Does my teen need a therapist or a Coach? What is the difference, coaching vs. therapy? Which one is better?

These are questions I get asked often, and the answer is…it depends. I am happy to talk about resources to find the right fit.

As a therapist for 25 years, I value their work and support the therapeutic community. As a trained and experienced Coach, I have found that there are many teens who need something in the middle. Teens need support, ideas, tools and accountability.  They need an educated trusting adult who values their parents, their teachers, and their community. Teens need someone who is trained in guiding them to find their motivation, to see their potential, and help them get there.

Coaching is an approach that starts where the client is.

Coaching is geared for success. We help clients examine their thoughts, feelings and actions to direct them toward the result they want. Teen Focused Coaching helps kids succeed.

We all go through tough times, and my approach is to find the silver lining. Yes, this terrible situation (whatever it might be) has happened, and bad things will happen again. What can we do now? There are always small steps toward progress that we can make, even during tough times. How can we best use this very minute?

As a child, teen, and as an adult, I have been through many of life’s challenges. My coaching and therapy clients have been through abuse, bad grades, behavior problems, depression, anxiety, and cancer.  But they all came out stronger on the other side. Yes, we have scars and battle wounds, but those memories and scars are what remind us of our strength. We are here. WE are making it! THEY are making it!

As a coach, my goal is to intervene with teens before that point. Teen Focused Coaching provides teens with tools to gain energy and confidence, to push past their barriers. Oftentimes, the biggest obstacles are their own thoughts and ideas about who they are and limits on who they can be. My job is to guide them through the jungle of their minds, to see the white sand and clear blue sea of their future.  Let’s talk. They can do this!