Bryden: Hi, I'm Bryden, and today I'm here with Carl.

Carl: Hi, I'm Carl. I'm a registered psychologist and I've been in clinical practise for seven years.

Bryden: And today we're gonna be having a chat about a common scenario where a young person may be struggling and may find it hard to see a mental health professional.

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Today we're gonna be exploring some of the reasons why young people may say they don't want to see professional help and what are some things that we can do as well to help.

Carl: 'Cause ultimately, you can't force a young person to seek professional help, but there are some things you can do and say that will hopefully increase the chances that they'll be willing to seek support if and when required.

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Bryden: All right, Carl. So, they wouldn't understand what I'm going through.

Carl: If you can get your young person into that first appointment, I'm very confident that in nine times out of 10, that somebody like myself will be able to demonstrate enough understanding in order to make that young person feel comfortable enough to come back for that second appointment.

Bryden: And I think it's super important for, you know, parents maybe to help their child find their own mental health professional. Because if they're involved in the process of finding their own person, then, you know, they're probably gonna feel more comfortable around them, right?

Carl: Definitely, and it's such a valid point Bryden. We know that the most important thing in the counselling process is that rapport, because if you don't feel comfortable, if you don't have that rapport with the person that you feel they can relate to you, you're not gonna get the outcomes that you want.

Bryden: I don't wanna talk about it. Carl: We can all think of being teenagers or young and saying that to adults, parents around us. You wanna be independent. You don't wanna share your problems with the world. You're developing resilience. But it's important as parents that you continue to express your concern, your support for your young person, even if they don't want to talk about it.

Bryden: Pretty relatable, but I also get how it could be like hard to open up as well.

Carl: And chances are, a lot of young people might never open up to their parents, but that doesn't mean you can't encourage them to open up to another trusted adult, friend, coach, teacher, or a psychologist or counsellor.

Bryden: Yeah.

Bryden: "I don't have a problem."

Bryden: Now I feel like this could be really common because maybe they're avoiding, you know, the situation or possibly even in like, you know, denial of their own feelings.

Carl: Just because somebody seeks support, doesn't mean there's necessarily anything wrong with them. A lot of the reasons, you know, I've seen young people, it's because there's a lot of things going on in their life. And it's about providing them with a new perspective on how to manage those issues and different strategies they can use to lessen the impact of those things going on in their life.

Bryden: Other people have it worse than me.

Carl: Yeah, yup, I've heard that one before.

Bryden: Yeah, well, I think we're all kinda guilty of thinking this, right? But I feel like, especially for young people, it's super easy to compare yourself to other people.

Carl: And the irony is, you know, a lot of people might have it worse than you, but that doesn't make your distress, your challenges in your life, any less valid.

Bryden: And if you were to compare it to like a physical situation, you know, you wouldn't refuse to see a doctor like to get three stitches just because someone else has had 10, right?

Carl: And imagine if you did, you'd probably get infections and a lot of other health issues, so if you are experiencing mental health issues or challenges, you're not alone.

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