Adolescence is a time of enormous growth and change. As young people move from childhood through their teenage years and into adulthood, they tend to grow physically and mature emotionally. But they also start to engage the world more profoundly, to think critically, and to develop deeper and more complex relationships with their family members, peers, and other adults.
In this sense, adolescence is an exciting time. But it is also a turbulent one, in which young people make, strain, and sometimes break social and familial bonds. They also explore their emotions, sometimes to painful effect, and rapidly develop their intellect. Given the sheer number of cognitive, emotional, social, moral, and physical changes that occur in this period, it is no surprise that mental health disorders abound in this period. But the good news is, an excellent mental health treatment program can help you identify and then deal with these issues as they come up.
Common Mental Health Disorders in Adolescents
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, mental health issues are becoming increasingly prevalent among adolescents. There are, of course, a broad range of mental health issues that affect young people, and an even broader spectrum of severity of symptoms. Such a wide variety of circumstances can trigger these issues that it is nearly impossible to make general statements about their causes. We do know, however, which are the most common mental health disorders that afflict teens. And a mental health treatment program like the one at Zelus Recovery can help diagnose and treat them. We break these disorders into broad categories, the most common of which are:
- Anxiety disorders (phobias, social anxiety)
- Mood disorders (depression, bipolar disorders)
- Thought disorders (schizophrenia, delusional behavior)
- Personality disorders (antisocial behavior, paranoia)
- Eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia)
- Developmental disorders (ADHD, autism spectrum disorders)
- Addiction (alcohol addiction, opioid addiction)
One of the reasons that it is so important to identify and treat potential mental health disorders early is that the above categories rarely exist in isolation. As work at Zelus Recovery has demonstrated, addiction, for instance, is often a result of underlying mental issues, and these can often be treated together very effectively.
The Stigma of Treatment
One of the main reasons that young people and their loved ones so often fail to come forward and tackle their condition head-on is that they are embarrassed, and wish to “save face.” Thankfully, however, as the medical profession begins to understand the nature of these conditions better, the age-old stigma surrounding poor mental health and mental illness is finally starting to lift. Full-service adolescent treatment centers like Zelus Recovery are equipped to provide a broad range of evidence-based, clinical therapies, and strategies, as well as more holistic approaches aimed at treating the whole individual.
Reach Out Today
If you or someone you love is beginning to show signs of the common mental health disorders in adolescents, you must reach out to someone. And Zelus Recovery is here to provide advice and clinical care. Contact us today with any questions or concerns that you may have, either online or by calling us at 208.518.0797. It is never too early to address mental health concerns. Your child’s well-being may depend on it.
