Mental Health and Teens: Does Your Child Need Counseling?

This post about counseling, mental health and teens has been sponsored.  All opinions are my own.

As the mom of two teens, I worry about the amount of stress in their lives.  Grades, social media, and societal expectations create a huge amount of angst in kids who’s hormone levels are fluctuating like mad. Our community, like many in the US, has been shocked by teen suicide, gun violence, and other events that may be the result of extreme stress. Mental health and teens is a topic that needs to be addressed more often and BetterHelp.com is a wonderful counseling resource for parents to investigate.  Does your child need counseling?  Adolescent mental health disorders show themselves in a variety of ways that can often be hard to detect. 

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Mental Health and Teens: Does Your Child Need Counseling?

Does Your Child Need Counseling?

Teen mental health is a hard thing to analyze as a parent.  Teenagers aren’t usually very chatty with their parents when it comes to their emotional state.  Many times, we are lucky if we get a hello as they walk from the kitchen to their bedroom.  However, there are a few signs you should look for that may indicate that there is a problem. Mental health and teens is a hard thing to decipher but look for a few of these warning signs:

Anxiety

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Signs that your teen may need counseling:

  1. A drop in grades:  Small changes probably don’t indicate a real problem.  However, if your A student starts bringing home Cs consistently, it may be time for a chat. 
  2. Frequent absences at school:  If your child starts skipping school (or not showing up for sports practice or their job), this may indicate a mental health concern. 
  3. Lack of interest in personal hygiene:   If your teenagers’ daily showers stop, or they show no interest in combing their hair, approach them with your concerns. 
  4. Difficulties concentrating:  This is a hard one to navigate.  Many teens have trouble concentrating due to ADHD, sleep deprivation, or just being too interested in social activities.  Talk to their teachers if you notice grades slipping as a result of concentration issues. 
  5. Lack of energy: Many teens are rather sloth-like, mine included.  Their favorite activity is usually sleeping or watching YouTube videos.  However, if energy levels drop even lower than normal, talk to them.  They may just be having trouble sleeping, or it may signify a larger problem.
  6. Difficulties making decisions: A lack of interest in life may lead to a lack of decision making skills.  If they don’t care about the outcome, they won’t care about the choice. 
  7. Inability to cope with minor frustrations: Over the top stress levels can lead to minor frustrations becoming major issues.  

Depressed teenager

Is it Time for Mental Health Counseling?

If your teenager exhibits several of these warning signs, it may be time to have them talk to a counselor. Adolescent mental health disorders can get out of control quickly without the right support. Choose online counseling or take them to a local therapist.  Talking to a mental health professional may help them deal with their emotional struggles.  While we as parents may want them to open up to US, it isn’t always that easy.  A mental health professional may be easier for them to talk to about what is bothering them. 

BetterHelp online Counseling

Mental Health and Teens: Turn to BetterHelp  

If your teenager’s mental health worries you, where do you turn?  Your child’s pediatrician may have resources for you, however, BetterHelp has a library of mental health advice articles that you may want to consider reading.  Bullying, issues with body image, depression, and many others are discussed in detail if you need help navigating the world of mental health and teens.  

Online Counseling Effectiveness

Once you and your teen are ready to investigate mental health therapy, you need to decide if online therapy is an option for your teen.  BetterHelp offers online counseling that matches your teen with just the right mental health professional. They make professional counseling accessible, affordable, and convenient. Given parents and teens busy schedules, it may be hard to fit in an in person counseling session.  And if transportation is a problem, it becomes even more complicated.  

Online counseling from BetterHelp has been shown to be just as effective as face to face counseling.  This may be a great option for your teenager if you suspect they are having trouble coping with the stress that life is throwing at them right now. If you notice the teenage mental illness symptoms mentioned above and you want to discuss it with a professional,  check out BetterHelp.com for advice. 

When is the last time you had a real talk with your teens? 

 

 

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