 | I'd like to share with you why you are the perfect mentor for a young person struggling with anxiety and depression. You've |
been there and made it through to the other side. As an adult, you've gained a few coping skills and many life skills that your young friend hasn't had time to try out, and you have personal knowledge that all the uncertainty of being young gradually becomes less daunting, even though you still don't know what you will be when you actually grow up, at 30, 40, 50 or 60 years of age.
A youth that has experienced some form of trauma in his or her life is likely to suffer from a lack of self esteem, anxiety and depression. They might feel somewhat uncomfortable in their own skin. Often they will blame themselves for whatever fate has dealt them, regardless of their lack of blame for their circumstances.
That's where you come in, to provide them with the simple reassurance that they are a fine human being and to help them select the healthy options from among a bewildering choice of paths to take. You can help them break down the big decisions into little steps.
Many youths will not yet understand why they feel anxious or out of place. They may even be engaging in self harm to give a visible expression to the invisible turmoil they experience. By giving them steady and consistent feedback, providing them with non-verbal clues that you think they are great, they will begin to believe in themselves.
You won't need to have a degree in psychology to provide valuable help to your mentee. You just need to offer a patient ear, say less than more, and be honest in your responses.
Of course, our Blue Door Youth Services mentoring program provides you with training as a mentor and we host a monthly meetup so that you can share your mentoring stories and highlights with other mentors, as well as spend 30 minutes each session going over key concepts.
Now that you've decided to become a mentor, head on over to our Blue Door Youth Services page and sign up for the next mentor training session.
Christian Cowley
A youth that has experienced some form of trauma in his or her life is likely to suffer from a lack of self esteem, anxiety and depression. They might feel somewhat uncomfortable in their own skin. Often they will blame themselves for whatever fate has dealt them, regardless of their lack of blame for their circumstances.
That's where you come in, to provide them with the simple reassurance that they are a fine human being and to help them select the healthy options from among a bewildering choice of paths to take. You can help them break down the big decisions into little steps.
Many youths will not yet understand why they feel anxious or out of place. They may even be engaging in self harm to give a visible expression to the invisible turmoil they experience. By giving them steady and consistent feedback, providing them with non-verbal clues that you think they are great, they will begin to believe in themselves.
You won't need to have a degree in psychology to provide valuable help to your mentee. You just need to offer a patient ear, say less than more, and be honest in your responses.
Of course, our Blue Door Youth Services mentoring program provides you with training as a mentor and we host a monthly meetup so that you can share your mentoring stories and highlights with other mentors, as well as spend 30 minutes each session going over key concepts.
Now that you've decided to become a mentor, head on over to our Blue Door Youth Services page and sign up for the next mentor training session.
Christian Cowley
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