Columbus Girls Academy is a therapeutic boarding school located near Columbus, Georgia, providing a safe haven for young women in Prattville, Alabama and around the nation; teens who have sought to fill a void in their lives through negative peer influences, self-destructive habits, or risky activities.

After trying every option in their search to help their girl, families in Prattville, Alabama turn to the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy. They have usually tried relocation, counseling, and medication, and getting nowhere. Some have been told by loved ones that it would be best 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 Christian boarding school for troubled teens, like the Teen Challenge Columbus Girls Academy.

The usual prospective resident from Prattville, Alabama 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 young woman who once looked to her parents for direction, love, approval and acceptance, now depends on her peers to fulfill those needs; she is willing to allow them to lead her down a destructive path in life.

While changes usually happen in the moods of teenage girls going through early adolescence, some precipitating factors can leave a void in a young woman’s life and lead to extremely self-destructive and angry behaviors. These factors include:

• Death of a parent or loved one
• Childhood abuse (known or hidden)
• Divorce of parents
• A difficult or especially critical parent
• Bullying from others/Loss of friends
• Change in economic status or a change to a new home or school
• Medical issues with a loved one
• Rape or intimidation
• Gang participation
• Excessive interest in pornography
• Negative peer influences

As a result of such factors, teenage girls from Prattville, Alabama who enter our our boarding school typically demonstrate issues and behaviors including:

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

Often, prior to selecting CGA, families in Prattville, Alabama have gotten help from psychiatry and the use of medication. While such medications can help reduce the symptoms of problems, we have achieved significant success in helping girls get off of them once and for all. All but the most severe psychological issues are generally triggered by underlying emotional issues, which must be addressed and solved with a clear mind. Psychotropic drugs are eliminated over time with the care of our physician and the family’s psychiatrist.

Most girls who come to CGA in Columbus, Georgia, from Prattville, Alabama have been previously diagnosed with behavioral disorders like:

• Attention Difficulties
• Difficulty with Distractions in a Classroom Setting
• Being oppositional and defiant
• Mood disturbances
• Issues from adoption
• Sadness or Over Exuberance

Progression of a usual Teen Challenge student from Prattville, AL:

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 resident begins to feel some sorrow for the consequences of her previous behavior. Essentially, she is sad for being caught in her behavior, but she has yet to experience 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 — pledges to change, moments of peace, that cycle back to repeat and crisis. Regret does not change individuals, repentance does.

Often, teens have been spared or delayed the trouble of the full-blown consequences for their bad decisions; sometimes by well-intending adults. So, as a result, teenagers are not always entirely certain of the need for change in their lives. However, the parent is convinced of the need for intervention, because their teenager is obviously headed for disaster 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 self-destructive lifestyle.

Please call at (334)855-3695 or inquire using the online inquiry form to register girls from Prattville, Alabama year-round.

Christian boarding school near Columbus, Georgia, a Teen Challenge school for teenage girls in Prattville, Alabama and around the country who are troubled by life-controlling issues. Call us now to learn more about Teen Challenge.

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