Does my child need counseling? How can I tell? How will it help?
The most common teen and parent concerns we address at Elevate Counseling are:
- Self-doubt and concerns about self-image
- Difficulty managing stress (often leading to anxiety and panic attacks)
- Struggles managing emotions
- Difficulty with relationships (parents, sibling, peers and friends)
- Low self-esteem and lack of confidence
- Perfectionistic tendencies and negative self-talk
- Extreme focus on social media (often exacerbating the above issues)
These are questions we field daily from concerned parents. They often call our office wondering if their child is just a "typical, moody teenager," or if something more serious is going on. Knowing how tumultuous the teen years can be, combined with the unique challenges our kids face today, it makes sense why parents question what is "normal."
Our Approach to Working with Teens
Therapy is about much more than a "place to vent," or a "listening ear." Our approach to therapy is strengths-based and solution-focused, through scientifically-validated research-based interventions that are specific to your teen's personal struggles. With every person we work with, our goal is to:
Recognize and Capitalize on Their Strengths: We look at how your teen has been successful managing stressful situations in the past, figure out ways to use healthy coping strategies now and how to stop unhealthy coping strategies in future situations.
Challenge Automatic Negative Thinking, Encourage Realistic Self-Reflection and Visualize How Things Can Be Different: We help teens objectively evaluate themselves, identify what matters most to them as individuals, and shift their thinking and behavior to move towards their best self.
Empower Them to Make Changes: We provide the professional support, guidance, strategies and skills to help teens make the changes they have identified. The teen years are all about taking risks and making tiny adjustments when things don't go as planned. We teach teens that they can be a "masterpiece" and "a work-in-progress" at the same time. We provide a safe place to share disappointments and struggles as well as progress and successes as your teen grows.