Description
Social anxiety goes beyond feelings of social discomfort–it’s a state of debilitation in people’s everyday existence. Teen support groups can help people work towards alleviating anxiety and providing coping capabilities. Group therapy allows teens to develop their communication skills and build up their self-esteem. People with SAD are also more likely to develop substance abuse issues as an escape from their anxiety and irrational fears. A teen support group and substance prevention program can help keep kids from turning to drugs and alcohol when they feel helpless from their social anxiety. Participants will meet once a week for structured sessions.
Group Therapist
Dr. Vesal Vakili holds a Doctorate in Psychology and is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of California. She is experienced in providing evidence-based therapies including Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance, Schema Therapy, and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
Dr. Vakili mostly works with individuals, couples and families who are overwhelmed and are experiencing stress, burnout, anxiety, depression and relationship difficulties, and, offers tools and coping mechanisms to overcome these life challenges.
She also has extensive experience in working with individuals with panic disorder and agorophobia who are having a hard time functioning on a daily basis and provides specific tools to help clients regulate their emotions and take back control of their lives.
Dr. Vakili has experience in working with families with special needs children ( ADHD, Autism, Etc.), who are experiencing challenging behaviors, and offers "Parent Management Training" (PMT), which focuses on helping parents develop and strengthen their skills, to reduce challenging behaviors in their child (e.g., aggression, defiance) and improve their communication and relationship with their child and improve their child’s level of functioning and bring peace back to their household.
