Stress Inoculation: How Can You Help The Adolescent?
Stress is a natural reaction of our body that we all experience at some point. As much as we want a quiet and simple life for our children, they will likely encounter many challenges. So it’s important to make sure they have the right tools and strategies in place. And this is precisely what stress inoculation training seeks.
Adolescence, for all the changes it entails, is a particularly complicated stage. Young people go out into the world, gradually abandon parental protection and can feel overwhelmed on several occasions. Thus, the technique that we will talk about today provides you with a clear guide on how to manage stress.
What is stress inoculation?
Stress inoculation is not specifically a technique. It is a psychotherapeutic intervention that combines several strategies. It lasts approximately 10 sessions and is divided into three phases. Its main objective is to help the person understand how stress works, provide them with tools to cope with it and guide them in their application.
It is a cognitive-behavioral technique that, although it has been applied successfully in children, requires that the minor have a certain cognitive development. Therefore, adolescence is a stage in which it can be very useful. Young people will be perfectly capable of understanding and will be able to apply what they have learned from an early age.
Step-by-step stress inoculation
Psychoeducation
In this first phase, the young person is explained how the stress response works. It helps you understand that this is natural and adaptive if it occurs in a timely manner; But when it appears chronically or excessively, it can prevent you from living normally.
You are also informed about the operation of your specific problem. For example, in the case of social phobia, you are told that it arises from paying excessive attention to ourselves while interacting. Or, in the case of fear of taking a test, it is explained to him how excessive perfectionism can lead him to perform worse.
Test phase
This stage is the longest, but it is also the most important. In it , the adolescent is taught different techniques and strategies that can help them cope with stress. Usually a relaxation or breathing technique (to manage anxiety at a physiological level) and a cognitive technique are used.
In this last point, it is about that the internal dialogue changes, for which the young person is encouraged to replace negative thoughts with other empowering and functional ones. These new thoughts should be mentally repeated when facing the feared situation, so that they provide motivation and reassurance to face it.
Next, a series of tests are carried out, with the aim that the adolescent can apply these new strategies in a safe environment. You should start with situations that generate slight discomfort and move towards those that cause more anxiety.
Thus, for example, in the case of social phobia, the young person may be asked to visualize a social scene that causes fear and imagine confronting it with the new skills acquired. You can also practice these strategies with the therapist or with your family members before applying them in real life.
Implementation phase
In this last phase, the adolescent will have to face the feared situations live, now relying on everything they have learned. It is about applying the rehearsed techniques to real life scenarios. In this way, in our example, the young person will be able to put them into practice when interacting with other classmates, friends or strangers.
Stress inoculation, a great guide
This procedure can be used for different conditions that involve anxiety or stress in high degrees. It is, finally, a guide for the young person to know how to act in challenging moments by succeeding. It helps you to know and use your own resources to govern yourself in difficult situations.
Once the child has acquired these tools, they can put them to use in many settings. They will be a resource that will accompany you for life, always available to be used. Also, with each successful application, your self-confidence will increase significantly. It is, therefore, a very complete and effective psychological intervention.
