
Teen mental health and substance abuse issues can be overwhelming. Take heart. The compassionate, experienced professionals at Muir Wood can help. The guiding philosophy of our program emphasizes kindness and compassion over confrontation and control. At Muir Wood, we provide the highest-quality care available, creating a setting where teens and families feel valued and engaged. Accredited by the Joint Commission, recognized as a gold standard, and in-network with leading insurers such as Kaiser Permanente, Anthem Blue Cross, Aetna and Cigna, Muir Wood makes exceptional adolescent mental healthcare accessible.


Exceptional, Accessible Care
Adolescent mental health disorders are complicated conditions that affect every aspect of teen life and identity. Successfully treating these disorders requires comprehensive and coordinated care. Providing this level of care requires significant time, resources, and support. Muir Wood was founded on the mission to make exceptional care available to more families by being an in-network provider.
Accreditations and Affiliations

The Joint Commission
The industry’s highest standards of America’s medical accrediting body.
Visit jointcommisison.org

NATSAP
Member of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs.
Visit natsap.org

ASAM
Member of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.
Visit asam.org

WASC
Member of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
Visit acswasc.org

NAATP
Member of the National Association of Addiction Providers.
Visit naatp.org
Muir Wood is in-network with these providers.




First-Person
Founder’s Message
What Parents Are Saying
Teen mental health by the Numbers
Multiple challenges to adolescent mental health
2014-18 Muir Wood Outcomes Analysis
2014-18 Muir Wood Outcomes Analysis
2014-18 Muir Wood Outcomes Analysis


Center of Excellence
Nationally recognized as a leader in teen treatment, Muir Wood strives to be the center of excellence for the practice and advancement of adolescent mental healthcare. Our use of evidence-based practices, training of the next generation of specialized care providers, and our multidisciplinary treatment approach allow Muir Wood to provide the highest-quality care available.

Integrated psychiatry
Full-time psychiatry offers multiple advantages to patients. Muir Wood’s psychiatrists are able to dedicate significant time with each client to better assess problems and progress and to optimize the use of medications if necessary.

USF practicum
Muir Wood is an accepted practicum program for University of San Francisco medical students. Here, interns are supervised by experienced psychiatrists, therapists, and nurses to gain crucial skills that make high-quality care available to more families.
We’re Here to Help You
Taking your call is our calling
We work with parents, family members, and professionals every day to find appropriate mental healthcare for adolescents and teens. We know how scary and intimidating these conditions can be for families and our goal is to help families start to feel better by getting the care they need. It is our privilege to speak with you.

– Scott Sowle, Muir Wood Founder
Common Teen Mental Health Challenges
Helping teens manage their world
Divorce
Half of the marriages in the United States end in divorce. The prevalence and effects of divorce can be especially stressful for children. Separation of parents is one of ten adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) that can lead to negative effects in adolescence and later life.
Divorce
Performance Pressure
Expectations of academic and activity performance have become more acute for many teens. Intense competition for colleges is driving many young people to unhealthy levels of anxiety, lack of sleep, overexertion, disordered eating, and other problems that can lead to the development of mental health disorders, eating disorders, and other health problems.
Performance Pressure
Social media & bullying
We are learning more about the problems associated with the constant use of devices and ceaseless exposure to texting and social media. Today’s adolescents and teenagers are more exposed to negative messages and stimuli that previous generations. Ubiquitous technology use also makes it harder for some children to escape bullying, a situation that can lead to hopelessness, depression, and anxiety.
Social media & bullying
Anxiety
Teenage anxiety disorders have been increasing at an alarming rate. Studies increasingly link existential problems like eco-anxiety, school violence, college loan debt, technology-assisted job displacement, and more, to the development of anxiety. Reports suggest that almost a third of American teens experience anxiety disorders.
Anxiety
Gender Issues
Attitudes about gender identity are changing more today than at any time in history. Many teens struggle to understand how to fit in a fast-changing culture in which knowing how to develop an authentic sense of sexuality can feel challenging.
Gender Issues
Insights
The field of adolescent mental healthcare is dynamic. Challenges to teen mental health and treatment options are evolving. As front-line responders, Muir Wood clinicians are acutely aware of the multifaceted nature of adolescent mental health disorders and the complexity of the underlying factors that contribute to their development and perpetuation.
Muir Wood News
THE VAPING EPIDEMIC AMONG AMERICA’S TEENS
Teen vaping — the use of e-cigarettes, or vapes, among teens, has become so widespread and so troubling that the Food and Drug Administration has started to take drastic action to counter the trend. Last September, the FDA ordered five brands—Juul, Vuse, MarkTen, blu e-cigs, and Logic—to submit plans to address teen use of their…
CALIFORNIA’S PROBLEMATIC CANNABIS COMMERCIALIZATION
The legalization of recreational marijuana use in California has set off an advertising boom on billboards across the state. They promise “Cannabis, the California Way!” and try to suggest that marijuana can help Californians say goodbye to stress or “get rid of pesky hangovers.” Another billboard promises “unrivaled potency” while asking users to “medicate responsibly.”…
addressing a crucial need
Advancing adolescent health
Successfully treating teen mental health requires a holistic approach that addresses the underlying causes of self-destructive behaviors. Only when these underlying issues are identified and treated can there be positive change and sustainable healing.



