What will happen if I am referred to Altered High?

Based on the information from the referral you will be allocated an Altered High clinician.
Your clinician will ring you and/or your family, to introduce themselves and organise a time to meet.
Your clinician will then meet with you in a place convenient for you. They will answer any questions you might have about Altered High and then ask you some questions (an assessment). This is to find out about you, work out what your strengths and current difficulties are, and begin to work out a plan about how to help you.
Some possible ways they can help may include…
- Providing information (facts) about drugs and alcohol and addiction
- Motivating you to make healthy changes around your drug and alcohol use
- Providing information about decreasing the harm from drug or alcohol use
- Helping record and monitor your substance use so you have more idea (and control) of what is going on
- Teaching you strategies to cut down or stop using alcohol and/or drugs
- Working with your family to support you in making safer choices

Anyone can refer to Altered High but it’s best when young people refer themselves.
There’s only two things required to refer to Altered High:
1. The young person has to have some sort of concern about their own (or someone else’s) substance use,
2. The young person must agree to the referral. Effective interventions are based around a trusting relationship. When we first contact a young person, if they know nothing about the referral, or disagree with it, it’s unlikely that we will be able to form a good relationship.
Currently Altered High receives referrals from young people and their parents, school guidance counselors, mental health services, public health nurses, Oranga Tamariki social workers, the police, GP’s and many other kinds of people.