Trauma-Focused Mental Health & Substance Use Treatment for Teens
Helping Teens Find Their Roots Through Recovery
Long Beach’s Top Teen Mental Health & Substance Abuse Program
OUR PROGRAM
Our Whole-Person Approach
Our whole-person approach to treatment considers all factors that lead a young person to struggle with mental health and/or substance use, by uncovering what is underneath and treating the underlying causes of these issues, developing resilience and healthy habits, and providing them with the tools to identify and cope with issues on their own.
We help your child heal through evidence-based therapies, mindfulness and meditation, self-esteem and skills development, family therapy, experiential groups like drumming and art therapy, and movement-based therapies.
We also provide family therapy that is imperative for any young person’s healing, working with loved ones to better understand what is going on and how they can help support them for long-term health.
Whole Person
Approch
We treat the whole person, not just the symptoms.
Develop Resilience & Healthy Habits
We help our clients build healthy habits, gain confidence, and develop resilience.
Identify & Cope With Issues On Their Own
We work to identify key triggers and establish behaviors to overcome them.
OUR SCHEDULE
Monday-Friday
PHP, IOP & OP
Roots offers all outpatient levels of care — PHP, IOP and OP — depending on your child’s needs and schedule. Most teens will start out attending 5 days a week at PHP and then drop down to IOP.
OUR SCHEDULE
Monday - Friday
4:00pm - 7:00pm
Most teens will start out attending 5 days a week, and then drop down to 3 days a week.
Our Clinicians
Our team of clinicians is passionate about helping young people recover from behavioral health issues and develop resilience
Krista Small, ACSW
Primary Therapist
Krista Small is an associate clinical social worker (ASW) and came to Roots Through Recovery in 2023. Krista received her Masters in Social work from University of Washington in 2016. Since then she has worked for non-profits working with Youth who experience homelessness. During that time Krista was able to obtain knowledge in ACE’s and trauma informed care.
Krista continues to work with all her clients with this lense. Since moving back from Seattle, WA to her hometown in Southern California in 2019, Krista has committed herself to working with adolescents, young adults, adults, and their families to reach goals and achieve their highest level of self. Krista takes a client centered and solution focused approach which provides the client opportunity to gain autonomy in their own treatment and return back to their highest level of functioning. Solution focused therapy is provided with empathy and the highest positive regard in order to provide accountability to reach goals.
In her personal time Krista takes family walks with her dog, two children, and partner. She enjoys connecting with nature, listening to music, and creativity through sewing her children’s clothes from recycled materials.
Lori Way, AMFT
Primary Therapist
Bio coming soon
Milton Camejo, AMFT
Primary Therapist
Milton Camejo is a Veteran and Associate Marriage and Family Therapist. He attended Cal State Long Beach for his undergrad, and then studied at Cal State Dominguez Hills for Graduate school, where he received his Master’s Degree. Milton describes his approach as a therapist as leaning toward humanistic existentialism, which does sound scary but helps bring clarity to the experiences we have.
He has worked with Teens, Veterans, LGBTQIA+, Couples, and Poly-Unions. Milton has worked extensively with Trauma, Grief, Anxiety, Depression, Angst, and relationship communication. He loves the Dodgers (baseball), Motorcycles, and tons of other nerdy things. Milton says his superpower is ADHD, and if we lived in a fantasy world he’d be the Muscle Wizard (its like a SUPER buff Merlin).
INSURANCE
We Make It Easy
Roots Teen and Adolescent accepts most major insurance as an out-of-network provider. We are contracted with Health Net/MHN, Tricare West and Medi-Cal. We also offer competitive cash pay options for families who wish to pay out of pocket for their child’s treatment.
INSURANCE
We Make It Easy
Roots Teen and Adolescent accepts most major insurance as an out-of-network provider. We are contracted with Health Net/MHN, Tricare West and Medi-Cal. We also offer competitive cash pay options for families who wish to pay out of pocket for their child’s treatment.
AREAS WE WORK IN
What Do We Address?
We treat adolescents ages 12–18 who struggle with mental health challenges like depression and anxiety, as well as trauma-related issues and co-occurring substance use disorders. Additionally, we address social media and technology-related issues, self-esteem issues, and issues related to a lack of purpose.
Teen Depression
We engage with clients to understand the roots of their depression and provide long-term treatment plans.
Childhood Trauma
The impacts of childhood trauma often last into adulthood. Our program helps teens overcome trauma and build resilience.
Teen Substance Abuse
Our specially tailored teen substance abuse program is long beach’s top IOP program.
Social Media & Technology
We engage with clients to understand the roots of their depression and provide long-term treatment plans.
Dual Diagnosis / Co-Occurring
Teen substance abuse and mental health are closely correlated. We are equipped to help with mental health and substance abuse.
Teen Anxiety
Anxiety in teens is at an all-time high. Our program is specifically tailored to address anxiety symptoms in teens.
Admission Process
Streamlined And Straightforward
Our admissions team makes the process for being screened and enrolled into our program as streamlined and easy as possible. The key is to gather as much information as we can to make sure that we are a good fit for your child’s treatment, and they are a good fit for our program. There are just a few steps to doing this:
Initial Phone Call
Our admissions team will conduct a phone assessment to gather information to find out what is going on with your child, as well as collect insurance information.
Clinical decision
Our clinical team will make an admission decision based on the information gathered, and let you know if your child is accepted.
Schedule intake
We will find a date and time that works for you and your child to come in to start the enrollment process.
Treating the Whole Family
When any child is suffering, the family will often assign blame to themselves, questioning where they went wrong and what they could have done differently. Roots family therapy transforms this thinking from shame and blame to healing and support by developing the tools to create a healthy environment with strong communication so their child can thrive. Family trauma, such as divorce, domestic issues, grief, and loss can all disrupt the family system and bonds between family members, and while the young person is the “patient,” only through whole-family healing can the child heal.
Treating the Whole Family
When any child is suffering, the family will often assign blame to themselves, questioning where they went wrong and what they could have done differently. Roots family therapy transforms this thinking from shame and blame to healing and support, and developing the tools to create a healthy environment with strong communication so their child can thrive. Family trauma, such as divorce, domestic issues, grief and loss can all disrupt the family system and bonds between family members, and while the young person is the “patient”, only through whole-family healing can the child heal.
Building Connection
From a very early age, we are in search of our tribe – the place where we feel most connected and the most ourselves. This process comes easy to some who are able to develop strong, long-lasting connections with their peers and loved ones. For others, this is extremely challenging, and the isolation and lack of connection can lead to poor self-esteem and issues like depression or social anxiety or manifest into teen substance abuse disorders. Our goal is for young people to develop a sense of belonging within our community, understanding that they are not alone and that there are other people with shared interests to develop peer connections.
Connection to our family and loved ones are often broken or disrupted due to behavioral issues and family trauma, which is healed in family therapy so that these critical connections can be repaired.
Building Connection
From a very early age, we are in search of our tribe – the place where we feel most connected and the most ourselves. This process comes easy to some who are able to develop strong, long-lasting connections with their peers and loved ones. For others, this is extremely challenging, and the isolation and lack of connection can lead to poor self-esteem and issues like depression or social anxiety, or manifest in substance use disorders. Our goal is for young people to develop a sense of belonging within our community, understanding that they are not alone and that there are other people with shared interests to develop peer connections.
Connection to our family and loved ones are often broken or disrupted due to behavioral issues and family trauma, which is healed in family therapy so that these critical connections can be repaired.
Developing Resilience
We believe it is not enough to identify trauma if a young person doesn’t have the skills to deal with trauma or challenges as they arise in their life. Resilience is a critical trait that can only be developed by acquiring the skills to recover quickly when challenges arise.
Developing Resilience
We believe it is not enough to identify trauma if a young person doesn’t have the skills to deal with trauma or challenges as they arise in their life. Resilience is a critical trait that can only be developed by acquiring the skills to recover quickly when challenges arise.
Addressing Social Media & Technology
Teen depression and anxiety are at an all-time high. It is not a coincidence that young people spend an inordinate amount of time on devices, taking in unrealistic portrayals of life and a bombardment of information related to global tragedies and negativity. Technology has taken the place of human interaction and broken down interpersonal connections that are vital to our development. It is only when young people can step away from these influences that they are able to truly be introspective and start to repair their connections with others.
Addressing Social Media & Technology
Teen depression and anxiety is at an all-time high. It is not a coincidence that young people spend an inordinate amount of time on devices, taking in unrealistic portrayals of life and a bombardment of information related to global tragedies and negativity. Technology has taken the place of human interaction and broken down interpersonal connections that are vital to our development. It is only when young people can step away from these influences that they are able to truly be introspective and start to repair their connections with others.
FAQs
The Roots Teen program is specifically designed to treat adolescents and teenagers (ages 13-18) and the issues that are unique to them. We also have a young adult and adult program for clients ages 18 and up.
If you feel like your teenager is struggling with a mental health or substance use disorder, you should contact us. Our admissions specialists are trained in assessing your child, and helping guide you to find the best treatment option, even if it isn’t with us. The assessment is free!
Roots Teen focuses on developing resiliency in adolescents and teens, and has a long history of successfully treating trauma, mental health and substance use disorders. Our program takes a unique approach to treating the “whole child” and “whole family” without being attached to any one ideology, making your child’s treatment plan truly individualized.
The admissions process is simple to make the experience as streamlined as possible:
- Call our admissions line. Our admissions specialists will conduct a complimentary assessment of your child to identify their needs and if we are a good fit, and collect insurance information.
- Make a decision. After our clinical director has make a decision about suitability, and we’ve discussed treatment options and finances, you and your child will decide if Roots Teen is the right fit.
- Schedule intake. Our intake specialists will schedule and intake for your child where you and your teen will complete intake paperwork, and enroll in the program.
Absolutely! We encourage you to please visit Roots before making any decisions about treatment. Our facility and team are best experienced in person, and we know that once you and your teen get a feel for our program, you will love it.
We are proud to report that our average length of stay is about three times that of other programs like ours. Behavioral health disorders are usually deeply-rooted and can take a lot of time to uncover and treat effectively. Many of the approaches we use require a person to be in treatment for a longer period of time, especially when addressing trauma. This length of stay is why we have such incredible treatment outcomes.
The groups at Roots Teen are meant to be clinically effective, while also being engaging and interactive, which we believe is the best way to treat behavioral health issues – and especially with teens. Groups also rotate occasionally so that our clients are always getting new information and skills. Some of the groups include cognitive behavioral therapy, seeking safety, improv, art therapy, mindfulness and meditation, drumming for healing, among others. Your teen will not just be sitting in a group room all day, and will be encouraged to participate in a meaningful way in all the groups, by both the facilitator and their peers.
Trauma can be caused by any number of experiences or events, and manifests differently in everyone. For some, trauma can affect their cognition or emotional state and manifests as mental health issues or substance use, while with others, trauma is stored in the body and triggers can lead to feelings of anxiety or depression. All of the Roots Teen clinicians are trained in EMDR, which is provided in individual therapy, and we also provide trauma-focused groups that help teens identify and address trauma.
Our team is made up of clinicians who are Masters-level marriage and family therapists, all either licensed or are near licensure with their clinical hours; Masters-level social workers; and certified drug and alcohol counselors. Our program is overseen by our clinical director, a licensed psychologist with a counseling background; and our medical director, who is triple board certified, including addiction medicine.
The Roots Teen program does not allow phones while in individual or group therapy sessions, however your child may bring their phone with them to Roots. Part of treatment is helping your teen manage their technology and social media use in a healthy way.
It is very common for teens to be resistant to treatment, and even to believe that they do not need help. Resistance cannot be met with force. In these cases, our admissions team is well-versed in providing information and asking key questions to help your teen arrive there themselves.
Family therapy is a key component of treatment and helping your child get better. We offer therapy together with your child, and family group that offers psychoeducation and skills-based development for family members so that treatment is effective, and outcomes are long-lasting.
Still have a question?
FAQs
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The Roots Teen program is specifically designed to treat adolescents and teenagers (ages 13-18) and the issues that are unique to them. We also have a young adult and adult program for clients ages 18 and up.
If you feel like your teenager is struggling with a mental health or substance use disorder, you should contact us. Our admissions specialists are trained in assessing your child, and helping guide you to find the best treatment option, even if it isn’t with us. The assessment is free!
Roots Teen focuses on developing resiliency in adolescents and teens, and has a long history of successfully treating trauma, mental health and substance use disorders. Our program takes a unique approach to treating the “whole child” and “whole family” without being attached to any one ideology, making your child’s treatment plan truly individualized.
The admissions process is simple to make the experience as streamlined as possible:
- Call our admissions line. Our admissions specialists will conduct a complimentary assessment of your child to identify their needs and if we are a good fit, and collect insurance information.
- Make a decision. After our clinical director has make a decision about suitability, and we’ve discussed treatment options and finances, you and your child will decide if Roots Teen is the right fit.
- Schedule intake. Our intake specialists will schedule and intake for your child where you and your teen will complete intake paperwork, and enroll in the program.
Absolutely! We encourage you to please visit Roots before making any decisions about treatment. Our facility and team are best experienced in person, and we know that once you and your teen get a feel for our program, you will love it.
We are proud to report that our average length of stay is about three times that of other programs like ours. Behavioral health disorders are usually deeply-rooted and can take a lot of time to uncover and treat effectively. Many of the approaches we use require a person to be in treatment for a longer period of time, especially when addressing trauma. This length of stay is why we have such incredible treatment outcomes.
The groups at Roots Teen are meant to be clinically effective, while also being engaging and interactive, which we believe is the best way to treat behavioral health issues – and especially with teens. Groups also rotate occasionally so that our clients are always getting new information and skills. Some of the groups include cognitive behavioral therapy, seeking safety, improv, art therapy, mindfulness and meditation, drumming for healing, among others. Your teen will not just be sitting in a group room all day, and will be encouraged to participate in a meaningful way in all the groups, by both the facilitator and their peers.
Trauma can be caused by any number of experiences or events, and manifests differently in everyone. For some, trauma can affect their cognition or emotional state and manifests as mental health issues or substance use, while with others, trauma is stored in the body and triggers can lead to feelings of anxiety or depression. All of the Roots Teen clinicians are trained in EMDR, which is provided in individual therapy, and we also provide trauma-focused groups that help teens identify and address trauma.
Our team is made up of clinicians who are Masters-level marriage and family therapists, all either licensed or are near licensure with their clinical hours; Masters-level social workers; and certified drug and alcohol counselors. Our program is overseen by our clinical director, a licensed psychologist with a counseling background; and our medical director, who is triple board certified, including addiction medicine.
The Roots Teen program does not allow phones while in individual or group therapy sessions, however your child may bring their phone with them to Roots. Part of treatment is helping your teen manage their technology and social media use in a healthy way.
It is very common for teens to be resistant to treatment, and even to believe that they do not need help. Resistance cannot be met with force. In these cases, our admissions team is well-versed in providing information and asking key questions to help your teen arrive there themselves.
Family therapy is a key component of treatment and helping your child get better. We offer therapy together with your child, and family group that offers psychoeducation and skills-based development for family members so that treatment is effective, and outcomes are long-lasting.
