A Comprehensive Guide to CBT Techniques and Resources for Teens
Medically reviewed by
Amy Kranzler, PhD, Nutrition - Written
by
Lauren O'Connellon
January 17, 2025
When your teen experiences emotional or behavioral issues, you may wonder what, if anything, will help. During these times, it is good to know that many behavioral difficulties teens and adolescents experience are connected to how they think and act. One effective approach to teens’ problem behaviors is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). This is a popular, effective approach to help teens. CBT for teens works by helping notice negative thinking and behavioral patterns and, when relevant, replacing them with more helpful and effective ones. In this article, we explore how CBT can help your child improve their mental health and manage problem behaviors now and in the future. Let’s begin with an introduction to CBT that explains what it is and how it works.
Understanding Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is structured talk therapy designed to help individuals manage mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, and emotional concerns like grief or stress. CBT is also used to manage health conditions like insomnia, chronic pain, and migraines.
CBT is based on the principle that psychological issues are related to the following:
- Problematic patterns of thinking,
- Learned patterns of unhelpful behavior,
- Problematic core beliefs about one's self and the world and
- Individuals with psychological issues can learn coping strategies to help alleviate their symptoms and improve their emotional and mental health.
How CBT for Teens Addresses Negative Thinking Patterns and Cognitive Distortions
CBT targets negative thinking patterns by using an approach called cognitive restructuring. This technique involves identifying and challenging negative thoughts and replacing them with more balanced, helpful ones. This approach can help your child see situations more clearly and realistically.
Importance of CBT for Mental Health Issues in Children and Adolescents
CBT for teens is a meaningful way to treat mental health issues in children and adolescents. Because the primary goal of this approach is to teach children how to shift patterns by shifting their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can impart long-lasting positive effects.
Benefits of CBT for Teens
Mental health conditions are more common among teenagers than most people realize. Conditions like anxiety, depression, and eating disorders start to appear during the teenage years. CBT for teens is a beneficial way to address these conditions and others.
Effective Treatment for Behavioral Issues and Mental Health Conditions
According to research, about two-thirds of children treated with CBT will be free of their primary diagnosis at the end of their treatment. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is an effective treatment for anxiety disorders in children and adolescents while reducing recurrence rates, another study shows.
Short-Term Therapy with Long-Term Impact
CBT for teens is considered a short-term therapy because it usually involves a limited number of sessions. However, the impact on your child is considered to be significant and long-lasting. It teaches patients how to cope with mental health issues or nonpsychological issues. CBT for teens also offers practical ways to address challenges after therapy ends.
Enhancing Coping Skills and Problem-Solving Abilities
CBT for teens enhances coping skills and problem-solving abilities in teens and adolescents. It teaches them to identify and challenge negative thoughts. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy also helps children develop practical strategies for managing emotions and using problem-solving skills. For example, CBT may include assertiveness training, relaxation techniques, and stress management strategies. This approach improves an individual's resilience and ability to navigate difficult situations in life.
Common CBT Techniques Used with Teens
Common CBT techniques used specifically with teenagers are aimed at helping teens relax, face their fears, and encourage positive thoughts and activities. Therapists use a wide range of techniques to help teens recognize negative thoughts and feelings so those can be reframed into positive ones. Let’s learn how restructuring thoughts works with a skill called Behavioral Activation.
Cognitive Restructuring and Behavioral Activation
Because cognitive restructuring is a way to name and challenge negative thoughts, it goes hand in hand with Behavioral Activation, a vital skill learned through CBT. Behavioral Activation is used in treating depression. It has to do with how behaviors and feelings influence each other. Behavioral Activation can be used as a stand-alone treatment or with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. The point of Behavioral Activation is to help individuals understand how behaviors influence emotions.
Behavioral Activation involves:
- Understanding the cycles of depression.
- Monitoring daily activities.
- Naming one's goals and values.
- Building an upward spiral of motivation and energy through pleasure and mastery.
- Scheduling activities that are meaningful and enjoyable.
- Using problem-solving skills.
- Reducing avoidance.
- Practicing what is learned in therapy sessions in daily life.
Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques
Common mindfulness and relaxation techniques are taught when CBT is used with adolescents and teens. Those include the following techniques designed to help teens focus on the present moment and manage stress via awareness of their thoughts and physical sensations:
- Deep breathing exercises.
- Progressive muscle relaxation.
- Guided imagery.
- Mindful walking.
- Body scans.
- Journaling.
- Listening to calming music.
- Spending time in nature.
CBT Workbooks and Resources
Workbooks are a valuable tool in CBT for teens. Using a workbook offers a structured way to apply what teens learn in therapy sessions. For example, a workbook can provide exercises with specific examples of situations teens face. Your teen can evaluate their thoughts and feelings with guidance as they work through various real-life scenarios. This allows them to practice what they learned and reflect on their emotions.
Recommended CBT Workbooks for Teens
Many CBT workbooks are available for your teen to use. According to child clinical psychologist Dr. Stephanie Margolese, here are five top-recommended Cognitive Behavioral Therapy workbooks for teens. These workbooks are effective because they support CBT therapy. These resources can be used outside therapy to reinforce what is learned.
1. The CBT Toolbox, Second Edition: 185 Tools to Manage Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Behaviors & Stress
3. Trauma-Focused CBT for Children and Adolescents: Treatment Applications
How Workbooks Enhance Therapy Sessions
CBT workbooks enhance therapy sessions by letting children practice what they learn in therapy. For example, children learn to get in touch with their emotions through structured exercises and activities like using checklists to identify specific feelings. Workbook activities can help children identify their own negative thought patterns through example situations. These workbooks also help teens develop coping skills to manage symptoms between sessions through various skill-building exercises. In short, workbooks are a way to maximize the effectiveness of treatment.
Remember, workbooks are not a substitute for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for your adolescent or teenager. Still, they can be a positive and practical way to reinforce what is learned in therapy.
Engaging Teens and Their Families in the CBT Process
The child needs to engage in therapy, and their family needs to be involved in the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy process. When the family is involved, they can reinforce the techniques learned in each session at home. This approach helps create a consistent environment for positive progress for the child. Using interactive activities, encouraging open communication, tailoring the approach to their interests, and ensuring the family understands CBT's benefits helps everyone feel supported.
Family collaboration may involve any of the following:
- Including parents or guardians in therapy sessions.
- Working to improve communication in the family.
- Addressing possible contributing factors from home.
- Educating parents.
- Implementing behavioral modification at home.
The Role of a CBT Therapist
A CBT therapist’s role is to guide your teen as they learn to identify and evaluate negative thoughts. The therapist will also help your teen develop healthier coping skills. Amid this guidance, the therapist will provide problem-solving and coping techniques specific to your child’s situation and needs.
What to Expect During Therapy Sessions
Once a CBT treatment plan is developed for your teen, your teen will participate in a structured problem-solving approach in a specified number of sessions. The number of sessions depends on the child and their determined goals. The child will be encouraged to discuss their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors with their therapist. The therapist will help your teen identify unhelpful thought patterns and work to challenge them through techniques like reshaping negative thoughts (cognitive restructuring). The therapist will also help your teen set actionable goals the child can practice between sessions. Therapists also teach skills that your teen can use immediately in their daily life.
Finding an Evidence-Based CBT Therapist
To find an evidence-based CBT therapist, search the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) directory, ask your doctor for a referral, check with your local psychological association, or use a trusted resource like Handspring Health.
Once you select a therapist you think you might use, verify their credentials and ensure they are licensed to practice in your state.
Applying CBT for Teens in Daily Life
Because CBT is a practical therapy that can be used in most situations, it is easy to apply in daily life for your child. The skills learned in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can help teens develop healthy coping skills to manage their emotions. For example, CBT equips teens with specific coping techniques they can use when they face everyday challenges.
Some of those techniques are:
- Deep breathing exercises.
- Progressive muscle relaxation.
- Mindfulness techniques.
This practical approach of applying skills from therapy in daily life helps teens make better decisions in everyday situations.
CBT also provides teens with advanced strategies to further manage their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
CBT Strategies for Managing Thoughts, Feelings, and Behaviors and Supporting Teens Outside of Therapy
CBT strategies for managing thoughts, feelings, and behaviors aim to identify and change unhelpful thought patterns. For example, if your teen has irrational thoughts (what therapists call “cognitive distortions”), negative thought patterns and behaviors are reinforced. Your teen can use the following Cognitive Behavioral Therapy strategies to manage their inaccurate thoughts at those times:
- Cognitive restructuring to challenge negative thoughts and feelings.
- Thought records to track thoughts and feelings.
- Behavioral Activation to engage in positive activities.
- Relaxation techniques like deep breathing.
- Exposure therapy to gradually face fears.
- Journaling.
- Mindfulness meditation.
- Role-playing.
- Problem-solving skills.
You can further support your teen outside of therapy sessions by encouraging activities like practicing positive self-talk and setting specific goals. For example, if your teen is consumed with worry, instead of setting a goal to “worry less,” they can set a goal to replace worry with problem-solving for at least five minutes. That approach provides a concrete, measurable target for your teen to work toward.
CBT for Specific Mental Health Conditions for Teens
CBT is used widely for a variety of mental health conditions. It is shown to be effective in treating depression, anxiety, substance abuse, eating disorders, and more. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the main conditions Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is used to treat are anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), phobias, eating disorders, and substance abuse.
Addressing Anxiety and Depression in Teens
CBT for teens is an effective approach for alleviating symptoms of mental health conditions like depression and anxiety. Let’s say your teen is overwhelmed with completing homework assignments. The larger task of “completing all your homework” can be broken down into smaller, more manageable tasks. Therapists call this “successive approximation.” For example, your teen can start by writing down all their weekly assignments. Next, they can set a time each day to work on homework. They can then select the assignments that need immediate attention, and so on. As they set and achieve small goals, the task appears less daunting, and their anxiety is reduced. This simple example can be applied to many situations.
Managing Behavioral Issues and Cognitive Distortions
Thoughts are the first trigger for emotions and behaviors. Based on this, according to CBT, interventions for behavioral issues and cognitive distortions should focus on identifying and shifting distorted thinking. Cognitive distortions, also called "thinking errors," are ways of thinking that do not match reality. For example, thinking in extremes (all or nothing; black and white thinking), jumping to conclusions (catastrophizing), and making problems seem bigger than they are (the so-called making mountains out of molehills).
Tailoring CBT Techniques to Individual Needs
CBT focuses on identifying and challenging specific thought patterns. Tailoring to an individual's needs is easy. Therapy can be highly customized to suit the individual's needs by using personalized strategies like journaling and specified role-playing.
If you have a teen or adolescent child dealing with challenging situations and behaviors, it may be time to consider Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as a practical treatment approach to help your child now and in the future.
When Handspring Might Be Right For You
Handspring provides mental health care programs that have been proven to work. Our qualified therapists are specially trained to treat children from 8 to 28. They use a CBT approach to help teens feel better and reach their goals. If you think Cognitive Behavioral Therapy may benefit your child, reach out to book a free consultation.
