Support and Education Group for Families and Caregivers

No one wants to have their adolescent engage in sex-specific treatment, but we know that with family involvement adolescents do better in treatment. We will take a closer look beyond what you learned at intake at what treatment looks like at Steps For Change and what you can expect your adolescent to learn.

This discussion will focus on what we know about why adolescents sexually act out, and it may not be for the reasons you think.

Healthy sexual behaviors are the focus of treatment, yet it is often challenging to understand what appropriate behavior looks like. In this session, we will discuss what is appropriate for your adolescent and answer any questions you may still have about adolescent sexuality.

Learn about Minnesota Criminal Sexual Contact. We will also look at what consent means according to the law and how an adolescent would apply consent to their sexual choices.

What was it like growing up in your home? Did your family discuss difficult topics or ignore them? Did you experience love or loathing? In this interactive session, you will create a family tree, or ‘genogram’ to map your relationship experiences with those you love.  Be prepared with a pencil and paper. 

John Bowlby defined attachment as a ‘lasting psychological connectedness between human beings.’ How do you ‘feel’ as a family? This discussion will cover the basic styles of attachment and tips to connect with one another more deeply.

Human needs are primary needs, which expand beyond our basic need for food, shelter, and clothing. This is the cornerstone of what your adolescent will be learning in treatment as it relates to understanding their sexually harming behavior. We will talk about the need for love and support being met or not, and how these apply to your youth.

Researchers believe when children are exposed to trauma, it activates their central nervous system and produces a stress hormone that prepares them to deal with potential danger. This increased alertness can be really uncomfortable, and often people try to get away from this feeling by finding different ways to escape. We will talk about how trauma may have impacted your adolescent’s experience and learn how treatment can help.

However you may feel about pornography, it is here to stay and your adolescent has likely been exposed to this material. We will talk about how to deal with it when it happens and strategies to assist your adolescent in making healthy choices regarding explicit material.

Why does my kid think that way? They may be using a distorted or faulty way of thinking that is getting in the way of taking responsibility for their actions. This session will focus on some of the most common defense mechanisms and how to challenge them.

This session will focus on how to bring your family back together safely, particularly for those family members who were harmed. We’ll discuss any current safety plans you may have and the steps needed for reconciliation or reunification.

Empathy is the ability to stand in someone else’s shoes and share their feelings. We will discuss how a shame response to acting out sexually may block empathy and how you can assist in making a difference for your adolescent in making amends.

Treatment is an opportunity to address harmful behaviors but extends well beyond the therapy room. What can I expect of my adolescent now that they have completed the program? This session will focus on the ways therapy interventions can make life-long healthy changes for individuals.