Social media, peer pressure and the struggle to maintain good grades are just a few of the stressful challenges teens face today. With everything going on, they can feel the strain. In 2023, the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report found that 4 in 10 students persistently experienced feelings of sadness or hopelessness. For some teens, this distress may lead to suicidal thoughts. Fortunately, building strong coping skills can help your teen overcome these thoughts and life’s challenges.
In the process, they can ease their anxiety and improve their mental health.
Let’s explore seven coping skills every teen should learn, so they can enhance their resilience and well-being.
7 coping skills every teen should learn
Developing strong coping skills can help your teen ease overwhelming stress and anxiety. These essential skills can also build resilience, so your teen can thrive no matter what challenges they face. Here are seven coping skills they can try:
Practice mindfulness and relaxation
Stress can cloud judgment, making it difficult to overcome a challenging situation. By reducing stress, mindfulness and relaxation can help your teen think more clearly. There are many helpful apps they can try. In fact, 18% of teens with heightened depression symptoms have used a mindfulness app. Even if they don’t have an app, common strategies to promote mindfulness and relaxation include deep breathing and imagining being in a calm, peaceful environment.
Express emotions in a healthy way
Articulating emotions can help your teen process them more effectively. Whether your teen writes down their feelings or discusses them, they release them instead of bottling them up. As a result, they can reduce their stress and get prepared to think more clearly to better solve their problems.
Strengthen problem-solving skills
Breaking challenges down into smaller, more manageable steps can reduce your teen’s anxiety. For instance, if they have a long essay due soon, it may be simpler to begin by brainstorming or creating an outline. This process makes the task more approachable instead of overwhelming, and as your teen builds momentum with their assignment, they’ll start to feel less stressed as they make progress. Learning this skill helps them take action confidently rather than freezing from a challenging situation.
Develop positive self-talk
Negative thoughts like “I can’t do this” or “I’m going to fail” can cause anyone to stop in their tracks. By encouraging positive self-talk, you can guide your teen to replace these negative thoughts with positive ones. Positive affirmations like “I can do this” can reduce stress and help your teen overcome their challenges more easily.
Foster healthy relationships
Many teens experience social anxiety disorder, which makes developing healthy relationships challenging. However, a network of supportive friends and family can help them through difficult times. When your teen has people they can trust and confide in about their problems, they can feel supported and encouraged when they need it most. Developing coping skills for social anxiety can help them articulate their feelings with trusted friends and family and can also ease their stress level.
Engage in physical activity
Physical activities like yoga, exercise or even a short walk can alleviate stress. When your teen eases their anxiety, it can help them calm their mind. It can also be enjoyable to try multiple activities to see which ones your teen likes best. If they find a physical activity that brings them joy, it can be easier for them to continue it and benefit from stress relief.
Prioritize self-care
Getting enough sleep, eating a nutritious diet and taking breaks to prevent burnout can go a long way. These effective strategies can help your teen reduce stress. Self-care can also promote relaxation and make it easier to think through challenges more clearly.
How parents can help
As a parent, you can do a lot to help your teen develop good coping skills to ease anxiety. Consider trying the following:
Model healthy coping
When you’re in stressful situations, your teen can observe how you handle them. In the process, they can learn coping strategies from you. As you set a good example to follow, they may adopt your approaches to life’s challenges.
Provide opportunities to practice
You can show your teen how to practice deep breathing techniques or meditation to handle stress effectively. When you create a safe, judgment-free environment, it’ll be easier for your teen to practice coping skills.
Make it easy to ask for help
Let your teen know they can come to you if they need to discuss a challenge they’re going through. If they need additional support, a licensed clinical therapist can help your teen strengthen their coping skills.
Support self-care practices
Encourage healthy habits like getting enough sleep and taking breaks when needed. When you demonstrate how to care for yourself and create this balance, your teen can experience decreased stress. Having less anxiety makes it easier to handle whatever challenges may arise.
Find expert support At Lightfully
Coping with stress and challenges can be challenging for anyone, but fortunately, your teen can try several strategies. A regular routine of stress-relieving activities can help make coping easier to begin with. These activities can include exercise, journaling or even getting enough sleep. When stress comes up, there are tips for your teen to find relief and overcome their challenges, including deep breathing and problem-solving techniques.
At Lightfully, we’re dedicated to implementing evidence-based, whole-person-centered care. If your teen needs additional support, they can talk to our deeply compassionate experts. Our levels of care include our Partial Hospitalization Program and Intensive Outpatient Program. Your teen will have a safe space to share their feelings and strengthen their coping skills.
Change is possible. When you’re ready to take the first step, reach out to our Admissions Concierge Team. We’ll take the next steps together, toward the fullest, brightest version of your teen.
