Does your Teen Need Counseling?
Your teen has been acting differently lately.
Your teenager has been spending less time with you and your family and more time alone in their bedroom. You have noticed that their grades have dropped. Maybe your high school student has become more angry and aggressive towards you or their siblings. Perhaps you’ve noticed your previously happy teen is now crying more often and is easily irritated.
You are worried about your teenager’s behavior, but when you ask them what’s wrong, they tell you, “It’s nothing” or “I am fine.”
As a parent, you may be wondering:
Is this normal teen behavior?
Are these behaviors symptoms of fluctuating hormones or is there something more serious going on?
Is my teen using alcohol or drugs?
Is my teen involved in other risky behaviors?
Why won’t my teen talk to me anymore?
At BPC, we understand your concerns and the feelings of frustration, confusion, and desperation that they may be causing you. Parenting is difficult and your teenager didn’t come with an instruction manual. Our behavioral therapists are experts in teen behavior and are here to help you get to the bottom of what is causing them to act this way.
Common Reasons Teenagers come to Therapy Include:
- ADHD and difficulty focusing in school
- Trauma
- Depression
- Suicidal thoughts
- Self-harm
- Anxiety & excessive worry
- Social skills & problems with friends
- Withdrawing from friends
- Isolating from family & arguing with parents
- Angry or Aggressive Outbursts
- Mood Swings
- Frequent Crying
- School Problems or declining grades
- High Risk Behaviors including Substance Abuse
- Overuse of Electronics
- Teen Adjustment to Parent Divorce or Separation
- Grieving
Our Approach to Teen Counseling
At BPC, we treat disorders in teens using effective and evidence-based techniques including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to treat anxiety and depression, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy to treat personality disorders, and EMDR to treat trauma.
We also incorporate expressive therapies including art, writing, sand tray, and games in order to reach each teen’s unique way of expressing themselves. To learn more about play and expressive therapies, visit our Play Therapy Page.
We use the most current research in neurobiology and attachment to inform our work with teens and families because we view counseling as an opportunity to collaborate with parents and their teens in order to strengthen family bonds and heal together.
We work closely with parents throughout the treatment process and provide parenting support along the way. Visit our Parent Counseling page to learn more about how we support parents.
We are dedicated to guiding families in creating long-lasting change and encouraging families to look beyond their teen’s behaviors to what may be causing them.
When You Seek Counseling for Your Teen at BPC, Your Teen Will:
- Gain awareness of thoughts and feelings
- Learn healthy ways of coping with difficult emotions
- Practice talking about their feelings
- Develop conflict management and communication skills
- Be able to manage fluctuating moods
- Develop unconditional love for themselves
- Strengthen family bonds
Together, we will work to help your teen to express themselves in healthy ways and communicate their thoughts and feelings with you. These skills will help your teen develop life-long, healthy relationships and coping skills.
The Teen Therapy Process at Brittani Persha Counseling
The Teen Counseling process is similar to the counseling process we follow for children. However, it varies a little bit to involve the teen more in the process. It’s also important to note that the therapy process is a little more fluid in teenagers and will be individualized to meet the needs of your teen and family.
WEEK 1: Teen Counseling Intake
This initial teen therapy session is all about information gathering. Often this will be a session between you and your child’s therapist without your teen present. This is so you will be able to freely share information about your child’s history, current behaviors and your family’s functioning as a whole. Your teen’s new therapist will gather relevant background information, explain what you can expect during counseling and go through the informed consent process.
WEEK TWO and THREE: Teen & Family Assessment
Together, in the next two sessions, your teenager will meet and begin to know their assigned teen therapist. During this time, the therapist and your teen will be able to establish a strong, therapeutic relationship. Our teen therapists will work hard to gain the trust of your child. The therapist is also completing an assessment and filling in the picture of what your teen’s main mental health concerns are. The therapist will stress the importance of your teenager contributing to the assessment process and will ask their opinion about what treatment goals should include.
WEEK FOUR and BEYOND: Teen Counseling
Once the assessments are finished, the assigned mental health clinician clinician will go over the clinical assessment results and the recommended plan of treatment. They will explain this information to both you and your teen, so you both know what to expect over the course of your teen’s mental health treatment.
From this point forward, your teen’s treatment will be based off that assessment and treatment plan you and your clinician discussed. You can expect your therapist to consider both your concerns and the information your teenager shared. The rate that their behaviors, feelings and thoughts change will depend on many factors including your teen’s motivation, the issues being targeted and even the involvement of family therapy sessions.
PARENT & FAMILY THERAPY SESSIONS
You as the Parent will also be involved in parent or family counseling session. Because parents and the family environment impact a teen’s mental health, it’s important your therapists dedicates time to going over treatment updates, check in about how things are going at home, and provide direction on how to handle different challenges. Depending on the age of your child and the needs of your specific families you may be meeting alone with the clinician or involving them in these sessions. You and your therapist will determine how frequently you need to meet. Our goal at Brittani Persha Counseling is to support the whole family. You are the parents provide a critical roll in your teenager’s mental health treatment.
TERMINATION: 1-2 Final Teen Counseling Termination Sessions
While every teenager and family’s course of treatment is different, mental health treatment for teenagers often lasts 6 months to a year. We will review the goals set at the beginning of treatment by you as the parents as well as your teen. We want to ensure you and your teenager are satisfied with your counseling experience and confident your family has a plan going forward.
Your Teenager will Benefit from Therapy at Brittani Persha Counseling If They:
- Have experienced a recent trauma or life change
- Are crying frequently
- Feel overwhelmed and anxious
- Engage in self-harm or high-risk behaviors
- Have behavioral or academic problems in school
- Have outbursts of anger or aggression
Families who may not be ready for counseling include, but are not limited to, parents who:
- Do not want to engage in the therapeutic process
- Want a “quick fix”
- View their child as the problem
- Are not able to commit to 6-12 months of therapy
- Want a therapist to “fix” their teenager
In these cases, we can provide you with appropriate referrals to other services in the Houston area.
Beginning Your Family’s Journey Towards Healing & Happiness
At BPC, we believe in your teen’s ability to learn to manage new and difficult feelings caused by life changes, social struggles, academic problems, or family conflict. We believe that families can learn to communicate and grow as a unit. Visit our Child Therapy Page to learn more about our process.
You don’t have to continue wondering if your teen’s behaviors are normal. If you want to take the first step towards a happier teen and a better-functioning family, we can help. Contact us today to get connected with one of our skilled mental health counselors and start reconnecting with your teen.
Play. Connect. Heal.
Thinking about Counseling for your teen but not sure it’s right for your family?
Still unsure if this is what your family needs? Schedule a free phone consultation today. You will have the opportunity to speak directly with one of our mental health counselors to learn more about our office, the counseling process and any other questions you may have.