Response for Teens Blog

Response Responds is your place for in-depth information and advice on the issues most important to you, from sex to mental health to relationships to gender identity. We’ll also update you on the latest Response for Teens news and events.

How Should We Talk to Young People About Ozempic?

The breakneck rate at which weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and the like infiltrated our media, our vernacular, and our everyday lives was astonishing. 

As always, here at Response for Teens, we want to provide caregivers and their young people with as much information as possible to make informed and meaningful decisions. So, before we go down all those conversational paths and more, we should first know what we’re talking about. Let’s cover the basics.

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Mental Health Connections

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so we checked in with one of our Response for Teens clinicians, Zatio Kone, to learn more about the subject.

“I really think that mental health is about learning how to live with the range of human emotions and learning how to tolerate everything that comes our way,” Zatio said. “It’s ok to struggle sometimes, it’s ok to feel less than great.

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Therapy Helps Teen Get Back on Track 

Sixteen-year-old Maya was not attending high school on a regular basis. With her parents separated, the oldest of four became quite isolated and spent many hours online. She had very little contact with people outside of social media.  Maya’s mother contacted JCFS Chicago’s Response for Teens to get help for her daughter. 

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Sexual Assault on College Campuses

Response for Teens would like to provide more young people with knowledge and skills that they can use to make better decisions and stay safe.  And as students prepare to go off to college, we wonder: what are the things that they may not learn in High School?

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Teen Mental Health and the Pandemic

The ongoing stress, fear, grief, isolation and uncertainty created by the pandemic can wear anyone down, but many teens have had an especially tough time coping emotionally. In a recent WebMD poll, researchers found that 46% of 977 parents of teens said their child has shown signs of a new or worsening mental health condition since the start of the pandemic.

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How do I find a therapist?

Many people think about seeking therapy for a long time.  They may be unsure about what the process will be like, concerned about others’ judgements, or just apprehensive of the unknown.  Making the decision to seek therapy is a big one!  Congratulations on taking that step.

Once that decision has been made, the next question is, How do I find a therapist?

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