Navigating the teen years is one of the most challenging stages in everyone’s life. The demands on our teens living in the Bay Area can be particularly intense due to the intense academic pressures and the complexity of our very diverse communities.
As a child navigates the ages of 13-24 into adulthood, all levels of their person are being transformed. During this time, the brain is completely ‘re-wired’, the body matures, hormonal balances shift, social environments evolve and the child/young adult faces learning in every area of life.
Even the most well intended parents are often overwhelmed with the demands of supporting their teens through these times. This young generation is faced with phenomena that are new influences such as an increase in bullying, eating disorders, unrealistic academic expectations, and cultural inter-mingling’s. These challenges make it uniquely difficult for this generation to feel safe and comfortable socially and in their bodies.
It is common for teens to face periodic symptoms of anxiety or depression as they traverse these years. Offering your teen a safe place with a competent adult to explore additional ways to navigate daily challenges can ease the challenge of these years and help your child to prepare for adulthood with more confidence and increased self-care skills.
Adulting
Between the ages of 17-25 young people must learn a long list of new ‘adult’ skills. Furthermore, it is often during this time that young adults learn more about their strengths and weaknesses. Issues related to independence, housekeeping, money management, job seeking, community building, executive functioning (planning, time management, keeping important tasks in memory, the ability to stay focused on a project, etc) and more can arise. Having worked with clients this age for over 20 years, I am capable of assisting a young person in understanding what comes naturally to them and what challenges they need to build new skills around to feel comfortable and competent as an independent adult.