I often find myself thinking back to how influential my teen years were on who I have become. I remember the people who had a positive influence on me as I made important life decisions about social choices, education, relationships, etc. I also find myself wondering about the negative impact some challenging experiences could have had if I had not had people with whom I could talk through these issues. As a therapist I believe it is now important for me to be one of those people my teen clients feel they can talk to about their experiences, especially as the expectations on today’s teens seem to be ever increasing.

Here are some of the issues and concerns young people may bring to therapy:

• Communication difficulties with friends or family
• Coping with parents’ separation or divorce
• Body image
• Low self-esteem
• Eating disorders
• Peer pressure
• Drug and alcohol use
• Sexual expectations
• Sexual identity
• Developing social skills
• School concerns
• Bullying or being bullied
• Sibling rivalry
• Family expectations (chores, household rules, extracurricular, etc.)