About Recovery for Teens

Recovery4Teens is a self-help tool designed to help teen trauma survivors learn more about post-traumatic stress and to help them cope more effectively with the effects of trauma.

Not a Replacement for Counseling!

This educational self-help website is not intended to replace face-to-face counseling. If you continue to experience significant distress beyond the first weeks after your trauma, please talk to your doctor and consider seeking counseling from a traumatic stress specialist. You can use the site to help you learn more about traumatic stress and decide whether to seek counseling.

Common Problems Quiz

When you first begin using this site, you’ll be asked to complete a Common Problems Quiz. All of your answers on this quiz will remain anonymous because you will use your personal password. This quiz will:

  • Let you know how you’re doing
  • Help educate you about traumatic stress reactions
  • Direct you to which sections of the site may be most helpful for you
  • Save your answers so you can go back any time and check your recovery progress. Your answers will be updated every time you visit the site and complete the quiz.

My Profile Page

Once you create an account with us, and sign in as a member, you will begin on your Profile Page. This is your personal “home page” where you can:

  • Find where you left off during your last visit
  • See how much of each section you have completed
  • Get to your Common Problems Quiz and results
  • Remember which parts of the site were recommended for you.
  • Access the tools and skills you have collected throughout the site

My Recovery Sections

Each of the destinations focuses on a different educational topic that may help with your recovery. They are designed to help you learn something important that may give you more control in your recovery process. There are six destinations available to you:

  • My Support: Get Support from family, friends, and others. Learn about how support can help, find out what friends you can trust, and get tips on how to talk to parents and counselors
  • My Body: Learn everything you need to know about caring for your body after trauma. Get information about Sleep, Pain and Tension, Drinking and Drugs, Fitness and Nutrition, and ways to Relax that will be key in helping you move forward
  • My Memories: Deal with Nightmares, Unwanted Memories, and Trauma Triggers. After a trauma, lots of things trigger troubling memories and physical reactions. Learn about how to manage these things more effectively
  • My Thoughts: Reduce Your Worry and Negative Thinking. Negative thinking can stop you from feeling better. Use this area to identify your negative thoughts, learn about how to worry less, and bust negative thinking once and for all
  • My Emotions: Learn to handle Depression, Fear, and Anger. Figure out ways to deal with strong emotions following a trauma and get tips for expressing yourself in a healthy way
  • My Life: Get more control of your life. Find out about time management, reduce your stress, and begin to feel safe again.