PTSD Treatment for Teens in Texas
At Mind Works, we offer compassionate, evidence-based treatment for PTSD and trauma in Texas, tailored for children (ages 3-12) and teens (ages 13-17). Together, we can support your family on the path to healing and hope.
Teen PTSD Treatment in Texas
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in teens can manifest after a traumatic event. Our dedicated team offers a spectrum of services tailored to support, heal, and empower your child. We offer early intervention and testing, treatment, and ongoing support that your whole family can take part in.
How We Treat PTSD in Teens
Mind Works utilizes a range of evidence-based modalities and psychotherapy techniques to address trauma in your child or teen. These include:
- Play therapy for children 3-12
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)
- Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
- Solution-focused therapy for building on strengths to create change.
Through session-based care, we work with you and your teen to guide your family through every stage of discovery and growth. We set goals in collaboration with parents and caregivers to meet your teen where they are. In this way, we walk together on the path to healing.
Our Clinical Team
At Mind Works, our providers specialize in child-centered behavioral healthcare. We offer comprehensive services designed to meet the holistic needs of your child. This approach integrates the expertise of our diverse team to develop a personalized treatment plan for your child.
Our Supportive Outpatient Environment
At Mind Works, our supportive outpatient environment fosters healing and personal growth. Here, children and teens feel safe and understood as they navigate their emotions and experiences. Through evidence-based therapies, we will help your child or teen heal, grow, and thrive.
Our services also include medication management, focused on reducing problematic symptoms and improving overall treatment outcomes. We believe in creating a nurturing space where young minds can flourish and recover at their own pace.
How Outpatient Care Fits Into Your Teen’s Routine
Your teen will continue to attend school and engage in their regular social activities while participating in our outpatient program. Throughout the course of their tailored treatment plan, your teen will attend one-hour sessions with a therapist to address the impact of PTSD on their life. They will discuss physical symptoms, negative thoughts, and any additional mental health issues. Based on their type of trauma, they may participate in group therapy or engage in exposure therapy. Our treatment program supports your teen in practicing mindfulness in daily life as part of their healing process.
How to Get Started With Child Counseling Mind Works
1. Fill Out Our Quick Contact Form
To begin, you’ll fill out our secure and simple contact form on our “Get Connected” page.
2. Complete the Intake Process
Once we’ve established that we’re a good fit for your child’s needs, we’ll move forward with the intake process. Our goal during this stage is to better understand your concerns, pull any key details about your child or teen’s behavioral health needs, and set treatment goals.
3. Begin Your Child’s Treatment Plan
Once we’ve identified your goals, a Mind Works provider will tailor your child’s specific treatment plan. This might look like initiating assessments, beginning play therapy, and/or prescribing medication to support your child’s behavioral health needs.
What Sets Mind Works Apart?
Specialized Pediatric & Adolescent Expertise
Our team is specially trained and qualified to treat behavioral health concerns in children and teens, from ages 3 to 17. This includes intellectual disabilities as well as learning disorders. Every provider is trained by our registered play therapist supervisor.
Evidence-Based Therapies for PTSD
Our team uses a range of evidence-based therapeutic techniques, including play therapy for children 3-12, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), and solutions-focused therapy.
Strategic, Session-Based Treatment Planning
Our team is dedicated to helping children and teens develop individualized treatment plans that evolve based on session-based goals. This approach ensures tailored care that adapts to each child’s progress.
Collaborative Care Across Therapy, Assessments & Medication Management
Our integrated team comes together to provide the absolute best care for your child, sharing key information and working cooperatively to establish a comprehensive treatment plan.
Family Partnership & Parent Education
We partner with families by offering educational resources and workshops that empower parents to support their child’s wellness journey.
Consistency, Continuity & High-Quality Clinical Oversight
Our commitment to clinical oversight guarantees consistent, high-quality care through regular supervision and ongoing staff training, leading to optimal outcomes for our clients.
Program Highlights
Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Teens
At our Texas facilities, we provide counseling interventions for your teen through talk therapy or CBT. We offer them a safe space to explore. Your teen will learn how to express their feelings about scary or challenging situations in safe, healthy ways.
Developing Healthy Coping Skills and Emotional Regulation
As your teen progresses through their tailored programming, they will be given “homework” to practice skills related to coping and emotional regulation. By practicing outside our treatment center, your teen will be empowered to use these skills in daily life.
Support for Flashbacks, Re-Experiencing, and Trauma Symptoms
Your teen will learn to better understand the trauma they experienced and their emotional responses. This knowledge, put into practice, will help them find a pathway through their pain. In addition, when clinically appropriate, your teen may be prescribed medication to intervene with their PTSD or trauma symptoms. For example, some antidepressants can mitigate flashbacks and re-experiencing, allowing your teen the space to process and heal.
What to Expect in PTSD Therapy Sessions
Through a collaborative approach, your teen’s therapy sessions will be tailored to their needs. They will spend each one-hour session engaged with a highly trained and compassionate therapist. Together, in a safe space, they will process any traumatic events and resulting symptoms.
Consistency is an important component of treatment, as is family support.
What Sessions Look Like for Adolescents Ages 13–17
Adolescents engage in various forms of “talk therapy” with their provider. Teen therapy sessions provide a supportive space to explore identity and body image, the building and maintenance of healthy relationships, substance use education and prevention, coping skills, and future planning. We will support your teen through a variety of challenges, including anxiety, depression, and navigating life transitions.
What Sessions Look Like for Children Ages 3–12 (Play Therapy)
All Mind Works providers are trained by our registered play therapist. Child-centered play therapy is a form of psychotherapy that provides a safe way for children to express their emotions. For many young children, especially those who have experienced trauma, self-expression can be difficult. They don’t know how to articulate their true feelings. This can lead to self-isolation, mental health issues, and behavior problems.
Your therapist can learn to communicate more effectively through play. This gives them the opportunity to learn how to resolve conflicts, regulate their emotions, and develop better coping mechanisms. Play therapy can be used at home to improve communication between you and your child.
How Parents & Caregivers Are Involved
Parents and caregivers are involved from your initial call. Your guidance is a key component of structuring your child’s plan. We know it takes a village. Our program is not only for your child. That’s why we offer individual counseling with a mental health professional for parents via a secure teletherapy platform. Mind Works is happy to provide expert guidance in any area related to parenting.
What We Treat
PTSD and Trauma-Related Symptoms in Teens & Children
Symptoms of PTSD or trauma do not always show up immediately. It can take more than three months for symptoms to emerge. These symptoms tend to show up in one of four categories:
- Arousal/reactivity: This looks like startling easily, being on guard, difficulty falling or staying asleep, irritability, aggressive outbursts, or engaging in risky behaviors.
- Avoidance: Your child might avoid events, places, or objects that remind them of their traumatic experience. They might also avoid associated thoughts and feelings.
- Cognition and mood: Your child may experience poor memory, negative self-thoughts/talk, loss of interest in previously engaging activities, a sense of social isolation, or difficulty experiencing positive emotions.
- Re-experiencing: Reliving the event through flashbacks, dreaming, or remembering, ongoing distressing thoughts, and physical signs of stress make up this category.
Co-Occurring Mental Health Conditions (Anxiety, Depression, ADHD)
ADHD, anxiety, and/or depression can be co-occurring mental health conditions with PTSD. Your child’s intake will help their provider determine whether your child should be screened for these concerns. If there is any co-occurring mental health condition, it will become part of our treatment plan.
Trauma From Events Such as Abuse, Accidents, or Natural Disasters
An experience does not have to be directly witnessed or dangerous for it to be traumatic. If your child has experienced abuse, been in an accident, or survived a natural disaster, trauma is a normal response. Additionally, they may experience vicarious trauma from hearing about something that happened to a loved one. Regardless of the origin, your child can develop persistent symptoms associated with that trauma.
When to Seek Help for Teen PTSD
Signs Your Teen May Be Struggling
Your teen may be struggling with PTSD if they are having problems in school, self-isolating, showing less interest in daily activities, or have become angry and resentful. The onset of symptoms usually begins within three months after a traumatic event.
When Symptoms of PTSD Interfere With Well-Being or Daily Life
PTSD can cause a variety of symptoms, ranging from physical to emotional. Mind Works supports your child in noticing and addressing these symptoms through research-based modalities that include mindfulness practices. Through therapy, your child can re-learn how to engage with stressors in order to re-engage their own life.
Additional Program Features
Psychological Testing & Assessments for Trauma-Related Conditions
Changes in your child’s behavior are easy for you to observe. If you know they have experienced trauma, you may quickly draw the appropriate connections. However, some trauma-related conditions are not as overt. If your provider believes it necessary, Mind Works will offer psychological testing and assessments to accurately diagnose and address any trauma-related conditions your child might be experiencing.
Medication Management When Clinically Appropriate
Prescription medication can support healing and growth in your child or teen. When clinically appropriate, your provider will oversee medication management for your child. Medically alleviating symptoms associated with trauma can increase the efficacy of your child’s treatment.
Ongoing Care & Long-Term Support Through Consistent Sessions
Mind Works wants your child or teen to take the skills they learn beyond treatment. However, our care is not timeline-based; it is session-based. Through consistent sessions, your child’s needs will be addressed. You and your family will also be supported.
What Families Can Expect Across Our Texas Locations
A Supportive Space Designed for Children and Teens
Mind Works has several Texas locations. At each, you will discover comprehensive, integrated behavioral health services for children and teens. Our services are tailored to support, heal, and empower. Whether at school, home, or play, we want to see your child thrive.
We offer a holistic set of services all under one roof. Our team at Mind Works will tailor personalized treatment plans to guide your child through their struggles. We will help them unlock their full potential in a nurturing and understanding environment.
Our team is composed of highly trained licensed therapists with years of experience. We can help your child overcome life challenges and build self-esteem. Together, we will empower them to flourish.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does outpatient teen PTSD treatment work for teens?
Once you contact Mind Works, you will provide your teen’s health history and concerns. We will determine if any assessments are needed. From there, your therapist will analyze your teen’s information to tailor their treatment plan.
Our intensive outpatient treatment takes place over 12 sessions. During the first three, your teen will become acclimated and build trust with their therapist. Sessions 4-8 are where we often see resistance. Symptoms may worsen before they improve, and this is normal. In Sessions 9-12, your teen will put the skills they’ve learned in previous sessions to work.
What is the difference between CBT and TF-CBT?
CBT is a therapeutic modality that involves identifying and changing dysfunctional thoughts and behaviors. These changes are achieved through gradual exposure to anxiety-provoking stimuli. Trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) is a parent-child treatment modality that uses cognitive-behavioral principles and exposure therapy techniques to prevent and treat PTSD, depression, and behavioral problems. Both focus on developing coping strategies by identifying thoughts and behaviors stemming from your child’s mental health condition.
How many sessions does PTSD treatment usually require?
Mind Works focuses on empowering children to use their developed skills independently. After the primary 12 therapy sessions, we offer guidance. At this point, we may recommend tapering sessions to reinforce learned skills. We want to ensure your child is well-prepared to continue their progress beyond the therapeutic setting. Learn more about our session-based therapy for kids and teens.
Can parents be involved in their teen’s PTSD treatment?
The Mind Works model invites cooperation between parents, caregivers, patients, and providers. Your child’s success story is a team effort. For that reason, we offer individual and family therapy sessions. Involvement of family members is crucial for success.
Do you offer medication management for PTSD symptoms?
Mind Works offers medication management. Your provider will discuss medication options when clinically appropriate.
What types of traumatic events can lead to PTSD in teens?
Traumatic experiences such as loss, sexual abuse, witnessing a natural disaster, an act of violence, or a serious accident can lead to your teen developing PTSD.
What’s the difference between trauma symptoms and typical stress?
Trauma and stress can both stem from external events. The difference between them lies in how persistent the symptoms are. Feeling frightened or agitated after a traumatic event is normal. If the fear does not abate or worsens over time, your child may be showing symptoms of trauma. Stress typically goes away after the problem is resolved.
Unusual reactions or regressive behaviors may reveal trauma. If your child returns to bed-wetting, becomes unusually clingy, acts out the event during play, or stops talking, consider seeking treatment options. Teens may show symptoms more similar to adults with trauma. It’s possible they can become disrespectful, disruptive, or destructive behaviors. They may even feel guilty or have thoughts of revenge.
Does Mind Works treat severe psychiatric disorders?
Mind Works offers an intensive outpatient program for the following areas:
- Autism
- ADHD
- Anxiety disorders
- Depression
- Grief and trauma
- Learning disabilities
- Educational difficulties
We do not offer mental health treatment for severe psychiatric disorders or substance use disorders. Mind Works facilities are outpatient and are not equipped for inpatient residential treatment. If your child or teen needs immediate intervention, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988. For life-threatening emergencies, dial 911.