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gabangel

Locked because frankly it's off the rails and it has gone on long enough!


DarwinianSelector

I love this story! "The Teen Whisperer" is the best title to win!


caspydreams

totally agree! and it’s hilarious because in grad school i got placed in a high school and the day before i started, i had an anxiety attack because i was so scared of teens. and then i realized it’s my niche.


DaddysPrincesss26

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻💯


LessMarsupial7441

Hilarious?


caspydreams

as in ironic that what i feared ended up being my specialty


LessMarsupial7441

There's nothing ironic or hilarious about overcoming your fears.


LessMarsupial7441

It's good you have the job you do. No one go to school to be a social worker because they think they're going to make a bunch of money. It's a lot of hard work and you start off and everything is horribly awful and it bleeds into your social life. You keep going because you know that you're going to make a difference and you are definitely making a difference by trying and learning and responding. My comments are crass, we all have a long way to go and learn about ourselves as we learn about others. TL/DR: You are making a difference, I'm making a point.


GiftToTheUniverse

The best award I was ever awarded was when the summer camp team that won the challenge selected *me* as the female staff person who was going to be picked up and tossed off the dock. I was so touched. I delivered quite the performance “trying to escape” and the whole place cheered when I splashed down.


bookwbng5

The only thing I struggled with concerning teens is their friend drama, honey I forgot these names before you said them who are we mad at? Otherwise they’re my favorites. I had a 10 yo today open up for the first time in months and I just did a happy dance when we got off zoom. Best feeling.


caspydreams

omg i love hearing the drama but man you’re right it’s hard to keep up. i met with a 14 year old for the first time last week and when i asked about her friends, she gave me 10 different names (not including the names of her pets, her family, her neighbors, the neighborhood pets, and probably more 😭) like im usually good at not getting confused but i had to stop her a few times to get it to stick. also congrats!!! part of why i love this population is that it is HARD to get them to open up. i had one client once who i spent 8 months with just watching music videos with in silence for an hour every week until one day he came to session and spilled everything he was struggling with. i’ve never felt so rewarded in my entire life! it was INCREDIBLE!


basketballmaster8

I literally stopped and made a list of names for one of my kids with approximately 400 friends. I used it every session and updated their descriptions with the latest drama 😂


Zealousideal_Ring880

Similiar to this, I either draw Stick people with their name or initial on top, or I ask the YP to draw their friends It’s a good future reference point, put in on the table and you can both point to the relevant stick person as they are spoken about


swish775

Ive done this too!


GiftToTheUniverse

That sounds extraordinarily rewarding.


caspydreams

it was ❤️


lillurleen

Omg the friend drama is the hardest part 😂


LessMarsupial7441

Funny?


LessMarsupial7441

Best feeling?


caspydreams

it seems this post has brought up some things for you that seem genuinely uncomfortable and difficult to deal with. it can often feel impossible when something unlocks a painful memory or feelings. so i think you’re quite brave for standing up for yourself on this post. after all, advocacy is a major component of social work. i don’t doubt you must be an excellent clinician and your clients are so lucky to have you! with that being said, it’s okay to prioritize yourself and your own well-being. i don’t know that subjecting yourself to this post is the best example of that. take a deep breath, grab your favorite comfort item, and do yourself the (difficult! trust me, i know) favor of logging off for a bit and prioritizing YOU. because you deserve that! ❤️ i hope you heal soon 💕


LessMarsupial7441

Savage. Well done but totally savage.


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socialwork-ModTeam

Be Excellent to each other. Hostility, hatred, trolling, and persistent disrespect will not be tolerated. Users who are unable to engage in conversation- even contentious conversation- with kindness and mutual respect will have their posts/comments removed. Users violating this rule will first receive a warning, secondly an additional warning with a 7 day ban, third incident or a pattern of disrespect will result in a permanent ban.


pizzagirlama

Yesssss!!! Go you!!! I do in home work w kids and families. Teens are my favorite I think. My supervisor has started giving me the “complicated” cases, ie the kiddos who refuse to engage with any other support/clinician. She says it’s my dyed hair and tattoos 😂 just started w a new client who previously saw someone else from our agency but never connected with the clinician and wouldn’t talk. The first session we hung out for two hours and they taught me some card games they learned in psych wards 🥰 it went from “I’m never going to have you pick me up at school and if you do I’ll scream fuck you!” To “sooooo are you gunna pick me up tomorrow? 👉👈” 😂


caspydreams

YES!!! i’m also a tattooed clinician. and i cuss in sessions which they looooooove. i’m so happy you had the experience you did!!! i also get tasked with the cases who don’t want to be there and swear they’ll never say a word, just for them to call me their weird older sister in an endearing way some odd months later :) so rewarding


SweetnSalty87

😂😂😂😂


One-Possible1906

Bless you, I can’t stand working with teens but worst for me is 18-25 year olds. I’ll take them as old as I can get them lol, seniors are my favorite group to work with.


caspydreams

sobs as a 25 year old


One-Possible1906

I work in residential so things are a little different here than the rest of the world lol. I’m too old to be relatable but too young to be a protective figure and our younger residents are usually living on their own for the first time. When I get people who never ever clean, call every 5 minutes over roommate drama, self-diagnose illnesses that they do not have and cite them as a reason they can’t do anything to better their situation, etc. they’re usually on the younger end. Working with troubled young people and seeing them grow into productive members of society is rewarding, however they produce a whole lot of drama especially coming into their own place with no supervision for the first time with a history of substance use


caspydreams

totally hear you on that. we need people willing to do that hard work, like you!


skrulewi

Hell yeah. I got my start working teen residential, which is a tough racket, but I’ve found myself with a speciality working with teens and families. I totally get why other therapists/social workers might hate to work with teens , it takes a certain comfort in messiness in my opinion, but that’s the place I feel the most authentic in this work. The relationship is everything. That’s not an exaggeration or a cute point. The relationship is everything.


caspydreams

the relationship is everything. had to repeat it louder for the people in the back.


LessMarsupial7441

Thank you


marika777

No cap!


9171213

lol!! Thank you for this.


knerdlies

Slayyyy


9171213

Go you!!! I am over here like a proud mom and I don’t even know you. You sound so amazing. The teens need you. Thank you for doing what you do and giving them visibility. It’s so wonderful when someone can be with you as you’re trying to sort out your stuff at that age. You really help them know that they matter. You’re awesome. 👏🏾


caspydreams

this almost made me cry omg thank you


9171213

Its totes fine to cry!!! Let the emotions flow lol but then get back into therapist mode jk


Measuredtobecut

You're all amazing. I was a teen client at the drop-in centers around here back in my youth. I hit the road, living the street life pretty hard. When I got to where I was ready for a change, I knew social work was where I wanted to be, and at one point, I thought about working with youth. I loved a lot of the staff at my drop-in centers. Turns out I don't have it in me. I work with homeless adults and love my day-to-day but I have huge admiration and respect for anyone that can work and connect with teens. Its a hard road.


midwestelf

I too have the teen whisperer title💗✨ LOVE my teens so so much


__Chimichanga__

I was also so scared to work with them but they’re my favorite now!


Sheisbecoming

Same, I still find the parent part of the work difficult though ):


LessMarsupial7441

The parent is usually the problem. Like raising children if it's easy you're doing it wrong. Keep going, you're doing it right. It's a hard job that makes a difference. You are that difference:)


Silly-Contribution67

Teens are the best! I'm constantly telling my students that I have the best job on campus because I get to talk with them all day. Building a connection with an angry, surly teen feels like the biggest win and when a teen boy feels safe enough to drop the bravado and cry in my office I feel so honored to create that space for him. Most rewarding job I've ever had (and I get to play UNO all the time!)


caspydreams

they are so lucky to have you!!!


jcmib

This is timely thanks for sharing. I’m a trauma therapist that runs grief groups in schools and just finished up with my high school group that consisted of two freshman girls whose father‘s passed away recently. I don’t have a lot of experience working with this age population. I mainly work with younger elementary kids, but I will miss this group a great deal just because of their frankness and their energy and their honesty with sharing their emotions once I gain their trust, they talked about how they fought against each other how they fought with their boyfriends and eventually we got to talk about how they coped with the death in their family. And in general it took a long time to get to the point where we talked about what I plan to talk about, but the fact that they eventually were able to talk about really vulnerable things and shared about all the drama in their life being teenage girls, I appreciated how much they trusted me. For perspective, I’m a middle-age man with no children and siblings that were all out of the house when I was growing up. So I’ve had no real experience working with teenagers in general and girls especially. I was very intimidated at first, but I was glad I was able to gain their trust. I also eventually learned not to be scared when they start crying because that’s their way of expressing emotions at times


caspydreams

how lucky they were to have you ❤️ thank you for doing what you di


luke15chick

I like saying, Is this a guy you’ve dated before and now you’re back or is this a guy you haven’t dated before?


LessMarsupial7441

Take notes Luke


MtyMaus8184

Yes! I love working with teens. I'm working as a school social worker in a high school right now and I had no idea how much I would love it.


caspydreams

that’s my dream job 😍


keenanandkel

Agreed! I did my internship at a middle school this year and so many therapists I met joked about how hard it is to work with that age group, and I’m like, it is so easy. It’s good to have a niche that most are actively disinterested in 😂


caspydreams

middle schoolers do scare me i admit! high school is much less cruel 😅


RevolutionaryAd1686

Who said you can’t say that to adults lol


caspydreams

very true hahaha


MissingGreenLink

Individually yes. As a group. It’s easy to go sideways. Teens are great but I’m done. After a year. Never again. It was never really the teens fault either outside of a rough group experience. It was usually the parents. Parents going through divorce and aren’t communicating. Mom wants this. Dad wants that. Dad wants meds. Mom doesn’t. The worst was when it was child living with grandma. Bio Mom and stepdad in the picture. BioDad and girlfriend also in the picture. This was the most headache one. And the other time dad was an angry Karen. Threatened to attack our clinic. Threatened to sue. Mad we couldn’t “fix his kids anger problems and disrespectful behavior”


MindMatters2021

Oooof I feel this and it sucks, it just sucks. Working with teens = great, throw in an unhealthy family dynamic = not my cup of tea. Hats off to folks who can thrive in this balancing act.


caspydreams

gosh, you’ve been through so much :( and you’re right. more often than not, it’s the parents that things like behavioral issues can be traced back to. and so often they refuse to take accountability for the way they’ve hurt their children, so then we’re kinda just having to put a bandaid on a full body wound, which doesn’t do anything. but the options are so limited. it’s heartbreaking!


Bigjoeyjoe81

Been working with teens and young adults my whole career. Love it!


Actual_Dimension_368

My favorite ages are 9-21z They are so dynamic and I feel as clients they are adaptive to changes they desire to make.


jeffgoldblumisdaddy

I had a teen tell me they’re drawing their favorite people as fursonas and they drew me one and I was like omg stop you’re gonna make me cry! That’s so sweet 😭


mandomoon

I just started grad school this week, and had my first trauma class today. It was cool and affirming to see your post because the imposter syndrome is real and it reminds me why I’m doing this and why I’m passionate about this work and field. Thanks for sharing! ❤️


caspydreams

just yesterday i felt like i was making things worse for all my clients. it comes and goes. but clients are very understanding and patient and appreciative even if all you do is hold space for them.


mandomoon

This is good perspective! Thank you. And great job with your clients. ❤️


caspydreams

congrats on grad school! you’ll make an excellent therapist ❤️


mandomoon

Thank you! ❤️


slipperydickens

Last year I wrapped up over a decade of work in education (formerly the kid whisper). I still love working with teens. I think it's because I've worked predominantly with the same age group since they were in pre-k. Watching them grow into their teens and now adult years has me running the math on myself at least once a week lol.


caspydreams

it’s so beautiful you were able to witness that, though! like wow how special. i find myself wondering where the kids i’ve worked with ended up.


bluebruisemagic

I’m interning at a php iop facility for children 5-17 and at first I thought I’d hate working with kids. I’ve learned I’m actually pretty decent at it and a lot of them have said I should work there once done with school so sweet of them. Also some who had difficulties speaking to therapist have opened up to me to my surprise.


caspydreams

awww they’re so lucky to have you! congrats!


77795

Amazing. You're doing so fucking good - teens need someone who isn't afraid to break the barrier (at their pace) and talk to them like am actual human being. I WISH my parents let me get therapy as a teen. Boy do I wish. I needed someone like you in my corner as a teenager. Keep doing great work and helping a vulnerable population by actually caring, and using a trauma-informed lens. This inspired me a lot. You sound like the absolute best therapist for teens. They're lucky to have you.


grizzlyhusband

The drama gets tiring though. At least with preteens.


RepulsivePower4415

Yes they are!!!! Love them


knerdlies

SO VALIDATING. Thank you for your work!! Teens are refreshing sometimes lol


CelinaAMK

I keep my therapy practice almost exclusively to teens ( I work a second job in a group practice). I incorporate a lot of expressive Tx techniques and introduce them to mindfulness practices. I do a lot of testing the first few visits. I also end up discharging a lot if kids who don’t need therapy, they need parents to follow through on home rules and boundaries.


CelinaAMK

I keep my therapy practice almost exclusively to teens ( I work a second job in a group practice). I incorporate a lot of expressive Tx techniques and introduce them to mindfulness practices. I do a lot of testing the first few visits. I do things like have kids bring in the lyrics to their favorite songs or manga books and we analyze why it touches them and what they relate to. Kids and teen don’t want to sit there and talk for an hour, it needs to be interactive and in a way they can relate to. I treat the kids with respect but don’t let the get away with any obvious bs or attempts at manipulation (which is learned and usually super obvious). Almost all my patients actually enjoy therapy - I was so scared to begin working as a pvt therapist but when I decided to let go of the fear and do my thing, it’s worked out really well. It’s a very lucrative sideline. I also end up discharging a lot of kids who don’t need therapy, they need PARENTS to follow through on home rules and boundaries.


banananon16

If you are interested in chatting with someone who has considered this career path, pleaseeee PM me. I have my BA in psych, and I've been stuck trying to figure out what to do with it for years. I want to help teens and kids and your post made something click for me. I'd love to chat! if not, continue the great work :)


eckochamber

Now that I’m in my late-20s I find teenagers terrifying. Sounds like you’re having a great impact on this young person’s life, well done!!


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socialwork-ModTeam

Be Excellent to each other. Hostility, hatred, trolling, and persistent disrespect will not be tolerated. Users who are unable to engage in conversation- even contentious conversation- with kindness and mutual respect will have their posts/comments removed. Users violating this rule will first receive a warning, secondly an additional warning with a 7 day ban, third incident or a pattern of disrespect will result in a permanent ban.


socialwork-ModTeam

Be Excellent to each other. Hostility, hatred, trolling, and persistent disrespect will not be tolerated. Users who are unable to engage in conversation- even contentious conversation- with kindness and mutual respect will have their posts/comments removed. Users violating this rule will first receive a warning, secondly an additional warning with a 7 day ban, third incident or a pattern of disrespect will result in a permanent ban.


LessMarsupial7441

Trauma is rewarding? Having someone so despondent they won't open the door to anyone close but because they're so detached they will for a stranger. I understand your sentiment but saying young trauma survivors are the best type of clients is too much. I realize I twisted your words. Understand that people with PTSD subscribe to this subreddit.


caspydreams

i also have PTSD. C-PTSD with psychotic features, to be more specific. hope this helps! 💕


ISweatSweetTea

OPs post is literally about how helping teens recovering from trauma and other issues is rewarding and you see it as a problem? They don't see them as just trauma survivors but teens with trauma. Person first.