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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2022 May 4.
Published in final edited form as: Subst Abus. 2021 May 4;42(4):1049–1058. doi: 10.1080/08897077.2021.1915916

Table 1.

Exemplar parent SMART posts, by forum.

Major Theme
• Emergent Concept Ask an Expert Connect with Parents
Parenting Skills Employing skills such as parental monitoring, communication, and behavioral contracting

  • Communication

 “How do you start a conversation with your teen when they’re already shut down?”
“How do you balance being empathetic and delivering consequences?”		 “Hi everyone my son recently came home from treatment and he used within the first 24hrs. Are any other parents experiencing the same? How did you handle it? I have been applying my new skills with ‘I’ statements and active listening but wonder if you may have any other suggestions or maybe just can relate.”

  • Behavioral Contracting

 “Thanks so much! I will stick to the rule for sure. I will work on the learning more about Contracting.” “I’m scared, what would happen if my son does not follow the contract rules?” [translated from Spanish]

  • Parental Monitoring

 “I can’t understand why my daughter is thinking to hurt herself. What can 1 do to help her?” “She has to wait until we are around to go out with friends and be home when we say or she loses time. Chores and homework has to be done. We can watch her on our phone or tablet anytime with the camera system.”
Parent Support Self-care inquiries, seeking/providing support or connection with other participants

  • Connection/Support

 “Hi [Expert] no questions at the moment but if one come up I’ll reach and ask away ty” “I completely understand how you’re feeling. It’s exhausting physically and mentally. I just went to my first Al-Anon meeting last week. It’s for parents. It felt nice to be around others who understood how I was feeling … I hope you find some peace!”

  • Self-care

 N/A “What are some things you guys do to give yourself some space when emotions are running high?”
“How do you as parents keep up with your needs when you’re running all over town chasing your teen?”
Transition Management Aspects of the post-discharge transition, concerns about peers, manage/prevent relapse

  • Adolescent Issues

 “I understand that relapse is part of recovery but at what point is residential needed again? My son used and had risky behavior on his first day home after his discharge. We are concerned about his safety.” “My son is adjusting back to school after 38 days inpatient and an entire semester of skipping. I’m hoping he can get back on track and he says he will. How do you trust your child while not being a micromanage[r]… thats what he called me today… with a ☺”

  • Managing Medications

 N/A “Due to circumstances I administer all medications at our house. Now that my son is working and getting more privileges, he is not home at the times he takes his medication. How do other parents handle this”

  • Friendships

 N/A “My son recently returned from residential … substance and behavioral care. He is having a hard time finding friends to spend time with due to them avoiding him. He said either their parents won’t allow them to spend time with him or the kids just avoid him … Any advice”
Substances Substance-specific comments, laws or legal ramifications, or relapse

  • Substance-specific

 “… I am just worried he is too addicted to stop [vaping] on his own. Should I be concerned about his health with the nicotine poisoning and seek medical help?” “It’s highly addictive! I would take action right away by educating and talking to her as much as possible. My son is struggling to stay vape free after being in residential treatment for 30 days. He admitted he is constantly thinking of how/when is the next time he can vape.”

  • Substance Legality

 “Given the current climate of medical marijuana nationwide, the legalization of it, how do you address that with your teenager? My teenager views it as a manipulation of the system to get high” N/A
Family Functioning Parent-child relationship, or impact of teen’s SU on the family

  • Effect on Other Family Members

 N/A “My 16yo’s behavior has an impact on everyone in the family and there isn’t a way to avoid talking about it … [siblings] worry for her and about her. … Talking about it helps them to deal with their unknowns and gives them answers to questions they have, it also lets them know we can have conversations about difficult topics”

  • Parent-Child Relationship

 N/A “We go out to breakfast before school once a week and I try to hold to it even if there was a big fight or an issue the night before (which is common). I hope it helps him realize that I want to have “us” time no matter what, because despite my disappointment in his actions, I still want to have a relationship with him.”