Adolescence can be a challenging time for everyone during this time period of life. However, a big change in behavior, emotional withdrawal, and intense mood swings can signify mental health issues in adolescence. For individuals and families dealing with mental health issues in young adults, it’s important to get help so that a diagnosis can be made. And, treatment can begin in order to learn how to monitor and manage symptoms of mental health issues. This way, adolescents can gain the tools they need to live out healthy lives of mental wellbeing.
Getting Your Adolescent Child a Mental Health Diagnosis
A licensed psychiatrist can help to provide an accurate diagnosis for an adolescent individual. During the diagnosis process, one can expect to talk about medical history, any medications that are currently being taken, symptoms you’re experiencing, and how long symptoms have been occurring. This information helps a psychiatrist to match what you’re experiencing to the characteristics of mental health issues set by the DSM-5, which is a mental health criteria tool used in the diagnosing of mental health disorders. Once a diagnosis is made, individuals can expect to search for the best treatment for their needs. Typically, you can expect to look for a mental health treatment facility that specializes in your specific diagnosis.
The Types of Treatment Options
Depending on individual needs and diagnosis, mental health treatment is traditionally available in two forms; outpatient and residential. Residential treatment is recommended for diagnoses with more serious and debilitating symptoms. Or, for people who may require around-the-clock care, especially in the beginning stage of treatment. Outpatient mental health care allows individuals to get the treatment services they need without residing at a mental health facility. Essentially, both residential and outpatient treatment provides the same treatment services, just varying levels of care. So, it’s best to weigh the pros and cons of each type of treatment and assess your needs before choosing the type of treatment that’s best for you or your adolescent child.
Types of Treatment Available for Adolescent Mental Health Diagnoses
Certainly, treatment services vary based on individual diagnosis and needs. For adolescents diagnosed with mental health issues, there are a variety of treatment services available. Traditionally, these mental health services are the same as adults may be offered. However, for group settings, one can expect to be in settings that include other peers of the same age. Furthermore, with adolescent treatments and therapies, mental health specialists will work to address specific challenges and symptoms adolescents face differently than adults in order to overcome these obstacles.
Some of the various types of mental health treatments available for adolescents living with mental health issues may include:
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT): an individual approach to therapy that involves a mental health counselor and an adolescent that works to identify damaging thoughts and behavioral patterns in order to develop helpful coping skills in order to manage these symptoms.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): another type of individual therapy approach that aims to identify how emotions can lead to unwanted and negative behaviors and/or thought patterns.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): another form of individual therapy that involves diving deep into symptoms of mental health issues in order to form a commitment to getting mental health help.
Family Therapy: this is a type of group therapy that involves the adolescent’s most valuable support tool; their family. During sessions, the family works together to identify damaging behaviors and skillsets in order to manage boundaries and communication in order to provide lasting support.
Group Therapy: this type of therapy involves a group of peers struggling with like issues that are led by a qualified therapist in order to provide a safe environment. During sessions, individuals can expect to share testimonials of their mental health experiences. And, practice learned mental health tools with one another in order to better utilize these in real-world settings.
Getting Help for Mental Health Issues as an Adolescent
If you think that you or an adolescent loved one is struggling with a mental health issue, help is available. Southcoast Psychiatric Services provides outpatient treatment services for adolescents and their families in South Florida. Find out more about how we can help and provide assistance to you and your family from our website today.