Teenagers face several stressors from all directions; school, family, social groups, and athletics can all contribute to making a teenager feel overwhelmed and can directly influence the development of mental illness. Starting treatment at an intensive outpatient program can help your teen build healthier habits, learn effective coping mechanisms, and deal with stressors and symptoms in a productive way. Call 888.503.4604 to get started with mental health treatment for your teen or adolescent at Imagine Nampa.
What Is Outpatient Mental Health Treatment?
Outpatient mental health treatment refers to a specific therapeutic level of care. Patients continue to live at home in outpatient treatment while attending a treatment facility to receive therapies, support, and counseling. This is in contrast to residential or inpatient treatment programs, where patients generally live on-site.
There are two primary levels of care in outpatient mental health treatment: partial hospitalization programs (PHP) and intensive outpatient programs (IOP).
Partial Hospitalization Programs
PHPs are the most intensive form of outpatient treatment. They typically involve a patient attending treatment nearly every day for up to eight hours a day. This allows each patient to receive intensive care while still returning home and sleeping in their own bed.
Intensive Outpatient Programs
IOPs are the less demanding form of outpatient treatment. Most patients will attend treatment five to six times a week in an IOP and attend therapies for three to six hours each day. This still allows plenty of time for intensive therapies to take place, but it also gives patients the chance to engage in more activities outside of treatment, including school, work, or family obligations.
The Benefits of Outpatient Treatment
There are several benefits of outpatient treatment. The first and most obvious benefit is that patients don’t have to go far from home or even out of state to receive quality mental health care. They can continue living at home while attending treatment for set periods.
This leads to another advantage: the issues that bring a patient into treatment in the first place can be addressed head-on. In residential treatment programs, people are removed from their situations entirely. They never have to face the situations and triggers that are the root causes of their mental health concerns.
In contrast, outpatient treatment allows patients to face these challenges, receive support in real-time, and work to overcome them.
Outpatient treatment includes all of the best evidence-based treatments offered at a residential treatment center. These include:
- Individual therapy
- Group therapy
- Family therapy
- Trauma therapy
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Dialectical behavior therapy
These treatments make up the core of any evidence-based treatment program because they have been repeatedly shown to help people overcome a variety of mental health concerns.
Lastly, outpatient mental health treatment offers the advantage of being much more flexible and adaptable than other programs. Outpatient treatment can fit around other aspects of your teenager’s life, such as school, sports, or family obligations.
Importantly, your child will not have to give up everything else in order to receive quality mental health care. Outpatient treatment can fit around these important elements as part of a holistic approach to healthcare.
Outpatient Mental Health Treatment for Teens at Imagine Nampa
Adolescence is hard enough without the additional challenge of mental health concerns. We know how difficult this time can be, but recovery is possible at Imagine Nampa.
If you have a child between the ages of 12 and 17 who is struggling with mental health challenges, contact the team at Imagine Nampa today by calling 888.503.4604. Our experienced team can walk you through the treatment process and help you decide which level of care is best for your child.