How Teen Counseling Can Help with Anxiety and Depression

Teens develop anxiety and depression more frequently than we may suspect. Constant demands from parents and teachers, assignments and tests, sports performance, responsibilities, and home life all play a central role in contributing to anxiety and depression. Teen counseling will arm your child with the necessary skills to overcome anxiety and depression while learning to manage their thoughts and emotions.

Anxiety symptoms

Anxiety and panic attack symptoms can be scary to a teen. Whether he feels anxious about a test or worried about talking with a parent, anxiety triggers the fight-or-flight response. In some ways, this can be good, such as giving a short speech or witnessing an accident and reacting quickly. However, chronic anxiety leads to physical and mental issues.

The following are common anxiety and panic attack symptoms:

• Rapid heart rate or palpitations.
• Shallow and quick breathing.
• Chest tightness.
• Jittery sensation or trembling.
• Problems sleeping.
• Appetite changes.
• Headaches or stomachaches.
• Digestive issues.
• Excessive sweating.
• Sense of dread.

If your child displays physical signs of anxiety, consult a physician to rule out any medical conditions before beginning teen counseling.

Depression symptoms

Depression is a pervasive sadness. It descends upon a child and feels like an emptiness. Although depression may only last weeks or months, it can feel like it will never end for a teen. Self-harm and suicide are concerns for those experiencing depression and without teen counseling.

Symptoms of depression include:

• Sadness and melancholy.
• No interest in favorite activities.
• Loss of friends or new friends.
• Isolates from the rest of the family.
• Sleeps too much or too little.
• Rapid weight gain or loss.
• Eating too much or too little.
• Talk of death.
• Evidence of self-harm (like cutting or burning).
• Hints at suicide.

If your teen’s conversations focus on death, dying, violence, or suicide, or if you see evidence of self-harm, seek help immediately. You may feel you are overreacting, however, depression skews rational thought. Teens, led by emotions, may act out to take away the pain.

Teen counseling for anxiety and depression

Your teen’s counselor will customize his sessions to his needs. Not all methods work for everyone, so the counselor must assess the type of anxiety or depression your child is experiencing.

The following are common treatments for anxiety and depression in teen counseling:

Talk therapy. This can happen in individual, family, or group therapy. Most centers offer in-person and virtual sessions.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). With CBT, your teen learns to identify negative thoughts and reframe them to change the attached emotions. When the teen changes his thoughts and emotions, he will have better control over his behavior.

Breathe work. Your teen will learn deep breathing techniques to gain control over anxious thoughts and slow a fast heart rate. Deep breathing has been shown to defuse a panic attack.

Journaling. Your teen’s counselor may ask him to keep a record of his thoughts and emotions as they occur to him until he becomes proficient in identifying negative thoughts and reframing them. Depending on your teen’s condition, the counselor may also recommend art or music therapy to help him assimilate his feelings.

This is only a small list of possible treatments available.

Does your teen need counseling?

Do any of the above symptoms of anxiety and depression sound familiar? If so, contact our office today. A receptionist will schedule a session between a counselor and you to discuss your child’s needs in teen counseling.