Managing School Alongside Depression and Anxiety

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Depression and Anxiety have a dramatic impact on how we feel and how we function. Depression specifically impacts one’s ability to think, concentrate, and regulate emotions.  For those who are in school, this can become especially frustrating for both the individual and the family. As a result, Solstice provides Solstice Academy to help bridge the gap between mental health support and academic needs. 

Solstice Academy is paired with PHP  then IOP to help regain stability and functionality, regardless of the diagnosis. The purpose behind the Academy and Program is to help restore structure, routine, and skills needed for a successful life. In Solstice Academy, we work with your school’s curriculum to incorporate independent study, tutoring, and a strategic schedule to optimize efficiency and learning. Integrated in your loved one’s learning will be active skill-building, practicing, and healthy social support with peers. 

Prior to Teen Academy, parents attend a 4-Day Parent Academy, which consists of two days of online workshops (1.5 hours per day) and two sessions of clinical appointments with a Solstice Case Manager (1.5 hours per session) in person.

The adolescent can then enter the Partial Hospitalization Program, where they will complete schoolwork, assignments, and all of our program curriculum, which includes Psychiatry, Individual Case Management, Group Work, Nutritional Care, Family Education, and Family Case Management. This commitment will take at least 25 to 35 days, 6-8 hours per day, depending on their loved one's needs.

The teen, on the other hand, is here for 60-120 days, Mondays through Fridays from 8:15A to 3:45P, while the parents remain involved for 1-2 months of adolescent PHP through their child's Psychiatry appointments (1x/week), Family Case Management appointments (1x/week), Nutrition appointments (1x/week), and Homework assignments (3x/week).

The program then moves on to the Intensive Outpatient Program, which lasts 20 to 30 days and consists of Psychiatry, Individual Case Management, Group Work, Nutritional Care, Family Education, and Family Case Management.

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Anyone who has access to the adolescent for 20% of their week will be required to attend the 4-day "Parent Academy" before the teen starts Solstice Academy.

This Program is Right for Your Family If:

  • You need more structure for your child than your school district can provide.
  • You will attend our weekly workshop on Saturdays 9A-11A.
  • Your child is in junior high or high school.
  • The guardian(s) are willing to engage personal growth skills, as led and defined by Solstice Academy.
  • Resilience and integrative care are concepts you want to learn more about.
  • You will attend weekly Family Case Management sessions with your child.
  • You and anyone with custody will work together on the skills we teach you - you will muster up teamwork and grace for one another.
  • You make the decision. Then, help your junior high or high school student by speaking clear expectations. Tip: Guardians make decisions based on the facts, kids can follow when given the skill and routine. Emotions cannot lead these discussions and decisions.

How Do I Know if Academy is a Good Fit For Us?

If your loved one is struggling with anxiety, depression, difficulty focusing, outbursts, or other behavioral symptoms, school life and family can become increasingly difficult. Furthermore, once grades begin to decline, the internal frustrations can increase as shame, disappointment, and a sense of feeling behind can take over. If this trend is beginning in your family, it’s important to act early and get help. Solstice can help you stop the cycle of hopelessness and help your loved one (and whole family) gain skills and a renewed routine.

What Makes Solstice Academy Unique?

Stopping this cycle requires a specific recipe of care: A healthy and safe community, emotional support, providers focused on helping with skill-building (especially with distress tolerance), consistency and accountability, medical care, and an involved family unit.  This is all accomplished under one roof at Solstice and you are guaranteed continuity of care. This is important so that your loved one has consistent support in school and in mental health treatment. 

The structure and routine that we provide are especially important in helping your loved one feel more safe and stable. We intentionally space out each class and session to help optimize focus, learning, and retention. This also helps to overcome feelings of failure, helplessness, and overwhelm. It’s all about taking things 30 minutes at a time, so that through each action, motivation follows.

The bottom line is that getting help for your anxiety and depression is important. But so is accomplishing school work and graduating highschool on time.  We’d like to help you prioritize both and bring relief not just for your loved one, but for your whole family.

Our PHP and IOP programming, when paired with Solstice Academy, can serve as a fresh start for your family while also ensuring that your loved one advances academically and emotionally. The Academy has been designed to maximize your child's potential in terms of learning, memory retention, and skill development. Our mission is to equip your child with the tools they'll need to thrive in any situation.

Solstice Academy will help patients get stable and functional by giving them nutritional treatment, psychiatric medicine, case management skill building, lab work, group work, and family counseling. Regardless of complexity or diagnosis, our expert team of professionals is ready. We specialize in helping families create the habits they were born to love.

This Program is Right for Your Family If:

  • You need more structure for your child than your school district can provide.
  • Your child is in junior high or high school.
  • The guardian(s) are willing to engage personal growth skills, as led and defined by Solstice Academy.
  • Resilience and integrative care are concepts you want to learn more about.
  • You will attend weekly Family Case Management sessions with your child.
  • You and anyone with custody will work together on the skills we teach you - you will muster up teamwork and grace for one another.
  • You make the decision. Then, help your junior high or high school student by speaking clear expectations. Tip: Guardians make decisions based on the facts, kids can follow when given the skill and routine. Emotions cannot lead these discussions and decisions.
  • The parents are willing to attend a 4-Day Parent Academy prior to Teen Academy.
  • You and your child are willing to complete schoolwork, assignments, and all the program curriculum, which includes Psychiatry, Individual Case Management, Group Work, Nutritional Care, Family Education, and Family Case Management.