Columbus Girls Academy is an affordable Christian boarding school located near Columbus, Georgia, offering a safe haven for adolescent girls in Chesterton, Indiana and around the nation; teens who have sought to fill a void in their hearts through anger, self-harm or negative peer influences.

After exhausting every option in their search to help their girl, parents in Chesterton, Indiana turn to the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy. They have usually tried counseling, medication, relocation, mental health approaches, and social service interventions, all without success. Some have been told by loved ones that it would be a good idea for their girl to get away from the negative influences in her life and away from home for awhile. So, they make the call for the help of a therapeutic boarding school, like the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy.

The usual prospective resident from Chesterton, Indiana at the Teen Challenge Girls Academy was that she was once bright and talented; however, because of poor choices or an uncaring attitude, her future has been compromised. Where there was once excelling grades, there are failing grades. Where there were once athletic, artistic or musical abilities, there is a loss of interest. The teenage girl who once looked to her parents for direction, love, approval and acceptance, now looks to her peers to fulfill those needs; she is willing to follow them down an alternate and dangerous path in life.

While shifts usually happen in the moods of girls going through early adolescence, some precipitating factors can leave a void in a girl’s life and bring out extremely self-destructive and angry behaviors. These factors include:

• Loss of a parent or loved one
• Childhood abuse (known or hidden)
• Family split
• An absent or abusive parent
• Bullying from others/Loss of friends
• Loss of economic status or a change to a new home or school
• Medical issues with a loved one
• Physical invasion or mental intimidation
• Gang membership
• Excessive interest in pornography
• Negative peer group

Resulting from such factors, girls from Chesterton, Indiana who enroll in our the Teen Challenge program generally exhibit attitudes and actions such as:

• Low self-esteem
• Rebellion/Anger/Defiance
• Self Injurious Behaviors or Thoughts
• Deceitfulness/Cheating/Theft
• Manipulation of family and parents
• Promiscuity
• Self-Hatred

Many times, prior to choosing CGA, parents in Chesterton, Indiana have sought help from psychiatry and the prescription of medication. While psychotropic medications can help reduce the symptoms of problems, we have found high success in helping girls get off of them once and for all. All but the most severe mental issues are generally triggered by underlying emotional issues, which must be addressed and solved with a clear mind. Psychotropic drugs are reduced over time with the supervision of our physician and the girl’s psychiatrist.

Most girls who come to CGA in Columbus, Georgia, from Chesterton, Indiana have been previously diagnosed with behavioral disorders such as:

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• ADD
• Being oppositional and defiant
• Mood disturbances
• Issues from adoption
• Sadness or Over Exuberance

Progression of a usual Teen Challenge student from Chesterton, Indiana:

When a student comes to Columbus Girls Academy it is usual for her to exhibit blame-shifting, avoidance of responsibility, and sometimes complete denial of wrongdoing. Soon after enrollment, the girl begins to feel some sorrow for the consequences of her previous behavior. Essentially, she is “sorry” for being caught in her behavior, but she has yet to begin a turning away from that behavior. This may be very similar to the ups and downs that the family has been living with at home — promises to change, periods of peace, that cycle back to repeat and crisis. Sorrow does not change behavior, repentance does.

Many times, teens have been spared or delayed the heartache of the full-blown consequences for their bad decisions; sometimes by well-intending parents. For these reasons, teens are not always convinced of the need for change in their lives. However, the parent is convinced of the need for intervention, because their girl is obviously headed for lifelong trouble if such actions persist. The Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy is an intervention program, hopefully helping make a change in troubled adolescents’ lives before they go on with life habitually living in a dysfunctional lifestyle.

We can be reached at (334)855-3695 or inquire using the online inquiry form to learn girls from Chesterton, Indiana year-round.

Therapeutic boarding school near Columbus, Georgia, a Teen Challenge academy for teenage girls in Chesterton, Indiana and around the nation who are struggling with life-controlling issues. Call us now to learn more about Teen Challenge.

The Columbus Girls Academy Teen Challenge program isn’t in Chesterton, Indiana, but it accepts young women from Chesterton, Indiana.