Virus isolation may impact teens’ mental health

Julie Brown, Staff Writer

While Growth Works, Inc. has been around since 1971, the help the agency offers teens and others with addiction and mental health issues is crucial during the current pandemic.

Staff member Patrick Stropes said he was out recently talking to a neighbor as the men took out trash cans and he asked about the neighbor's daughter during this trying time.
Stropes, the public relations and court/public safety liaison for Growth Works, said he was gratified to hear, “She's doing really well.”
Such encounters can help with isolation associated with the current public health crisis, said Stropes. Some families are cutting out colorful construction paper hearts for paramedics, police, and grocery clerks as well as gas station attendants, to show their appreciation.

A Canton Township resident, Stropes said he is aware of the problems experienced when young people are alone for too long. At Growth Works, staffers are working remotely with clients and support groups, complying with health privacy laws while also taking care to be healthy themselves.
He notes Alcoholics Anonymous. Al-Anon, Narcotics Anonymous and now Families Against Narcotics are helping people stay both sober/clean and connected by using technology for remote meetings. Zoom use is helpful for those who can't meet in person, he said.
Teens in western Wayne County and elsewhere are watching movies at each of their homes, he said, stopping the film and then texting to discuss it. The Facetime games have some value, too, Stropes said. “You want to have the right balance,” he said of limiting screen time, especially for very young adults. “It needs to be monitored.”
He added the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network at 800-241-4949 offers help around the clock with local resource information.
“They've been around a long time. They do a wonderful job in supporting our people” in addiction and mental health, he said.
“We can always do more to knock down the stigma,” he noted of coverage of mental illness in mass media. The National Alliance on Mental Illness website www.nami.org is also useful, he said.
In addition to busy hospitals and clinics in metro Detroit, Stropes notes psychologists and psychiatrists not affiliated with his agency are also using computer programs to help people stay emotionally well.
Staffers at Growth Works are proud of their mission: “to help individuals and families restore hope, embrace change, and improve their lives.”
Self-care is also a priority at Growth Works, which has offices including Main Street in Plymouth, Canton and others.
“Growth Works has an amazing support structure for its employees. We support each other,” he said.
He is very supportive of families who, unable to observe a child's birthday for now, instead line up and drive by the home, honking car horns in encouragement.
“The key is safe and healthy, to keep your mood up, your attitude up,” he said.
He agrees that a friendly word to a grocery clerk “and all those people on the front lines” matters too. The warmer temperatures of the spring season also help, he said, adding “I'm grateful for my family, another day in sobriety.”