It doesn’t matter how popular you are or how high your grades are, if you’re an adolescent there might be a time when you need to get help from others. Because adolescence is challenging, there might be moments when you need the support and guidance of someone else.

Throughout each stage of adolescence, there are uncomfortable and dramatic changes happening for teens on emotional, physical, social, and psychological levels. For instance, towards the beginning of adolescence, teens are moving through the uncomfortable period of physical growth and sexual development. Of course, these physical changes can have an influence on your emotional and psychological growth, especially if you’re concerned about your looks around your peers.

Later in adolescence, you might start feeling your need to be independent. With this, you might begin to pull away from parents and your family in general. You might wish to spend more time with friends or new adults whom you admire. During adolescence, you’re searching for an identity and you might want to spend time with people whose traits you want to adopt.

Later in adolescence, you’re finding your way through the social scene. You might gain more and more confidence and begin to expand your social circles to include those you might not otherwise spend time with. You might pull more and more away from parents, find a job, and form relationships with those at work, and then you might begin to date.

Because of all these changes, you might need some help from time to time. This is particularly true for those teens are prone to mental illness. The following are ways that teens can get the support they need when faced with a challenge or concern:

Ask an adult you trust – When problems become too much to handle by yourself, you should go to someone you can trust. This could be a parent, teacher, school administrator, or school counselor. In fact, knowing that you have an adult in your life that you can trust might help you feel confident and safe in your life.

Make new friends – Although this might not always be easy, it could be the answer to feeling better. Friends can provide social companionship and support, especially if you struggle with loneliness or social anxiety.

Participate in sports clubs, school activities, or get a job. Staying busy is a great way to support yourself. Certain activities, such as joining the swim or basketball team or working, can keep you focused on positive activities rather than on negative feelings or circumstances.

Join an organization that supports youth. There are some wonderful programs in each community that supports adolescents. They are often geared towards having fun, building support, and teaching essential activities for living a healthy and happy life.

These are ways to seek help when you need it. Because of the significant changes that you’re going through as an adolescent, there’s a good chance you’re going to need support from time to time. If you’re feeling like you need help, the above suggestions might be useful to try.