The Importance of Therapy and Counselling Services for Adolescents

What is Adolescent Counselling and Therapy?

Adolescence is a period of transition from childhood to the adulthood, marked by significant emotional, physical and social changes. While exploration and self-discovery go hand-in-hand during this phase, so do the issues related to identity, societal expectations and relationships.

Adolescent counselling or therapy is talk-therapy for teenagers who need some help managing their mental health. This is to prevent or address mental crisis - anxiety, depression, burnout, etc.

India, particularly during COVID-19 has seen a wave of recognition and acknowledgement regarding mental health issues - particularly, depression and anxiety related disorders. Thus, the importance of psychotherapy or even basic counselling services for adolescents is now more highlighted than ever before in supporting their mental and overall wellbeing.

Adolescent Therapy vs Counselling

Counselling is for a specific issue that is usually temporary and less severe in nature. Therapy, on the other hand, is for long-term and general issues. As in most cases, even in this piece, the two have been used interchangeably.

Common Issues faced by Adolescents

1.    Anxiety

The level of anxiety teenagers face today, in the day and age of social media, regarding school, dating, sex, friendships or even the most basic and trivial issues of life is absolutely unparalleled to what you, parents, had when you were their age. The exposure to social media is immense.

2.   Low self-esteem

This is relatively harder to notice as low confidence can manifest in wanting to keep up with the appearances and relevant social media trends to feel relevant and wanted. This is easily dismissed as 'Genz behaviour' or something along the lines of snobby.

3.   Time management issues

Is your teen having a hard time juggling extracurriculars, academics and free time? Maybe your teen is feeling burnout. Maybe your teen is feeling too much performance-anxiety. Maybe your teen is feeling overwhelmed with pressure.

4.   Family conflict

Do you think your teen has become 'rebellious' or 'aggressive' or 'moody?' Extreme swings in the moods can be a sign of pent-up emotions. It is understandably difficult for teens to open up to an authority figure.

5.   Stress

Closely related to anxiety, stress usually manifests as poor or excessive appetite, irregular sleep, frequent mood swings, becoming "closed off."

6.   Substance abuse

Most adults report their addiction stemming from drug abuse in their teen years. Teens can be sneaky. Hence it is important to be calm and reason with your teenager, instead of being strict and authoritarian.

7.   Sexual orientation and dating

Teens are yearning for acceptance more than adults. It is vital for them that people they surround themselves with accept them for who they are, and when that need is not met, it can lead to low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, suicidality, etc.

8.   Body image issues

Your teen's body is constantly changing during adolescent years. Teens have a hard time accepting if they are overweight or dark-skinned or even when thet have acne, for that matter. Their standards are influenced by social media. The pressure to 'be a certain way' is quite real for them. Please let your teen know they are beautiful the way they are.

9.   Academic problems

Do you think your teen's grades are dropping? It could be a sign that your kid may be going through something - bullying, relationship issues, etc. but is unable to communicate.

Benefits of Adolescent therapy and Counselling

Some specific ways teen therapy can help your child in -

1.   Emotional regulation

Learning how to not let your emotions get the best of you is called emotional regulation. Teens are usually easily overwhelmed with their emotions. Teen counselling will help them navigate difficult emotions.

2.   Trauma Healing

Our brain keeps on growing until the age of 25! This means that during teenage years, your teen's brain is still developing. Any acute or chronic trauma can result in stunted brain development, which can impact your teen even when they are well into adulthood.

3.   Enhanced self-worth and self-awareness

As mentioned before, many teens have low self-esteem. The goal of teen therapy is to teach them that self-acceptance and self-reliance matter more than social acceptance.

4.   Mending interpersonal relationships

Teen therapy also takes into consideration child's family and social dynamics. It equips the child to form and maintain healthy relationships within and outside family.

5.   Developing Healthy Coping Mechanisms

The aim of teen therapy or counselling is to prepare your child for the challenges to come. This includes teaching your child certain coping mechanisms - like breathing exercises, setting healthy boundaries, prioritizing workload, understanding their triggers, finding new ways to deal with dysfunctional group dynamics, etc.

10 Signs of Mental Distress you should watch for in your Teen

Not all behaviour of teens can be dismissed as 'teens being teens' or 'Genz being Genz.' Some of their behaviour can point to the distress they are going through.

The following are the 10 things you need to keep an eye out, just in case -

1.    Persistent feelings of hopelessness.

2.    Having difficulty focusing or concentrating.

3.    Talking about self-harm or suicide. Usually this is dismissed as attention-seeking behaviour.

4.    Significant changes in eating habits.

5.    Significant and sudden changes in behaviour.

6.    Self-isolation.

7.    Extreme mood swings.

8.    Self-destructive behaviour.

9.    A sudden drop in grades and/or performance in the extracurriculars. 

Teen Mental Health and Butterfly Learnings

The following are the key areas our therapists can help your teen in -

• Anxiety and depression
• Sexual orientation and interpersonal relationships
• Peer pressure
• Academic pressure
• Homelife struggles
• Communication skills
• The stress of social media
• Bullying (in school or on social media)
• Live changes (divorce, attending a new school or moving to a new state)
• Body-image issues

Our therapists understand the unique journey you and your teen are on. We approach adolescent therapy and counselling in a very comprehensive and integrative way. We firmly believe that parents are not alone in navigating their teens' journey through adolescence. We recognize the struggles, confusion, complexities and uncertainties common to all parents, as well as those unique to you. Our only aim is to help your teen build a healthy emotional regulation, a strong sense of self, healthy relationships with peers and their own bodies, and the ability to make healthy choices.