Teenagers!
Life has gotten bigger and more complicated than ever during this time period. Cliques at school mean everything, relationships take precedent, extracurriculars define identity, and getting those concert tickets feels like life or death.
Teens may react to these big life transitions differently. They’re either always on the go trying to juggle it all, completely overwhelmed, shut down, or avoidant of the things that need to get done.
As a parent, you want to help. You want to be involved. And yet, no matter how hard you try and how much you witness your teen struggling, you may be finding it tremendously difficult to get through to your teen.
Don’t worry. This is part of the growing up process. This is normal and expected.
Emotional outburts, anger, frustration, behavioral patterns that aren’t always welcome — these are all things I work through with my clients.
Individual therapy is an amazing outlet that parents can provide for their teens who want to share but aren’t quite ready to open up to you yet. While parents aren’t in the therapy space in these scenarios, parents often begin to notice shifts in their teens mood and behavior over time.
Parents, if you and your teen are feeling brave and open to learning about how to be better in your dynamics with one another, family therapy can be a transformative opportunity for all parties involved.
I’ve spent a majority of my career learning how to best work with teens.
As a former sex educator in juvenile hall and gender-based violence advocate for teens, I am well-versed in what it takes to create a space where teens feel comfortable and brave enough to share about all kinds of topics (even the topics adults find difficult to discuss).
Through the safe space I create for teens in therapy to be vulnerable, my young clients get the opportunity to share and work through emotions in a way that puts them in the driver’s seat.
In fact, it’s part of the survival process!
Let me break it down.
When lion cubs come of age, it is expected that they go on to find their own pack. Finding and fitting into a pack are essential for survival.
This concept applies to human teenagers. As teens go through this developmental stage, they’re learning to make it on their own without the training wheels that are their parent’s involvement!
That being said, this stage is still tough nonetheless, and no parent wants to see their teens go through this time alone.
I can help.