What Do Teens Really Think of Therapy? We Asked

There are a lot of headlines about Gen Z defeating mental health stigma. And while it’s true that mental health is a much bigger part of the conversation these days, deep-rooted stigmas aren’t always so easy to get rid of. That’s why we turned to our SheKnows Teen Council to get answers from Gen Z’ers themselves — do they feel there’s still a stigma around mental health and therapy?

In our latest “Where I Stand” video, the vast majority of our council members didn’t think they’d be judged for going to therapy. “My friends will casually drop, ‘Oh, I’m going to therapy today,’ and nobody will think anything of it,” one teen explained. However, our one teen who answered “neutral” on the question noted that culture and location may have something to do with it. “My culture, where I’m from, not many people have therapists,” he said.

The teens were more divided on the question of whether talking about mental health still feels taboo. “I think for guys there’s probably more of a stigma,” one teen stated. “When you say that you’re going to therapy, it seems like you have a more serious issue,” another teen agreed. “It’s like, if you need to go to therapy, something must be really wrong. That’s not always true, but that’s kind of the stigma around it.”

Other teens, though, say the taboo is fading. “At least with my friend group, we’re very open about how we’re feeling, so it’s not taboo for us.”

Watch the video and get all the insights from our Teen Council above.

Before you go, check out our favorite skincare brands your teen will love: