Ways To Help Your Teen With Sadness
How does your teen express themselves? Some teens experience anger and show it by hiding away in their room. Others feel sadness and will show it by lashing out. For parents this can be beyond difficult as they try to help their teen deal with issues. Working with a counselor can give your teen a safe and constructive space to heal, grow, and achieve their goals.
Self-Care MUST be a part of your life!
Life is going to have ups and downs. To remain balance, we must set aside time each day to take care of ourselves. Educating teens on self-care can help them remain centered throughout life and the many difficult moments that lie ahead.
Parents can model self-care habits and behaviors for their teen as a “show and tell” way. Below is a list of self-care therapy strategies that may work for you:
Self-Care Skills
- Do something different that you normally do not do. Pulling your mind away from the normal routine can be extremely therapeutic to the body and mind. Examples include: walking around the mall, cleaning the windows at home or rearranging the bedroom.
- Lending a helpful hand to others can help you feel positive and centered. Examples include: writing a thank you note to a friend, making coffee for the family or cleaning up after dinner when it’s not your turn.
- Practicing the art of daydreaming can allow you to get lost in your thoughts. Examples include: thinking about your favorite vacation, imaging yourself flying or counting the number of blue cars that pass by as you sit in the back seat.
- Counting your blessings provides a feeling of gratitude. Examples include: comparing your struggles or situation to those less fortunate.
Utilization of the 5 senses allows self-care to take place.
Allowing yourself to explore sensations can create a feeling of change that for some is therapeutic. Examples include for each sense include:
- Vision. Practice watching the clouds and guessing the shape.
- Hearing. Listen to loud music or find a quiet spot deep in the woods.
- Smell. Place your favorite candles near the bath tub. Take a bath and enjoy the scent.
- Taste. Eat a sour food. Sit back and feel the sensations triggered by your taste buds.
- Touch. Slowly pass your hand through tall grass.
Click here for more self-care practices.
Self-Care NOW
Self-Care can help you feel empowered and willing to take on challenging situations. Below is a list of self-care strategies that do not have to wait until tomorrow:
- Vacation. Create a day-cation by spending the day at the pool or walking your favorite trail.
- Create a today-list. Write down everything you want to do today and check off each task as you complete it.
- Meditation. Follow along to a YouTube meditation class.
- Imagination. Create your own space of serenity by imaging yourself at peace. For me, it’s imaging myself at the beach with my toes in the sand!
- Identity. Look at yourself in the mirror. Find the strength! Find the compassion! Find the love!
A life with self-care in it is far better than one without. Modeling self-care enables you to have peace and balance on a regular basis. Teens tend to face adversity and struggle in a manner that requires self-care.
