Seven Challenges

Substance Abuse Treatment Services

Traditional approaches to working with adolescents who have drug problems have produced disappointing results. The mad rush to get young people to say, "I will quit" often leads to either increased defiance, or increased dishonesty, with young people telling adults what they "want to hear." It also leads to failure among certain youth who follow adult directives to quit, but soon relapse because they have not laid a solid foundation for success.

The Seven Challenges Program starts where youth "are at" (usually resistant and reluctant to change), not where we wish they would be or might pretend to be (fully and honestly prepared to quit.) We avoid the pitfall of teaching people to be drug free before they have honestly decided to be drug free. We also resist the temptation to follow the common practice of locking horns; trying to convince young people that they have problems, and backing them into defensive positions. Instead of fear and coercion, we harness the enormous power of education, finesse and respectful confrontation. We take the slow but steady approach.

To succeed in working with youth, The Seven Challenges Program places a special emphasis on creating a climate of mutual respect within which individuals can talk openly and honestly about themselves. Working through The Seven Challenges helps adolescents understand what needs they are meeting by using drugs, what harm they are causing, what risks they are taking, and what it entails to give up a drug using lifestyle. We raise consciousness, inspire hope, and motivate informed, internally driven, sincere decisions to change.

Information on The Seven Challenges is available at www.sevenchallenges.com

Composite of Evidence for The Seven Challenges^®

The Seven Challenges Program was developed by Robert Schwebel, Ph.D., who is still very actively involved with clinical aspects of the Program. Dr. Schwebel initially created The Seven Challenges while working with adolescents in a Tucson, Arizona residential setting. Shortly thereafter, program development continued in day treatment, juvenile justice, and intensive outpatient settings. Dr. Schwebel firmly believed that a substance abuse counseling program for adolescents must be developmentally appropriate; based upon psychological research and science, including the study of what has been proven to be effective in bringing about change; and holistic – that is, addressing substance abuse issues as well as co-occurring problems and life skills deficits. Furthermore, while writing the Program he was working with substantial numbers of Hispanic, African American, and Native American youth. He saw the need for a Program that would be respectful and sensitive to a variety of cultures.

In terms of outcomes studies, The Seven Challenges was fortunate to have been rolled into studies, funded by The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), as a comparison group. These research studies were completed at the University of Arizona and at the University of Iowa. The reference information for the published studies is listed below. Both studies showed substantial reduction in substance abuse and impressive mental health improvements. The Stevens (2007) study had the unusual and very positive finding of continued mental health improvement between three and six months post-treatment. The positive outcomes of The Seven Challenges in the Smith (2006) study were paired with positive outcomes in a family program, though Seven Challenges clients received substantially fewer sessions in counseling than did the family program youth (19 compared to 26.)

In 2005, at the SAMHSA Joint Meeting on Adolescent Treatment Effectiveness (JMATE), Michael Dennis presented data comparing manualized treatment in outpatient settings for youth with serious trauma issues. The Seven Challenges had a significantly larger effect than all the other programs and was the most effective outpatient approach for reducing substance use among adolescents with high victimization scores. The executive summary appears below as well.

To refer a youth to Maple Star's Seven Challenges program contact Eric Bouwman, Seven Challenges Coordinator, at

Tel: 720-496-8234 or eMail at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it