Takeaways Supporting your teen is very different from enabling them; where support encourages self-awareness and personal growth, enabling shelters your child and prevents them from learning from their mistakes. Shifting your behavior from enabling to supportive is a learning process…
For teens exploring their gender identity, gender-affirming care is about more than just physical changes — it’s a journey toward feeling like yourself. But what exactly does it involve? From therapy and outward expression to medical options like hormones, this…
Hello, and welcome back to another episode of A Day in the Life — where we explore what different staff members do at Ascend. This month, we’re focusing on something we haven’t ever discussed before: what happens when clients leave…
How to Support Your Child’s Mental Health If your teen is struggling with their mental health, it’s natural to question what may have caused their struggles. As a parent, you may worry that your actions, your own struggles with mental…
Ask any parent, and they’ll tell you that raising teenagers comes with challenges you never expected but also rewards you never imagined. When your teen faces mental health struggles, you may feel helpless, like you’re losing your connection to the…
People face discrimination for many reasons, but at Ascend, we know that mental health is one of the biggest hurdles teens confront when interacting with those that don’t understand mental illness. Even worse, people with mental illness often suffer from…
Residential treatment programs for boys are a unique type of mental health support that can provide teens with more targeted solutions for mental health. All-boy facilities can provide a broad array of services that include behavioral therapy and treatment for…
Depression can be fairly common among teenagers, but the signs are often overlooked. Moodiness is viewed as a normal teen phase, and many parents just count the years until their child’s hormones level out. However, it’s important to note the…
Some individuals feel that gendered pronouns like “he” or “she” don’t reflect who they are. Because they want to choose pronouns that more accurately reflect their experience, many people choose to use alternative gender pronouns. Making gender more inclusive is…
For parents of teens, conversations about sexuality and sexual orientation can be challenging. You want to use the appropriate language when helping your teen navigate these topics while encouraging them to be smart and safe about the activities they engage…
