How Do I Tell My Teen They Need Help For Their Mental Disorder
When you have a mentally ill teen, the first advice is to speak with him or her about it and let them know that they need help. It can be a demanding process but you don’t have to be an expert to convince them to seek help. 
- Seize the moment
Depending on your lifestyles and the moments you best enjoy together, you can start the conversation over e meal or during an ad break as you watch your favorite movie together. These informal spaces are perfect for starting conversations about serious topics. Never start by setting aside hours to talk about his or her mental illness.
- Tell him or her that we all have mental problems
Actually that’s the truth; we all exist somewhere between the extremes. So no one is perfectly mentally sound, nor is there anyone who can be said to be totally mentally ill. Tell them that everyone deals with mental challenges on a daily basis and that mental wellness is not the equivalent of happiness. They should understand that mental health just like physical health fluctuates over the course of life.
- Let them take control
Young people will have the experience of feeling low, fatigued, depressed or anxious. They have probably found themselves with eating disorders and the urge to inflict self harm. Explain to them that this is what is meant by teen mental disorders. Again you may want to ask questions indirectly to make your teen comfortable with the topic. For example, ask what they would do if they knew that someone was inflicting self injury.
- Link teen mental disorders to other types of stigma
Let your teen understand that discrimination is unacceptable and that we can make a difference by opening up and being non-judgmental.
- They can be helped
Make them know that their illness can be treated. Tell them that just like they see a doctor when they are physically sick, they needed to see a psychiatrist or a physician to treat their mental illness.
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Originally posted on May 20, 2014 @ 8:04 am
