital-based behavioral health care. Her clinical expertise centers on adolescents and the parent-child relationship. Since 2022, Szeker has served as the clinical supervisor at the Bradley Center (Acute Residential Treatment), where she supports the care for teens with co-occurring mental health and substance use challenges. In this role, she has worked closely with youth and their families, helping them understand and adjust the family structure to support recovery and, when appropriate, explore options for longer-term substance use treatment.

Session Details

The target audience for this presentation is psychologists, physicians, social workers and other interested health care professionals.

This presentation has been approved for 1.5 CE hours/credits (see below).

Registration

Program fee: $49

Online registration closes on Wednesday, November 19.

For refund/cancellation information, please email [email protected] or call Mayra Colon at 401-606-5753.

Register online

Credit Details

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of Rhode Island Hospital and Bradley Hospital. Rhode Island Hospital is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education.

Rhode Island Hospital designates this activity for a maximum of  1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s). Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Rhode Island Hospital is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Rhode Island Hospital maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

CEUs for this event have been submitted, pending approval by the National Board for Social Work (NASW), designating this activity for a maximum of 1.5 continuing education credits for certified counselors, marriage, and family therapists.

Bradley Conference is designed to provide education for psychologists, social workers, physicians, nurses, certified counselors, speech/language and occupational therapists, teachers, milieu associates, and other professionals who work with children, adolescents, or adults.  Topics address different behavioral health populations and treatment modalities and are intended to provide practical, state-of-the-art information.

Bradley Hospital’s clinical expertise, internationally renowned research, and academic affiliation with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University make the hospital a unique resource in all areas of behavioral health care.  We have designed a wide range of learning experiences to provide the training that behavioral health care professionals need to stay at the forefront of their fields.

There is no known commercial support for this program.