Back to School Strategies to Support Teen Mental Health
Parents and guardians can get the school year off on the right foot by providing back to school strategies to support teen mental health.
For many teens, going back to school means reuniting with friends, engaging in learning experiences and resuming extra-curricular activities. However, this transition can also be terrifying for teens who have experienced bullying, anxiety, stress or depression. A recent study found that for nearly one-third of teens who experienced poor mental health in recent years, being at school worsened symptoms of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress.
For many teens, the transition back to school can pose mental health challenges, including stress and depression
Acknowledge Change:
Acknowledging what lies ahead is an important part of entering a new school year, particularly for teens who feel nervous or anxious. Validate their feelings and let them know that it is common and perfectly fine to experience a fluctuation of feelings in the days leading up to their first day back at school.
Stay Involved:
It’s important for parents and guardians to keep in touch with their teen’s feelings even after the school year begins. Open communication is essential for teen mental health. Keeping lines of communication open about what they are feeling or struggling with helps teens feel safer sharing their vulnerable thoughts and emotions.
Build a Support Network:
Many teens and their families carry the burden of mental health issues alone. Building a mental health support network can provide your teen with essential support as they head back to class and during the school year. People in the support network should be active listeners who take your teen’s well-being seriously, such as a coach, teammates or close family friends.
Prioritize Sleep:
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teens ages 13-18 should get eight to 10 hours of sleep per night. Prioritizing good sleep is vital to your teen’s emotional and physical health.
To promote healthy sleep habits, you can help your teen develop a bedtime routine; encourage reduced caffeine use; limit social media and technology use; and encourage exercise, yoga, and mindfulness.
Develop a Technology Plan:
Technology plays a significant role in a teen’s life but they need time to rest and recharge. It’s important that their downtime doesn’t become screen time.
For teens who struggle with healthy technology use, establishing additional rules, such as leaving devices at home during school hours, can help minimize distractions and promote focus. Consider using apps that track time on devices or that monitor appropriate use to help both teens and parents better understand how much time they are spending online and set realistic goals for healthy use.
If you are concerned that your child may be experiencing symptoms of an anxiety, mood, or substance use disorder, contact a mental health professional for an evaluation. Early intervention and support are important to slow or stop the progression of symptoms, and evidence-based treatment can help your teen learn strategies and skills to manage their mental health disorder in healthy and effective ways.
About Camino a Casa
Casa Pacifica is the largest non-profit provider of children’s and adolescent mental health services in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. The agency’s Camino a Casa program, available to clients with private insurance, provides behavioral health care to youth ages 12-17 who struggle with emotional dysregulation and high-risk behaviors that jeopardize their safety at home, school and/or community.
Intensive short-term residential treatment, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient and in-home behavioral health services comprise Camino a Casa’s full continuum of adolescent mental health care.
Camino a Casa specializes in mental health treatment for youth ages 12-18 including residential treatment, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient and in-home behavioral services. Contact us today at 805-366-4000 to learn more about our therapeutic programs specifically for adolescents.
Learn more at www.caminoacasa.org
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