Welcome to Simply Teens!
Outpatient Mental Health Therapy
We are so glad you have found our website. We are a teen center that specializes in working with teens and their families. We want to support both your teen and your family on your journey to wellness. Please check out our pages below for more information.
If you aren’t sure what you are looking for, please email us and we will reach out to you within 2-4 business hours. We look forward to collaborating with your family and your teen.
Our goal is to teach teens and their families life-long skills to ensure success. We want to stop the cycles of self-destructive behaviors that lead to continued hospitalizations, struggles in the home and at school, and distress. We want to support our community one family at a time.
What is IOP?
An Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is where a client participates either three days a week or five days a week in a group setting. Our treatment program is designed using Dialectic Behavioral Therapy (DBT) alongside trauma informed care to decrease symptoms of trauma, depression, and anxiety.
IOP/Day Treatment Group
We offer IOP group therapy three days a week. Groups consist of learning and practicing DBT skills, utilizing art to identify and express emotions, addressing the polyvagal system and its relation to trauma, and somatic exercises. This program is designed to help teens who are struggling with daily functioning due to having experienced trauma(s) including that resulted from mental, physical, emotional, and/or medical event(s). At Simply Teens, we combine group, family, and individual therapy along with the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) to work through each client’s presenting concerns.
Family sessions are offered to all clients who participate in group therapy. Family sessions are designed to assist in strengthening the family unit and increasing communication skills.
We are happy to provide a weekly parent workshop for clients currently in our program, participation in the workshop can continue after the client is discharged. The parent workshop reviews skills that clients learn in group, provides parent skills, and allows for parents to connect to others in the community.
When the body is exposed to a threat, the autonomic nervous system sends an individual into a state of fight, flight, or freeze. These are the three main stress responses. During these states, a myriad of hormones are released and individuals experience physiological changes such as trembling or shaking or a change in heart rate or pace of breath. Once the perceived threat is removed, the nervous system calms down and the individual can return to their pre-threat state. Some individuals, however, have been repeatedly exposed to perceived threats and find themselves living in a constant state of hypervigilance. This might look like increased irritability and anxiety, feeling overwhelmed, having difficulties connecting with others, and having troubles remaining focused.
The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a new and innovative way of calming the nervous system down by listening to carefully selected and crafted music to reprogram the polyvagal nervous system by going through the middle ear right to the vagus nerve. Once a teen is stabilized in the day treatment program, we can start SSP. It requires about ten 30-45 minute sessions to administer the SSP. We are seeing great improvements in clients’ outcomes by using this technique.
We are currently offering several year round, open groups –
Resiliency Groups – Once a week groups for teens and tweens. In these groups members learn coping skills as well as build healthy connections with other peers dealing with similar difficulties.
DBT skills group for youth ages 13-18 lasts 16-weeks and the modules cover:• emotional regulation
• distress tolerance
• interpersonal effectiveness
• mindfulness
Skills-Focused Treatment
DBT is an evidence-based treatment that specializes in teaching individuals to control moods and impulses, deal with distress, and manage relationships.
DBT skills have been shown to be helpful in treating clients who experience self-harm behaviors, suicidality, depression and anxiety.
Learning Objectives• Increase awareness and manage thoughts that contribute to emotional dysregulation
• Decrease self-sabotaging behaviors
• Learn strategies to focus on the “here and now”
• Gain skills to effectively manage crisis situations without engaging in high-risk behaviors
• Practice self-compassion to improve the relationship with yourself and with others
Group are held every Tuesday from 4:00 to 5:30 PM.
The DBT group costs $75/session
A discount is offered if the 16 weeks is paid in full at the time of start date.
What is IOP vs. Day Treatment
Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is an insurance term and Day Treatment (DT) is a state term. They are often used interchangeably. The reason we use both words is because we are licensed by the state and accredited by CARF. Our licensed status means that we have gone through the rigorous process of state licensure. Our facility is education rated and safety checked. Our staff have completed myriad trainings on safety and trauma, and are CPR-certified. We adhere to the regulations of North Carolina in providing trauma- informed, evidence-based care.
In the mental health field, there are several different levels of therapeutic care clients may participate in. For your reference, we have provided a brief definition of each. At Simply Teens Outpatient, we specifically offer IOP/DT and OP levels of care.
Outpatient Therapy (OP): An individual client, family, or couple may meet with their therapist and/or attend a support group, most typically for an hour, one to two times a week.
Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP): Client attends group therapy and programming to learn skills three hours a day, three to five days a week.
Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP): Client attends group therapy and programming to learn skills five to six hours a day, five days a week.
Residential Treatment Center (RTC): Client temporarily resides at a treatment facility for daily therapeutic groups and 24/7 support. Client typically returns home and transitions to a PHP or IOP after 1-3 months.
Acute Inpatient Hospitalization (IP): Clients experiencing a mental health crisis may be admitted to a psychiatric hospital for a couple days to a couple weeks for stabilization and 24/7 care until a long-term plan of care is established.