Deciding Whether or Not to Seek Therapy for Your Child/Adolescent?

As a parent, you always want to get your child/adolescent the assistance that they need. If he or she has a sore throat, you usually would take your child/adolescent to their pediatrician since it could be Strep. However, sometimes determining when to seek therapy for your child/adolescent is a difficult decision to make.

In general, if you have significant concerns about your child’s or adolescent’s functioning, behavior, or mood, it is best to seek a consultation with a mental health professional to determine what type of treatment, if any, would be best, based on your child’s or adolescent’s specific symptoms and situation. 

The following questions can be used to help determine if you should seek treatment for your child or adolescent:

1)  Have you noticed a significant change in your child’s/adolescent’s behavior or mood over the past 2-4 weeks? 

2) Has your child or adolescent experienced significant changes in weight or appetite in the past 2-4 weeks that do not appear to be due to a medical issue? 

3) Has your child/adolescent had longstanding difficulties managing anger or frustration?

4) Is your child/adolescent often shy in social situations and avoids them when possible?

5) Has he or she gotten into physical altercations in the past year?

6) Does your child or adolescent get into trouble at school frequently?

7) Is your child/adolescent often the victim or perpetrator of bullying? 

8) Do you experience frequent conflict at home with your child/adolescent over little things?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” it is important to determine if there is a specific event or situation that has contributed to the onset of these symptoms (i.e., a new school, new medication). If a specific event or situation can be determined, it is important to evaluate whether this specific event/situation is likely to resolve itself quickly. If it will, immediate treatment may not be necessary, provided that long-term consequences of coping with the specific event/situation will not result. When in doubt, it is best to consult a mental health professional.

Even if the answer to all of these questions is “no,” if you have specific concerns, it is best to consult with a mental health professional to determine which type of treatment, if any, would be most beneficial for your child or adolescent. Unfortunately, many parents often wait until their child’s or adolescent’s difficulties become very severe before seeking treatment. While treatment at any point in the development of issues is beneficial, targeting symptoms when they first begin usually leads to the quickest resolution of symptoms/issues.

Therefore, if your child/adolescent is experiencing any significant difficulties that may warrant concern, it is important to seek a consultation sooner rather than later in order to determine if treatment would be beneficial. If it turns out that treatment is not needed, you can have the peace of mind of knowing that you were proactive in preventing a possible issue from developing. If treatment is warranted, you can get your child or adolescent the help that he or she needs, which will likely improve your child’s overall functioning, happiness, and success in life.  

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