IN-PERSON IN NEW HAMPSHIRE & ONLINE IN NH, MA, ME & VT
Therapy for Teens in Bedford, NH
Get to a place where you know you’re good enough, simply because you exist.
Sometimes the pressure is way too much.
Maybe you’re doing just fine in school. You’re showing up for football or softball practice—maybe band or theater rehearsals—and taking AP classes. You get good grades, and you might even be class president or on the fast track to valedictorian. You’re doing all the things you’re “supposed” to do, but all you feel is exhausted and overwhelmed.
At this point, you’ve stopped caring about a lot of it—you’re just doing this to meet the expectations of the adults around you. Or maybe you’ve given up on school all together. It feels like you’re drowning under the pressure, but you can’t tell your parents because you don’t want to disappoint (or worry) them.
When you scroll through your friends’ social media feeds, they all seem so put together and happy—so why aren’t you?
YOU MIGHT BE…
Listening to podcasts, subscribing to mental health accounts, asking ChatGPT—trying to find your own answers—but still not able to see a way through.
Putting so much pressure on yourself to be perfect that you backed into a garage door because your brain wouldn't stop worrying long enough for you to notice it wasn't open.
The kid who doesn't cause problems—so nobody asks how you're doing, and you don't bring it up because your parents already have enough going on without you adding to it.
Fighting with your parents about the same things over and over, blowing up over something small, and then spending the rest of the night in your room feeling horrible about it.
So anxious that getting to school feels impossible, your head hurts constantly, you can't sleep. You’ve been feeling this way for months, but you don't know how to explain it to anyone. If you do manage to explain it, you don’t feel like you’re taken seriously because you’re “so capable.”
+ A note for parents of teens
Your teen may seem fine from the outside. They’re still getting good grades and keeping up with their schedule, but you can feel them pulling away or putting so much pressure on themselves they can’t sleep. They may have even shown signs of self-harm or suicidal tendencies, and it terrifies you.
The hardest part is that you remember who your kid was before this started, and you can still see them in there.
A lot of the parents I work with feel stuck because they've tried everything they can think of and nothing's getting through. Reaching out for help doesn’t mean you’ve failed as a parent. In fact, it’s one of the best things you can do for your teen.
I want you to know that whatever your kid is going through, it's not going to scare me. I've worked with teens through self-harm, suicidal thoughts, intense anger, and mood swings. I take all of it seriously.
My goal is for them to walk out of here feeling seen, heard, and supported.
MY APPROACH
This is a space where your voice matters.
At the start of our time together, we’ll include your parents in the first half of the initial session. From there on out, everything stays confidential between you and me, aside from a few specific circumstances I’ll explain to you before we start.
Each session, I’ll ask how you want to spend our time. If words are too hard, we can bust out the art supplies. If you need to get up and move, we can do a walk-and-talk session. If you hate those ideas, that’s fine too—just let me know.
A lot of what we do is helping you understand why you feel the way you feel. I'll teach you grounding skills you can use in class or when you’re doomscrolling at night instead of sleeping. We'll look at the way you talk to yourself and figure out if what you’re saying is actually true or if it just feels that way.
The same way you get to express what you need in session, I’ll encourage you to try that outside of here too. Consider what we do in the room a practice round for all the things in life that feel too hard.
Together, we’ll help you get to a place of understanding what works for you and what doesn’t, so you can stop wearing yourself out and then blaming yourself for it.
As a teen, therapy can help you…
Hold onto your friendships and the people you care about, because you know how to handle what you're feeling without taking it out on them or pushing them away.
01
Have at least one person in your life you can be completely honest with, and learn that saying what's going on doesn't always make things worse.
02
Get through a school day, a fight with your parents, or a night when your brain won't stop, because you have tools that help you stay grounded and present.
03
Express what you're going through without hurting yourself, because you have other ways to deal with it that work.
04
Know that you matter because you exist, not because of your grades, how easy you are to deal with, or how much you do for other people.
05
Start questioning the thoughts that tell you you're not good enough, a burden, or unlovable, and recognize them for what they are: thoughts, not facts.
06
THERAPY FOR TEENS IN BEDFORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE & MA, ME & VT
It’s okay to stop striving for everyone else’s standards—and start defining your own.
FAQs
COMMON QUESTIONS
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If your teen is in immediate danger, please call 911 or take them to your nearest emergency room. You can also call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7.
If your teen is self-harming or having suicidal thoughts but is not in immediate danger, reach out to me and we'll get them in as soon as possible. You can also call 988 in the meantime to have them assessed for safety in the moment. I have extensive experience working with teens through self-harm, cutting, and suicidal ideation, and it's not going to scare me. The most important thing you can do right now is take it seriously and show that you care.
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Disordered eating does come up in my work with teens, and resources will be provided. If disordered eating is the primary concern, I will refer you to a therapist who specializes in that area. I'm happy to help you find someone who's the right fit.
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What you tell me stays between us. The only exception is if I'm concerned about your safety or someone else's safety. Outside of that, I'm not going to share what we talk about with your parents. I'll update them on how things are going in general terms, but the specifics are yours. If that trust isn't there, this doesn't work, and I take that seriously.
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I've worked with teenagers for years across a range of settings, including time embedded in a pediatrician's office, in-home therapy, and outpatient therapy. In these settings, I worked with adolescents through depression, self-harm, and trauma. I'm also a registered art therapist, which gives me tools that go beyond traditional talk therapy for teens who struggle to put their feelings into words. I get that therapy can feel weird and forced when you're a teenager, and I work hard to make sure it doesn't feel that way in my office.
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You can encourage them, and sometimes a gentle push is what gets them through the door. A parent or guardian will need to be at the first session and sometimes having a parent there can help your teen feel comfortable coming back. What I've found is that most teens who are resistant warm up once they realize they have control over what happens in the session.
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Yes. I see teens in person at my office in Bedford, New Hampshire, and online across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont. Art therapy works online too. Some teens prefer online sessions because they're more comfortable in their own space. We can always do a hybrid approach if that works better for your schedule.
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You don't need to be in crisis or have the worst situation in the room to benefit from talking to someone. A lot of my clients come in thinking their problems aren't a big deal, and then we start talking and they realize they've been dealing with a lot more than they gave themselves credit for. Your feelings are valid.
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You don't have to make it a big conversation. Something like "I've been going through some stuff and I think it would help to talk to someone" is enough. If saying it out loud feels too hard, text it or write it down. And if you're worried about how they'll react, know that most parents I work with tell me they wish their kid had said something sooner.
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If your kid is asking to go to therapy, take that seriously. Most teenagers don't ask for help unless they've been sitting with something for a while and have hit the point where they can't manage it on their own anymore. You don't need to wait until things get worse to follow through on that. The fact that they're telling you they want help is a really good sign, and I'd rather see them now than after it escalates. A free 15-minute call with me can help you figure out whether therapy makes sense right now.