Balancing academics, social needs, and future goals during adolescence can be stressful. Especially when you struggle with a mental health condition. Mental health with teens and school can make it even more difficult to identify, manage, and control mental health symptoms. Stressors, like grades or athletics, can aggravate symptoms and make it harder to navigate adolescence. While it may seem like mental health disorders are uncommon, the truth is that 20% of teens struggle with mental health disorders annually. Although having a close family member with a mental health condition can increase your risk of developing a mental health disorder, anybody is susceptible to struggling with a mental health problem. And teens are no exception.
Mental Health with Teens and School
For teens, school is more than just a place to get an education. While academics are an important way to prepare for adulthood and future academic pursuits, high school is also about learning social skills and developing relationships with peers. Another complication of adolescence is physical and psychological maturation, as the body and mind continue to develop well into early adulthood. Mental health with teens and school stressors can make it hard to balance physical, emotional, and social needs. Experiencing mental health symptoms can be overwhelming to teenagers. While mood changes are a common part of teen life, mental health symptoms create more intense emotions that can impact your thoughts and behaviors. Mental health with teens and school obligations can create stress. For teens with mental health disorders, stress can exacerbate symptoms. Coping with overwhelming emotions is especially difficult during adolescence, as teens are still learning how to handle conflict, make rational decisions, and cope with adversity. Mental health with teens and school is also connected because teens may exhibit different symptoms at home than they do at school. For instance, noticing declining grades or attendance issues can be symptomatic of a mental health problem.
Mental Health Treatment for Teens
When your teen is demonstrating symptoms of a mental health disorder, it’s important to take action quickly. Early treatment is important because some conditions, like depression, are curable in their early stages. Addressing symptoms early also prevents them from becoming more severe, as mental health disorders can impact your ability to attend school, work, or manage responsibilities. Evidence-based and holistic treatments are both used to treat mental health disorders in teens. Evidence-based treatments include:
- Medications
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Relapse prevention strategies
- Individual, group, and family counseling
- Trauma therapy
- Dialectical behavioral therapy
Holistic therapies focus on treating the body, mind, and spirit in unison. Holistic treatments have few side effects and can provide healthy ways to deal with triggers and negative emotions.
Reaching Out for Help Today
Mental health with teens and school pressure can make it hard to cope with symptoms. Struggling with a mental health disorder, especially as a teen, can become overwhelming. While symptoms can make it feel as though things won’t improve, treatment provides you with the support, guidance, and understanding necessary to learn how to manage and overcome your symptoms. To find out more about our teen mental health treatment programs, reach out to us today at 877.466.0620.