Counselling may involve a range of treatments that are designed to help teens resolve problems and modify behaviour. The goal is to make positive changes in how teens identify, process and respond to life experiences. At Venture Academy, we offer a range of approaches to ensure the best treatment for your teen. Because understanding each process’s specifics can be overwhelming, here is a list of the more common counselling treatments.
Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive-behaviour therapy, or CBT, challenges cognitive distortions, which lead to behavioural concerns. Teens often have negative self-images. These false images begin to dictate how they interact with the world. With CBT, teens learn ways to change the way they see themselves and the world around them. Coping strategies target existing distortions to enable teens to change their negative thought processes.
Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)
Dialectical behavioural therapy, or DBT, combines acceptance and change of negative behaviours to facilitate more healthy approaches to life. Working with professionals during DBT helps teens learn to accept negative behaviours that may lead to self-harm. By acknowledging and owning past behaviours, teens can move forward and learn coping strategies to produce more positive outcomes.
Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA)
Applied behaviour analysis focuses on improving specific behaviours. These actions may involve life skills such as social interaction, communication and reading, or adaptive learning skills such as punctuality, motor dexterity and personal hygiene. Applied behaviour analysis is an effective approach to helping those that require special services. Applying these techniques in appropriate settings such as work, home, or community provides an additional degree of engagement.
Exposure Therapy
When people fear something, they avoid it. Whether it is public speaking or crowds, exposure therapy helps individuals confront their fears. Avoidance may keep fears at bay, but it can make the situation worse the longer it goes unaddressed. Trained professionals create a safe environment during exposure therapy in which the individual is exposed to the fearful situation or object. Repeated encounters with one’s fears can decrease the need to avoid the situation or activity. Living without fear is a positive change that reverberates through a person’s life.
Social Learning Theory
Social learning theory assumes that individuals learn through observation of others’ actions. If children grow up in an abusive environment, they are more likely to exhibit abusive behaviours when placed in similar situations. In many cases, the behaviour is the result of ongoing exposure to modelled actions. Modelling positive behaviours through ongoing exposure can help teens learn how to respond in given situations. If the modelled behaviour has been throwing objects when angry, modelling a non-violent response can replace the negative behaviour over time.
Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy
Rational emotive behaviour therapy helps teens identify self-defeating thoughts and feelings and challenge those negative responses’ rationality. The approach focuses on current situations that are creating unhealthy thoughts or beliefs that result in negative behaviours. By looking at the situation rationally, teens realize that these behaviours interfere with their ability to live a fulfilling life. Whether it is unhealthy eating habits or aggression, analyzing the source of these irrational responses enables people to move forward with more positive behaviours.
Benefits of Counselling for Teen Behaviour Treatment
Teens that complete our Venture Academy counselling program for behaviour treatment experience many benefits due to their commitment to the program. Some of these benefits include:
- Improved self-esteem
- Clarification of goals and direction in life
- Stronger and healthier bonds with family members
- Developing strong communication skills
- Taking personal ownership of their lives
Give Your Teen Peace of Mind with Venture Academy
At Venture Academy, we offer an attachment-based, solution-oriented, and holistic approach to treatment. Our team uses evidence-based counselling that treats the mind, body, and spirit for a complete recovery. We have the expertise to work with teens who can benefit from clinical treatments and academic support.
Our goal is to help teens overcome challenges that restrict their ability to develop and maintain healthy lifestyles and relationships. If you are concerned about a teen, contact Venture Academy today by calling 866.762.2211 to set up an appointment that can change a teen’s life.
