Changes within the family or in relationships hit adolescents particularly hard. Different from adults, adolescents cannot draw on positive solution strategies from their past.

What is important when working with adolescents is to form a working alliance with the child's parents or caregivers. To achieve positive changes, the child's environment is just as important as the work we do in therapy. Parents and family members should work on trying to understand the problem just as much as the child to be able to create a positive foundation for the therapy success.