Therapy for Teenagers: Types, Benefits & Misconceptions
Everyone can benefit from a stable support system, particularly teens. Due to the many unique changes that happen during this age, they often struggle with big emotions. Puberty, increased stress levels, and jobs and college applications are among the many challenging parts of teenage life. It’s common for teens to feel overwhelmed or increasingly stressed, and they are often not equipped with the right tools to navigate through these pressures.
However, that’s completely okay: there are ways to help manage these feelings and healthily work through them. One possible tool for emotion and stress management is therapy. Therapy for teenagers ranges from simply discussing their thoughts and feelings in a safe space to developing coping strategies or working with their families to navigate big challenges.
This blog explores different types of therapeutic approaches suitable for teenagers, breaks down different misconceptions surrounding teen therapy, and provides guidance on how to best support teenagers around you.
What is Therapy?
Therapy is defined as treatment that helps an individual recover from mental health issues and alleviate emotional distress. Therapy can be greatly beneficial in working through issues that teenagers face in their day-to-day lives as they work through monumental change. Building stronger relationship skills, defining goals, changing difficult behaviors, and learning to cope with symptoms of stress or anxiety are some examples. As it becomes more common in practice, it’s important to stay educated on the many facets and types of therapy that can support teens.
Types of Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) often works to change patterns of thinking to treat challenges like depression, eating disorders, anxiety, and relationship problems. This can be extremely beneficial for teenagers who are struggling with negative self-talk and difficulty maintaining a positive outlook on life. An example of a CBT technique is SMART goals, which is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-limited goals that individuals can work towards. A teenager working towards reducing academic stress can utilize this strategy and gradually integrate these coping mechanisms into their day-to-day lives. Other CBT strategies include journaling, guided discovery, and self-talk, all of which are great practices for self-reflection. Individuals can utilize these strategies to challenge unhelpful thoughts, turn negative beliefs into positive ones, and reflect on experiences through a compassionate and constructive lens.
In general, the goal of CBT is to change the individual’s perspective and way of thinking into one that is more positive and open to problem-solving. Teenagers can utilize Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to move forward in life in a positive, healthy direction.
Group Therapy
Another form of therapy that teenagers can benefit from is group therapy. Generally, a small group of patients will meet with a psychologist and target a shared challenge, like anxiety, depression, or loneliness. Although the concept of sharing your struggles openly with strangers may feel intimidating at first, group therapy for teenagers can be greatly beneficial in many ways. Listening to others can help teens feel less alone in their struggles, and develop a better understanding of how those with different backgrounds, personalities, and perspectives may decide to handle certain situations. In general, group therapy reduces feelings of isolation, which can be especially beneficial in the polarizing world that teenagers live in today.
Exposure Therapy
Exposure therapy is a specific type of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy that works with patients to gradually become comfortable with fears. We often tend to avoid things we are afraid of, but over time, this can worsen the fear and associated anxiety. Exposure therapy utilizes strategies like vividly imagining the fear, being gradually exposed to it in real life, virtual reality exposure therapy, and more, all with the comfort of being in the presence of a therapist. Being exposed to fears, whether that’s a specific situation, a physical object, or an activity, not only increases comfort around the issue but also shows patients that they are truly capable of confronting and overcoming their fears. This can help treat conditions like acute stress disorder, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and some major symptoms of OCD and ADHD.
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy
The practice of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) emphasizes a focus on mindful practices in therapy, specifically to address depression. This can be greatly beneficial, especially for teenagers in therapy, to help them find themselves in the present moment. Using mindfulness techniques like meditation and breathing awareness, teens can break away from negative thought patterns and increase their sense of mindfulness. Patients learn how to find peace, compassion, and positivity and use these practices to work through challenges in their mental health, both during therapy and on their own.
Art Therapy
Art therapy is a popular method of therapy that utilizes creativity to overcome and cope with challenges. This can be particularly appealing to creative teenagers, as the practice involves painting, drawing, and crafting to work through tough emotions. Not only is this form of therapy enjoyable to those who enjoy creating art, but it also fosters emotional resilience, self-awareness, and can even enhance social skills. Expression and communication through visual and symbolic methods can be especially beneficial for those working with language or speech barriers and can increase confidence and connections between patients, therapists, and others in the patient’s life.
What are the benefits of therapy for teenagers?
Therapy for teens can be hugely beneficial. Through talks, lessons, and other interactive elements, teenagers and their therapists can form a bond that makes the student feel safe when discussing vulnerable subjects. Therapy can help treat a wide range of conditions, including but not limited to OCD, depression, learning disorders, academic stress, social anxiety, and even ADHD.
Common Misconceptions About Therapy
Therapy is a well-known practice, but can sometimes be misunderstood. Especially in the judgemental world that teenagers live in, it’s important to clarify and define common myths about therapy.
Myth: All therapy is the same.
Fact: There is a wide variety of types of therapy offered, each of which can address and treat various mental health issues. It’s important to identify the type(s) of therapy that works best for each individual’s needs and goals.
Myth: Therapy is only for serious issues.
Fact: Therapy can be used to work through any type of mental health challenges, big or small. It’s never too early to ask for help, and going to therapy before an issue gets serious can work as a preventative measure to ensure things don’t get worse. It can also simply be a beneficial practice to develop a better sense of self and create healthy habits.
Myth: It’s embarrassing to go to therapy.
Fact: Attending therapy sessions is not something to be ashamed of whatsoever. In fact, it implies that individuals are working towards self-improvement, an admirable quality. Getting help for our struggles is never something we should be embarrassed about or hide.
Myth: Few people go to therapy.
Fact: Although there may be a stigma around therapy and many people may not be open about their experience with attending therapy, there is in fact quite a high number of individuals who go to or have gone to therapy. You are not alone!
How to Get the Most Out of Therapy
Therapy for teenagers is a great opportunity to work through difficult feelings and develop a deeper understanding of oneself. To get the most out of each therapy session, it’s important for individuals to ensure their utmost comfort before a bout of vulnerability: choosing the right therapist is essential for patients to feel comfortable and safe in their therapy sessions. Additionally, individuals should be open to change and growth. Therapy is a place to explore feelings, and it is also a place to learn how to improve as a person. With the correct preparation, practice, and mindset, therapy can be incredibly beneficial for patients and their relationship with themselves.
How to Support Your Teen in Therapy
Building and maintaining an emotional connection between parents and teens is essential for a healthy family dynamic, and ensures that teenagers feel safe asking for help and sharing vulnerable moments. This trust can be established through open conversation and empathetic support. Supporting teenagers through struggles like teenage depression and anxiety can sometimes present itself as a struggle: teens might be resistant to therapy or embarrassed about going to sessions. Parents can help by encouraging their children to shift their mindset and view therapy as lessons or coaching in life skills instead of ‘treatment’ for challenges. Parents should prioritize making their child feel safe and supported in their mental health journey, and remain open and ready to help in any way possible.
If you, a loved one, or a teenager you know are struggling with mental health challenges, therapy is a great option. to work through feelings, discuss difficult experiences, and learn about methods to cope and improve one’s outlook on life. Trust Mental Health consists of a diverse team of compassionate therapists who speak a collective 17 languages and provide services for children, teenagers, as well as adults. If you or a teenager you know could benefit from therapy, we encourage you to take the first step in learning more about the services we offer and find a great therapist today.
Key Points
There are a wide variety of types of therapy, each of which has its own individual benefits. These include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Art Therapy, Exposure Therapy, Group Therapy, and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy.
Therapy helps patients work through mental health struggles like OCD, depression, or anxiety while developing confidence and creating coping strategies.
Parents can support their teenagers in therapy by providing stable and empathetic support throughout their teen’s experience, and by maintaining an open mind.
FAQs
Is it bad to need therapy?
Not at all! Everyone works through their own mental challenges in their own ways, and therapy is one great strategy to improve our mental health. Not only does it help individuals work through challenging times with a trusted professional, but it also creates progress towards increased self-awareness, builds relationship skills, handles strong emotions, and develops a more positive outlook on life. Going to therapy by no means at all means that someone is weak, and instead shows an initiative to work towards the betterment of our own lives.
What is the difference between a therapist, a psychologist, and a psychiatrist?
The many titles of professionals in the mental health field can become confusing. Clarity can help patients decide which professional would be best for their individual needs. A psychologist studies mental processes and behaviors such as people’s interactions with environments and other people. Their job is to teach patients methods to understand and handle the challenges of mental health struggles and life in general. Psychologists diagnose and treat mental disorders, and often utilize treatment like psychotherapy to do so. Similarly, psychiatrists study, diagnose, and treat various mental challenges. However, as they do have a degree in medicine, psychiatrists are able to prescribe medication and tend to refer patients to psychologists instead of providing a primary source of counseling or therapy. Finally, a therapist will both diagnose mental health disorders and create a treatment plan. They can specialize in a wide variety of types of therapy and will analyze your experiences, history, and challenges, and help develop a plan to achieve goals and reach improvement.
What do the letters behind a therapist’s name mean?
Many therapists have a long string of letters behind their name, like PsyD., Ph.D., or MS. These are all abbreviations for the therapist’s credentials and training. This helps patients understand their therapist’s credibility and can be beneficial in figuring out which therapy is best for one’s individual needs. A PsyD. is a doctorate of psychology, so the therapist has completed a significant amount of training in the practice of psychology and often will work in hospitals or clinical facilities. An M.D. is a doctor in medicine and usually indicates a psychiatrist. This is a mental health practitioner who has a degree in medicine but specifically specializes in psychology. An MS. is a Master of Science, and an MA. is a Master of Arts. These titles are master’s degrees in psychology, which are one level below that of a doctorate. A LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, who specializes in marriage and family relationships. There are countless abbreviations that tell patients what their doctor specializes in, and it’s recommended to be fully informed before deciding the best doctor for your individual needs.