Space For Learning Skills For Growth
Teen Therapy
AGES 13+
Does Your Teen Hold Themselves To Unrealistic Standards?
Is your teenager dealing with anxiety and burnout? Do they have a tendency to procrastinate and have bad sleep habits? Are they overwhelmed by all the pressure to succeed at such a young age? Do you worry that they’re working themselves too hard? Is the stress causing physical symptoms such as nausea, stomachaches, headaches, or chest pain?
Maybe they hold themselves to ridiculously high standards and suffer emotional meltdowns when they don’t reach them. Perhaps they’re wrestling with low self-esteem—they compare themselves to all the happy and beautiful people they see on social media and worry that they don’t measure up. They might be struggling to keep up with their peers in school, causing them to procrastinate or avoid homework altogether. Perhaps they want to appear to have it “all together,” but struggle with anxiety and self-doubt. These issues could all take a toll on their mental health and make it difficult to be their best at home, at school, and in relationships.
Your teen could benefit from mental health support for:
· Anxiety Disorders / Panic Attacks
· Perfectionistic tendencies and extremely high self-standards
· Negative thinking style (e.g., catastrophizing, black-or-white thinking, jumping to conclusions)
· Academic stress/burnout, procrastination, and work avoidance
· Sleep problems - difficulty falling or staying asleep
· Depression, sadness, anger, irritability
· Negative body image and unhealthy eating habits
· Low self-esteem and confidence
· Gender dysphoria and gender identity issues
· Coping with biculturalism and acculturative stress
Your Teen’s Struggles Could Be Stressful For You As A Parent
Parenting a teen can feel like rocket science. As solid as your advice is, your attempts to help are considered “nagging” and your teen thinks they know best. Despite your best efforts to support your hard-working and over-achieving teen, their anxiety and mood seem to worsen over time.
You might feel terrible watching them struggle, but you’re not sure how to help. Since they want independence, you’re afraid of being too invasive or overbearing. You want to show them care and attention, but you don’t want to be a helicopter parent. How can you find a happy medium?
As a therapist, I want to help you strike a healthy balance in your parenting and empower you to support your teen as they navigate life’s stressors. I also want to help your teenager manage their anxiety, increase their self-compassion, and feel more comfortable in their skin.
Many Teens Nowadays Get Swept Up In Toxic Overachieving Culture
Most of the teens that I see struggle with anxiety, perfectionism, and self-esteem issues. In the Bay Area where I practice, the academic environment is ultra-competitive. It’s normal for teens to overload their schedules with AP courses and strive for a 5.0 GPA. Many of them stay up late, have poor sleep habits, and struggle with burnout.
The problem with this overachieving culture is that it leads teens to develop the mentality that they must go to a certain university to be successful. If they can’t maintain academic perfection and be at the absolute top of the class, then they believe that all their hard work means nothing. This sets them up for disappointment and increases their distress.
The Comparison Culture Of Social Media Only Adds To Teenage Mental Health Issues
To make matters worse, teens nowadays are surrounded by pressures from social media to have the best content, the most followers, and the trendiest fashion. Everyone else seems happier, better-looking, and more successful, making teens “compare and despair” and adding to their low self-esteem.
Therapy can help your teen see beyond overachieving culture and understand that it doesn’t have to be “Harvard (or another top university) or nothing.” This is an opportunity for them to learn to love and accept themselves as they are.
Therapy Is A Chance For Teens To Challenge Unrealistic Standards And Improve Their Self-Esteem
Your teen probably has enough on their plate right now. Therapy is not going to add any assignments to their life. Instead, I want to help your teen slow down, press pause, and make room for self-care. With me, they have a chance to openly and honestly discuss their fears and worries and the high expectations that surround them. They’ll learn to recognize unhelpful thoughts, challenge unrealistic standards, and improve their self-worth.
What To Expect In Teen Counseling Sessions
The free initial consult is usually held with you, the parent, to go over availability and figure out if I’m a good fit for your teen. In the intake session, you and your teen will typically meet together with me to discuss the main concerns, identify goals, and outline a plan for counseling. From there, most sessions will be held with your teen individually. Although I can update you from time to time with your teen’s permission, everything your teen shares in therapy is confidential (except for safety concerns).
That said, I still want you to be an active part of your teen’s healing process and growth. I want to give you practical strategies that you can use to communicate with your teen more effectively. I’ll also help you learn to parent in a more balanced way. The goal is to help you find ways to support your teen when they’re struggling while still respecting their autonomy and independence.
Tailoring Your Teen’s Therapy Plan
What approach I take differs from teen to teen and depends on what their biggest struggles are. For teenage anxiety, I like to incorporate relaxation and mindfulness skills into therapy. Mindfulness can help your teen stay present in the moment and manage their stress more effectively.
I also incorporate a lot of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) into my practice. CBT is all about confronting negative thoughts and understanding how your thoughts influence your emotions and behavior. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a very similar approach that helps with distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal communication skills.
No matter how your teen feels at the moment, I am confident that I can help them reduce their stress, increase their confidence, and get in touch with their authentic self. Additionally, I want to help you improve your relationship with them so that there is more harmony in the home.
Get In Touch
You May Have Some Questions About Teen Therapy…
My teen is struggling but doesn’t want to go to therapy. What should I do?
If your teen is hesitant about counseling, it might help them to know that it’s private, confidential, and won’t last forever. They are more than welcome to try a session or two and see if therapy is helpful and a good fit for their needs. There is no pressure to commit right away. At the same time, whether or not your teen comes to therapy oftentimes is your decision. If your teen needed a medical procedure but didn’t want to do it, you’d probably still encourage them to go through with the procedure in the best interest of their health. I recommend bringing a similar approach to teen therapy.
Will therapy affect my relationship with my teen?
This is a common concern. Some parents worry that I’ll collude with their teen or criticize their parenting. Nothing could be further from the truth. I strive to be a neutral, unbiased presence in your teen’s life—I am here to help them build on their strengths and learn new skills, not point fingers at different people in their life. What’s more, one of my main goals is to help you improve your relationship with your teen and communicate more effectively with them.
Will participating in therapy affect my teen’s future college and career prospects?
Your teen’s medical records are protected under HIPAA laws. No one else aside from you has to know that your teen is in therapy. I am also a private-pay counselor, so I won’t “report” to anyone about your teen’s therapy. None of their information (such as diagnoses and dates of treatment) will be disclosed to insurance companies.
Your Teen Doesn’t Have To Wrestle With Their Mental Health Alone
If you want your teen to get support for anxiety, depression, or any other issues, I encourage them to pursue teenage counseling with me. To contact me, you can use the contact form or call 408-883-9477.
Therapy can help your teen:
Improve mood, self-esteem, and self-compassion
Manage stress and anxiety
Develop healthier sleep habits
Strengthen self-advocacy, assertiveness skills, and interpersonal effectiveness
I’m here to support teenagers as they grow into new phases of life.
FAQS
Common questions about teen therapy
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Parents are involved in sessions as needed. My goal is to establish a strong rapport with your teen where they make the decision to share things with you. If I feel there is important information that needs to be shared with parents, I’ll work with your teen on sharing the information with you.
When it is helpful, I provide guidance on how to talk to parents about issues that may be difficult or awkward to bring up. Teenagers often benefit from guidance, role-playing, and in-session practice to maintain effective communication.
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Your teenager may be experiencing difficulties if you’ve noticed excessive worrying, nervousness and/or physical symptoms such as medically unexplained stomach ache, panic, headache, or chest pains. Teens with anxiety or low mood often report issues with their sleep, relationships, and academic performance. They may try to avoid places, people, and situations that make them uncomfortable or stressed.
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What your teenager gains from therapy largely depends on their needs and presenting concerns. Teenagers typically learn strategies to manage stress/anxiety, improve mood, strengthen social & communication skills, and enhance problem-solving abilities.
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Reach out to schedule an initial visit or free 20-minute consultation by clicking here or the “Contact” button at the top of this page.
Feel free to contact me if you are not ready to schedule the free consultation but have additional questions.
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