During childhood and adolescence, children are defining who they are and understanding their worth to themselves and others. This is the process of creating a healthy self-esteem. But what happens when that process is disrupted and the child becomes to view themselves as not good enough?

In Laura's case, this self-doubt became evident in high school, but likely started well before then She had a hard time fitting in, finding her niche and getting connected. As a result, she bowed to peer pressure and followed her friends that were experimenting with drugs. Laura's lack of confidence, her inability to develop a healthy self-esteem lead her right into the behaviors that created her addictive behavior.