A Therapist For The Teen And The Family

There is an unfortunate stigma associated to people who seek mental health care. This does not need to be the case; however, and the best way to impress this upon the world is to begin in the home and the family. No relationship whether romantic or familial is without its tribulations. This is particularly true when one person is going through a struggle with a psychiatric disorder and those surrounding that individual do not know how to act and yet are also being affected by it. That is why many mental health professionals suggest seeing a therapist who will work with the whole family individually and collectively to help deal with problems and incubate understanding.

The need for a good therapist to work with a family is especially true in situations where a teen is facing problems of depression or anxiety. Adolescents have a particularly hard time communicating with their parents, even under the best of circumstances. When the fear and pressure of facing a psychological problem also starts to surface, it becomes almost impossible for communication to happen in any meaningful way.

For kids it can be incredibly difficult to discuss personal and emotional issues with their parents. They feel a desire to break free and be independent, but still are connected and living in the family. It becomes very difficult to find an outlet for feelings of depression or anxiety because there is the desire to not seem like you have mental problems. Teens especially find they cannot talk to their parents or their friends, and so they end up bottling up a lot of feeling and emotion that needs to find a way out. It often leads to self-destructive behaviors and sometimes self harm.

By finding a therapist who they can trust and they can talk to, teens are able to express any and all emotions and feelings they have in a way that is cathartic, but also safe and understanding. Plus they are speaking to someone who has some real proactive and constructive advice for feeling better. This is also where the benefit of a psychiatrist comes into play, as they also can prescribe medication to help get things back to normal.

A therapist does a lot for the family of their patient as well. Often parents feel at a loss as to what to say to their troubled teen. By bringing the group together in a space that is safe and also mediated by the therapist’s constructive and meaningful program, communication begins to take place.

The parents can discover what it is they can do to help their child and the child gets to understand that their folks are there for them and are not there to judge or belittle them. Hopefully, over time the psychiatrist, the teen and the parents can work through and improve things to the point that the patient can feel better.