Category: Life Coaching

Not every day, a parent imagines that his/ her teenager would be in a state of depression. Questions like what could be really stressing my young child cross a parent’s mind: – there are no bills to pay, or work stress to think about.

Teen depression is as real as any other form of depression. A study report by Blue Cross BlueShield in May 2018 depression is affecting millions of Americans and is on the rise for all age groups. The report further indicates that teen depression is rapidly on the increase. Teenagers are successfully committing suicide at an alarming rate and the issue needs a closer look.

Teenager depression is a serious condition that can affect and have a great impact to the young teens’ lives. This can affect learning, day-to-day relationships and the wellbeing of the child. If you suspect your child is depressed, you will need to seek clinical and professional help.

Some of the causes of teenage depression

Medical conditions Chronic pains and thyroid problems can lead to teenage depression.

Brain Chemistry Some experts believe that imbalances of some chemicals in our brains could cause depression.

Major life events like the death of a loved one, broken relationships, moving to a new environment or new school can be triggers of depression

It can also be genetics in some families’ depression condition runs in their genes, so if you know or have someone in your family who struggled with depression your teenager can be affected.

Some of the effective treatments for dealing with teenage depression

Psychotherapy helps the teen understand what is happening and how to cope.

Talking to a trusted and professional adult, teacher or teen counselor

Creating an environment or safe space where your teenager can feel free to share his/her feelings.

Support groups also come in handy. You will learn a lot and also know that you are not alone in this.

Still, if you feel your teenager needs help as a parent, do not hesitate to get professional help. With the right help or treatment your teenager will recover and live a happy life.

Additional tips to help you in dealing with teenage depression

Get them active and involved in the community. This gives them a sense of purpose and connect with the other teens

Help them come up with realistic goals that can boost their self-esteem once achieved and sense of accomplishment.

Encourage them to take up their most enjoyed and healthy hobbies and activities. This can help them reconnect back to their interests and feel much better about themselves.

You need to have a strong support system in case your teen needs patience and understanding.

Still, if you feel your teenager needs help as a parent, do not hesitate to get professional help.

Years back life coaching in Kenya was not as famous and acceptable as it is today. This might be because of the African culture or lack of interest. It did not make much sense how you would tell a stranger of your life problems and the stranger would help you come up with ways of dealing with the problem and more so pay for that service.

Counseling was available but it was just perceived either for the mental illnesses or much worse scenarios.

Slowly but steadily people have started comprehending the importance of having counselors, therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, personal development coaches, pastors, mentors, and life coaches.

It has now taken root and we even have an academic institutions that offers life coaching training. You only go to see a doctor when you are sick and at the same time you can have a doctor on call – the same is true about a life coach. The only difference is that there are times you might be sick and not know that you need a life coach or help. In our day-to-day life, we need someone to check upon us.

Life coach as a facilitator

It is said that no man is an island – you can’t solve everything out on your own even if you wanted to. It is important not to isolate yourself when you are going through hard times. The temptation to separate yourself from the world will come and can be overwhelming but try very hard to get help either from a trusted friend or one of the life coach professionals. People are in different phases in their life they can be either in a better phase or a worse phase. A talk from a different quarter can be the difference between life and death. A lot of benefits come with just having that someone who is not afraid to tell you things as they are without being judgemental.

A life coach will not tell you what to do or not to do but will walk with you in whatever phase you are in life. You are the best person that can come with a solution to your problems, you just need to be directed to focus on the solution and not the problems. The solution is within you but you need a guide or facilitator to walk along with you and that is where a life coach comes in.

You cannot be the player and the spectator at the same time; be the main player in your life and allow the life coach to be the spectator and your team coach. It is great to know that in Kenya we have grown and have qualified life coaches. Life coaching has been embraced positively and even becoming a competitive career in the nation.

Life coaching benefits

Some of the benefits of having a life coach are that they help in improving your relationships, make clear your goals, work on your career path, work on your self-awareness journey, work on your self-confidence, can be accountable for your goals, identifying your obstacles and ways to overcome the obstacles.

Before you give up on life try and talk to someone. It will surprise you how a different environment and persona can help. We share a lot about what we go through but not with professionals but with close friends or just strangers; try and get help with people who are trained and professionals.

Looking forward to hear from you.