School Problems
One key indicator of substance abuse is a drastic change in your teen's grades. It may even start off with your child doing very poorly in only a few classes. The common factor is that the grades do not usually improve, once the troubled teen starts down the road to poor performance in school the trend rarely reverses itself. It is most easily noticed by a parent of a model student when their grades start to slip.
An average student will be a more difficult challenge to recognize. One factor that is common however is the lack of concern about grades, family, and sports, anything that used to be important to the teen. It is sad to see a teen with the potential to be a great athlete waste their time and future using drugs. What seemed to be of such importance to the youth growing up has been left in the dust for his or her new friends, and their drugs of choice.
The ramifications of poor performance in school can come back to haunt the troubled teen if /when he decides to turn his life around. Should he decide he wants to enroll in a university with high enrollment standards he may not be able to do so. The obvious long term problems this can create begin to manifest themselves. This may even discourage the defiant teen from going to college.
Should the teen preserve he may need to attend a Junior College to correct the decisions he made when he was younger. This option has saved many troubled teens that have wanted to go to college but have been turned away by a 4 year program. Once the teen finishes his work in the Junior College he can usually transfer his credits to a nicer 4 year College.
Expelled From School
When behavior gets bad enough either from ADD, ADHD, ODD, or any other problem a defiant teen might be suffering getting expelled from school is usually in the mix. Once teen has been expelled his now on the High School administrations radar. If he acts out again he will already have a strike against himself. Now that he has received the label of a trouble maker or unruly word will spread among the staff, and it will be difficult for him to remove the label he now has.
This is obviously one of the early signs that your teen is becoming a troubled teen. This is a great time for parents to try to establish positive lines of communication with the now at risk youth. If parents are able to convince their child that they are really interested in what is going on his or her life they have a chance to offer some help. Understand that teens of today know if you are really interested in them or just offering lip service. If you are not really interested in opening communications with them they will see right through the attempt.
Communication with the youth will require you to sincerely take their side. Anything less will be viewed as an insincere attempt to get what you want, rather than helping the troubled teen. This is not an easy venture to try to establish communications with a teen than you have not communicated with for a few years. It is however one of the most effective options you have.