The life of a parent is difficult. You want to give your child the best start you can, to prepare them for the challenges life will throw at them. You want to give them comfort and shelter, a safe haven when life throws the worst it can at them. And all the while, they’re acting according to what they know and have learned, which you can recognize from your vantage point as wrong.

How do you do what’s right for your child when they refuse to see it or accept it?

Unfortunately, the teenage years are some of the most challenging to navigate. You have to walk the line between allowing your child their growing independence, but guiding and parenting them towards positive outcomes. Meanwhile, they’re resisting you at every turn, convinced they know better.

When it comes to mental health, it’s even harder. Teens can find it very difficult to open up to their parents, and even if you can see the signs, it can be impossible to talk to them and guide them on the right course of action. You may know that they would benefit from therapy, but getting them to go to it is another story entirely.

Can you force your teenager to go to therapy? What are their rights, and yours, in the eyes of the law? Michigan state law has a whole section about this as part of the mental health code, and it’s important that you know what rights you and your child have, when they change, and how to navigate the situation.

DISCLAIMER: This article is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered medical or psychological advice. The information presented here is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any mental health condition or replace professional therapeutic care. Every individual’s experience with trauma and mental health is unique. Please consult with a qualified mental health professional, therapist, or healthcare provider to determine the most appropriate treatment approach for your specific situation. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis or emergency, please contact your local emergency services or crisis hotline immediately.

Teenage Transitions and Age in the Eyes of the Law

When we refer to the teenage years in casual conversation, what do you think of? Are you thinking of the entire range from 13 to 19? Anything from 11 to 19? Everything in the double digits before 21? Everything up to the age of consent and majority, 18?

We’ve already run into one of the challenges of discussing the rights of teenagers. Fortunately, state law has a line they draw here, and that line is age 14.

Generally speaking, children aged 13 and younger are considered to be dependent minors. At this young of an age, these children are not granted the legal right to consent to mental health treatment on their own or, in the opposite, refuse treatment that their parents sign them up to receive.

Age 14 is when this changes. Children aged 14 and up are allowed to start making some of their own decisions. This is where many parents run into trouble. You may expect to be guiding your child’s treatment, and you may believe you’re entitled to know what goes on in therapy sessions and how your child is progressing. This is true of children under 14, but once they turn 14, they’re allowed rights and privacy, even from you.

So, when we’re talking about teenagers in the context of mental healthcare, we’re largely talking about the age range from 14 to 17. Once your child turns 18, they are generally considered a legal adult for just about every way that matters, and have rights as a full adult.

Another key definition you may be curious about is who constitutes “parents” in this discussion. Fortunately, this applies to whoever has parental custody of the teenager in question. Natural parents, adoptive parents, and legal guardians are all covered. Even parents who are not related, but who have custody, qualify as parents; they’re legally considered a “person in loco parentis” and are given similar rights to natural parents.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning a couple of other situations.

• Legal emancipation. In rare cases, a child may be emancipated from their parents due to various circumstances, such as military service, marriage, or a court order. If a child is legally emancipated, they are considered a full adult and can make their own decisions.
• MRT: Minor Requiring Treatment. In cases where the child is impaired and considered not capable of making their own decisions, even if they’re of an age where they would be legally allowed to otherwise, they may still be beholden to parental or guardian decisions.

For the most part, we’ll be talking about teenagers who don’t meet either of these definitions, but it’s worth knowing them for some circumstances.

Now, let’s run down the common situations and questions you may have. If you’re navigating this process, our overview of Michigan parents’ rights in teen mental health care is a helpful place to start, as is our guide to child and adolescent services available at our practice.

Can a Teenager Refuse Therapy?

We’ve talked in the past about whether or not a teen can access therapy without their parents’ knowledge or consent, but what about the opposite?

If you believe your teenager needs therapy, can they refuse?

There are broadly three answers to this question, depending on why the therapy is occurring.

If you, as a parent, sign your child up for therapy, and there are no other external obligations, then yes, your teenager can refuse therapy. Just like how a teenager from 14 to 17 years of age can request and consent to their own therapy without parental permission, so too are they allowed to refuse therapy.

If your child is ordered to attend therapy by a court, they generally cannot refuse to attend therapy sessions. There are legal avenues to object to the court’s decision and appeal, but this is a matter between the individual and their legal representative; we’re not here to give that kind of legal advice.

If your child is legally deemed a Minor Requiring Treatment, they generally cannot refuse to attend therapy sessions. However, the bar to be legally considered an MRT is high. The teenager must have a substantial thought or mood disorder that significantly impairs their judgment, behavior, or ability to handle daily life, or have a significant persistent condition that impairs personality development, emotional growth, or other elements of cognitive development.

A teenager can be legally compelled to attend therapy sessions if they fall into one of the latter two categories. However, they cannot be compelled to participate in those sessions. If a teen doesn’t want to cooperate, they may have to be physically present for the sessions, but they can stay silent the whole time if they want, and that’s that. If you’re unsure whether your teen’s struggles warrant professional support, it may help to review the signs your teen needs a psychiatrist.

If a Teenager Refuses Therapy, Can They Be Hospitalized?

If your teenager needs therapy in your view (or in the view of the courts), but they refuse to attend or participate in sessions, can you escalate to the point of involuntary hospitalization?

The answer here is: maybe.

Michigan’s involuntary hospitalization laws are quite strict, and the bar to meet the definitions necessary to be hospitalized for mental health treatment is very high. Only a Minor Requiring Treatment qualifies generally, though a teenager who is in crisis and who is a clear harm to themselves or others can be hospitalized for a short time until the crisis is passed.

If you, as a parent, believe your teenage child needs to be hospitalized for treatment, you will need to file a petition with the courts. This initiates a process that involves court meetings and an evaluation by a psychologist, who will determine if your child qualifies and needs to be hospitalized.

Again, the bar is quite high, and the courts generally try to avoid involuntary commitment if there are any outpatient options that can help instead. This can be tricky if your child refuses to participate, of course, but hospitalization can often do more harm than good, so it’s usually best avoided when there are other options.

This is supported by Kevin’s Law, a Michigan set of bills signed in 2004 that establishes greater availability and access to assisted outpatient treatment for individuals in need of treatment but not hospitalization. This is the framework used for court-mandated outpatient therapy.

Additionally, if your teenager is hospitalized against their will, they can object to the hospitalization. Hospital staff are legally required to facilitate making an objection that is filed with the court, and the court will appoint an attorney to represent them in their defense.

My Teenager is Refusing Therapy: What Can I Do?

If you believe that your teenage child needs therapy, but they’re refusing to go, what can you do to help them get the treatment they need? There’s no sure-fire method, but a lot of it comes down to appropriate communication.

Understanding the Root Cause of Rejection

The first thing you should do is try to understand why your child is refusing therapy.

There are a lot of possibilities here.

• They may have limited knowledge of what therapy is, and could have a negative impression of it, especially with regard to “changing them” or forcing them to be something they aren’t.
• They may have a negative view of therapy and view it as a failing of some kind, so attending therapy is an admission of weakness or failure.
• They may face social stigma or peer pressure to be independent, or feel embarrassed in admitting that they have a therapist or need therapy.
• They may worry about the outcomes of therapy, particularly with the fear of medication.
• They may not trust therapists to be impartial or confidential.
• They may believe that therapists are “against them” and put the interests of you as parents over them as people.
• They may believe that you are unable to afford therapy, and are refusing to save you the financial burden.
• They may worry that therapy sessions will supersede other activities in life, and could isolate them or cut them off from hobbies and friends.

These are all common reasons why teens reject therapy, as found through numerous studies.

The tricky part is figuring out which of these reasons is at the heart of your teen’s rejection of the idea of therapy. It can be more than one, as well. And, since your child is unlikely to be open about the causes, or even necessarily able to identify them themselves, it can be very difficult to figure it out.

Avenues to Opening the Possibility of Therapy

Once you have some idea of why your teen is rejecting therapy, you can try to address those causes. There’s no one secret to success here; it’s all about communication and discovering what works with your child.

Some ideas include:

• Discussing your post experiences with therapy yourself, and how it helped you with issues you were having.
• Offer to go to therapy yourself, either individually to model that it’s okay, or in group sessions with them to be able to provide backup for them.
• Conversely, assure them that they have a legal right to privacy, and that what they talk about with their therapist stays between just them and their therapist.
• Consider working with others in their life. You might talk to a school counselor or the parents of their friends, who might be able to make inroads by requesting their own children open up to them.
• Offer a short-term contract. Ask that they at least attend a few sessions to experience therapy with no obligations, and allow them to stop if it doesn’t work out.
• Offer virtual or online therapy. This can help alleviate concerns about timing, travel, and the isolation or discomfort of going to a therapist’s office.

Throughout all of this, make sure to stay away from conflict. Don’t press the issue, because they will likely dig in their heels and become even more resistant to treatment. Don’t argue with them, provoke them, or plead with them, all of which can have the opposite of your intended effect. You need communication, not conflict.

Finding Therapy for Your Teenager in Detroit

Finding a good therapist for your teenager is also a hurdle. Even once they’re willing to give it a try, if the people they meet are overly busy, inattentive, or otherwise not engaged with them, it can backfire and undermine your hard work.

This is where we’ll present ourselves as an option. At BMC-Troy, we offer a wide range of therapy services to Detroit-area residents. Whether it’s an ADHD evaluation, CBT for adolescents, fully confidential assessments, in-person or virtual visits, or something else, our clinical staff can help. Getting your teenager the therapy they need is just a phone call away. 

To get started, fill out our new patient intake form online. We’ll make sure to get back to you as soon as we can, usually within 48 business hours, and get the process started. Feel free to reach out by calling our office at 248.528.9000 with any additional questions.