Laura's Female Teen Case Study
Alicia is a 17 year old recent high school graduate who had been struggling with depression. She recently started hanging out with a party crowd and found herself going out multiple nights a week and using a variety of drugs, often times not remembering parts of the evening. Alicia’s mother encouraged her to attend counseling after a particularly disturbing weekend where Alicia lost a full day of time and woke up scared and alone in a hotel room.
When Alicia came to her first session she was very depressed, scared and did not see a future for herself. She had been working to separate herself from her “party” friends and had not used any substances for a week however she stated that she still felt the pull to use when she was stressed or lonely. Over the next few sessions, Laura worked with Alicia to identify how her choices and unhealthy relationships impacted her mood and her desire to use.
As they talked through relationships and past experiences, Alicia was able to identify many times when she sacrificed what was best for her so that other people would like and accept her. As she gained awareness of the destructive nature of these relationships, Alicia worked with Laura to establish stronger boundaries and place a higher value on herself. They worked on setting future goals and discussed how choices that Alicia was making in her life would impact those goals.
Alicia was able to maintain a separation from her “party” friends and started to develop stronger relationships with her family. Over time as she worked toward her goals she was able to start college, hold down a job and purchase a car. Alicia did face times when she struggled with wanting to return to past relationships or struggled with self worth but through her relationship with her therapist she was able to reset and get back on track with her goals rather than continue down an unhealthy path.
At this time, Alicia comes in for monthly check-in’s to make sure that she is staying on track and to discuss any challenges she is having in her thoughts or with current relationships. She is expected to graduate from college in about a year and is looking forward to starting the next stage of her life.