Are you worried about your teen and not sure where to find the right help?
Are you considering teen counseling?
Is your teen having trouble adjusting in some way?
Is your teen having challenges at school, home, or in the community?
Maybe they are having persistent fearfulness and overreacts to situations.
Maybe your teen has had a sudden drop in grades, loss of interest in activities or is expressing thoughts of suicide.
Maybe your teen has withdrawn, preferring to be alone or appears to be “going through something”.
Are you tired and out of ideas about how to help or where to turn?
Do you wish you could help your teen experience more peace?
Do other parents feel this way?
It is common for parents to feel overwhelmed and lost when trying to find the right therapist for their teen. Finding a great therapist match for your teen can be a tiring process, especially in a city like Sacramento where you have many options.
A good place to start is making sure the therapist is licensed to practice in California and has experience dealing with childhood related mental health conditions. While finding a therapist with a license and education is important, making sure your teen feels comfortable with the therapist is essential.
Can my teen can overcome a mental health issue?
With the help of a trained therapist, your teen can begin to express themselves in healthier ways. Our hope is to build upon your teen’s strengths as well as your strengths as a parent to discover creative and alternate ways to find solutions. Being a parent is tough no matter what your particular situation, there is nothing wrong with seeking help.
Everyone, including teens, have the ability to overcome challenges and learn about themselves during the process. Taking time to address your teen’s mental health needs with a profession can help your teen become more resilient and able to bounce back from life’s inevitable obstacles.
If my teen won’t talk, how will you know what’s going on?
As your teen grows up, they are continuously learning language and vocabulary. Often times if a teen is having a tough time they will express it through disruptive or confusing behaviors.
Many teens find it scary or difficult to talk in a clinical setting or “talk therapy”. During art therapy, we will help your teen communicate by utilizing art to speak their language.
Creating artwork is a non-threatening venue that allows teens to tackle tough issues in a creative way. Talking to your teen about their drawings or paintings and helping them interpret the art allows us to get to the heart of the problem affecting them.
How will art therapy help my teen learn new coping skills?
I will work with your teen to help identify unique coping skills that are effective for them. Some of the teens we worked with have found effective coping through art therapy treatment.
relaxation — art making as a calming or soothing agent
builds frustration tolerance — providing a safe space to work through that
impulse control, motor control — pacing themselves through art making tasks
communication — expression of thoughts and feelings
practice, practice, practice — visualize and reinforce other coping skills acquired in therapy through art making process
Can you help LGBTQ+ youth?
As a LGBTQ+ affirming practice, I am able to use professional skills and training to help your teen.
Young LGBTQ+ people may experience discrimination, teasing, or bullying in schools as well as in the community which can lead to a higher risk of mental health conditions such as self-harm and thoughts of suicide (NAMI, 2018). Many LGBTQ+ youth who we work with either have experienced victimization at school or have previously experienced it.
It is important to support LGBTQ+ youth’s mental health as early intervention can be extremely supportive for a healthy sexual development. Increasing a LGBTQ+ youth’s amount of emotional support is key in the road to recovery.