Adolescence is a transformative period marked by significant physical, emotional, and cognitive changes. For many young people, these changes can lead to challenges such as anxiety, depression, identity struggles, or difficulties in relationships. In my training to become a psychotherapist, my mentor constantly reminded me “If you don’t get over something in your adolescence, it sticks with you for the rest of your life.” At Triad we aim to make sure this developmental stage of life is a positive one for our clients. Psychotherapy can be an effective way to support adolescents during this critical stage. However, working with adolescents requires unique approaches tailored to their developmental needs, cultural context, and individual circumstances. Any effective approach to working with teens must include the following:
Trust Building and Rapport through Engagement-All Triad clinicians have specific training in engagement strategies. Teens are a tough and often disagreeable group and simply asking questions about how they feel is often not enough. At Triad we use time tested techniques and tools to spark interest and discover each teens underlying motivations in the first three sessions; this approach enables us to make the therapy both fun and highly motivating for the teenager.
A Developmentally Appropriate Approach-Triad Psych has its roots proudly and deeply rooted in special education theories and approaches. Our clinicians as part of the assessment process determines each teens developmental level. Then the teens’ treatment plan has specific and concrete goals based on this assessment. We have found that most teens we work with present with differing and asynchrony developmental patterns; our combined application of behavior analysis and traditional psychotherapy helps our clients advance in their maturity and gives them the tools to get their needs met and achieve their goals both academically and socially.
Family Involvement-At Triad we include the family as a key component of our work with teens. Our sessions which last a full 60 minutes most often have the parent attend the last 15 minutes to explain what was achieved in the session and how the family can facilitate their teen’s progress going forward. At the same time, while encouraging open communication with the family we respect the adolescent’s need for privacy.
Sensitivity to Cultural and Social Factors-Triad has and always will place a heavy emphasis on each family’s respective culture and other social factors. In fact, we believe therapy which ignores these intangibles is horribly ineffective.
Developing True & Real Self-Esteem-Enabling a teen to develop a healthy and genuine sense of self-worth is the one of the greatest gifts someone can provide to a developing teenager. At Triad we embrace the belief that true and real self-esteem is achieved through both relatedness, which is the act of interacting with another person in a meaningful way, combined with achievement of intrinsic goals—academic, athletic, social—results in teens having a true and real sense of self-worth which is a gift which lasts a lifetime. As Triad Psych is now 22 years old, we have adults who we treated as teenagers who stay in touch with us and explain how much this approach helped them.
Peer Relations-During the teenage years, the peer group and peer relationships are of the utmost importance to the teen. Peer pressure becomes very intense, and the teen must now navigate the complexities of puberty as well. At Triad we address this dynamic two ways: First, refer to the section on self-esteem; a genuine and real sense of self-worth is the best defense against peer pressure. Second, all Triad staff have extensive training in applied group psychology and learning adaptive social skills is at the core of all of Triad’s services. This dual approach avoids teens falling in with the wrong crowd and or capitulating to peer pressure.
Evidence Based Therapy-The Triad symbol and logo indicates structure, direction, and control. Triad is and always will place outcomes and results as a top priority for our patients. Results matter at Triad for every line of service we provide. Thus, we utilize only proven and reliable approaches to make sure that our patients leave in better shape than when they arrived!
Mitigating the Role of Social Media-Social media has penetrated all areas of our lives. And for many teenagers it creates an unhealthy dynamic they feel they cannot manage, control, or break away from. It also facilitates several types of bullying, social isolation, embarrassment and in some cases addiction to it. At Triad we have been effectively treating internet addiction and its related conditions since our founding in 2003. Dave Glick was interviewed for an article about this subject for a national publication in 2017 which can be accessed here. Again, our approach which develops a genuine and real sense of self-esteem for our patients is the best medicine for managing the harmful effects of social media. As well as giving the teenager and their families a proper understanding how technology can breed addictive behaviors.
Ultimately, adolescence is a transformative period for everyone. Yet with the right guidance and assistance the negative aspects of it can be mitigated and turned into a positive. Which is our aim, to take this critical developmental period and make it a time of growth and achievement.