Clinician seeing more teens with anxiety
Note: Seth Turner is no longer working with RISE as of mid 2022.
There is an increasing number of teens in recent months with higher levels of anxiety, says SVS – Living Safe Clinician Seth Turner, who works one-on-one with many youth clients.
“I am seeing more and more youth who are struggling to come to terms with the demands and pressures of life. They are finding their day-to-day problems difficult to manage. Without the understanding and resilience, they often become anxious and an increasing number are unable to function normally.”
Primarily, therapy that helps youth deal with anxiety focuses on soothing techniques that regulate the nervous system and calm the fight/flight/freeze response, Seth says. Attention is also given to understanding triggers and identifying unhelpful thoughts and behaviours that stimulate apprehension and tension. Seth also encourages his youth clients, when appropriate, to embrace the uncomfortable feelings and walk into their fears: in other words, to be brave.
One of the things Seth values most about working for SVS – Living Safe is the ability to develop long-term relationships with his clients, particularly his youth clients. He says, “It’s invaluable to me that I have the option to see youth who could benefit the most on a long-term basis. Not only does time help in building trusting relationships, but because a young person’s brain is still developing, there is an opportunity for healthy behaviours to become lifelong habits.”
Seth has seen many of his youth clients build a stronger sense of themselves and to reframe their perspective so that they can approach life with more optimism, gratitude and curiosity. If you know a teen who could benefit from the help of our clinicians, check out the programmes we offer for youth.
