The Treatment
For teens in crisis and their families, our DC Metro Area outpatient mental health services are unparalleled — and we have the science and team to back up our reputation. Learn more about our customized 12-week program.
The Outpatient Program
Interested in taking a closer look at what an intensive, short-term outpatient program at the Helix Center looks like? Our 12-week program is unique in that it’s customized to your teen and your family. We rely on cutting-edge adolescent therapy services and psychiatric care to get your teen back on track — and give your family the tools to support them during this journey and beyond. Here are the services that make up the Helix program:
Intake & Assessment
Our first step is a thorough intake process to ensure that Helix is a good fit and can provide a meaningful experience for your teen. You and your teen will attend two 90-minute intake sessions prior to officially starting our 12-week program: the Family Intake and the Psychiatric Evaluation.
Read more about the intake process.
Group Therapy
Group therapy provides each teen with the interpersonal and intrapersonal skills necessary to increase effective and healthy behaviors and decrease less effective or challenging behaviors.
Group therapy sessions are three hours each and take place two times per week. Our older group meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30-6:30 PM and our younger group meets Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30-6:30 PM.
Individual Therapy
Individual therapy provides each teen time to reflect and process skills learned during group sessions.
This one-on-one time isn’t just valuable for your teen, these sessions also give our professional team the opportunity to personally connect with your child and rigorously tailor our care to their specific needs.
Individual sessions are 50 minutes each week.
Parent Involvement
One of the ways the Helix program is unique is that it involves parents/caretakers in the treatment process. Having parental buy-in is essential to the long-term success of our program and teens.
Parent Involvement includes meeting with a Parent Therapist once each week for the duration of the program for advice and support.
These sessions are 50 minutes each week.
Medication Management
Dr. Sakran understands the significant considerations involved in administering medications to children. He conscientiously evaluates the risks versus benefits associated with medication usage and employs them judiciously, reserving them for situations where they complement non-pharmacologic interventions.
To ensure a comprehensive assessment, prior to commencing our 12-week program, Dr. Sakran conducts a thorough Psychiatric Evaluation, which includes an initial examination of your teenager's potential requirement for psychotropic medication(s). The accurate prescription of medication is crucial for your teen's well-being and their ability to experience improved emotional and mental states. By integrating medication management with psychotherapy, it becomes a pivotal element in your teen's journey towards healing, equilibrium, and an enhanced quality of life.
Dr. Sakran will collaborate closely with your Helix therapists, fostering a cohesive approach to your teen’s care and treatment plan.
Dr. Sakran will provide individual check-ins with your teen on a biweekly basis, ensuring personalized attention and support throughout the process.
The Clinical Foundation
Our program is backed by the latest research. We use evidence-based treatments that features the following clinical components:
A highly researched approach that provides skills in emotional regulation and distress tolerance. We boil it down to its essentials, based on studies that show tremendous benefit from keeping the information simple, direct, and practical.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
Good Psychiatric Management for Adolescents (GPM-A)
This well-researched approach focuses on helping teens get back to functioning well in their daily lives. It includes a focus on improved relationships with others, and has also been shown to help teens reduce self-destructive behaviors.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
This therapy focuses on helping teens get out of their heads and into their lives. They develop values they can use as a lodestar, so their actions are less impulsive and more thoughtful, with greater psychological flexibility when things don’t go their way.
Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE)
Parent skills and support are an integral part of the program, and we have drawn heavily from the SPACE framework. Developed at Yale University, SPACE has shown that parents are able to help their teens tremendously simply by making simple changes themselves.
Bowen family systems theory is a theory of human behavior that views the family as an emotional unit and uses systems thinking to describe the unit's complex interactions. It is the nature of a family that its members are intensely connected emotionally.
Bowen Family Systems Theory
Attachment-Based Family Therapy (AFBT)
ABFT is an evidence-base therapeutic modality that focuses on revitalizing empathy and authentic connection within the parent-child relationship.
Questions About Follow-Up Care?
We offer individual therapy booster sessions after the 12-week program is completed. Our goal is always to help both parents and teens stay on track and continue to find joy in their daily lives. If this is something you’d be interested in, please contact us!