How Mental Health And Life Skills For Teens Are Connected

As teens grow up, it can be important for them to develop a variety of basic life skills to help them succeed and promote well-being into adulthood. Teens need many different skills to help them navigate increasing independence and responsibility, from hygiene practices to time management skills to social abilities. In addition to preparing teens to thrive in adulthood, these skills may also help them protect their mental health. Here, we’ll give an overview of some of these key skills as well as how caregivers of teenagers can get support for parenting challenges.

Experiencing parenting stress?

Get support from a professional online

How life skills for teens can benefit mental health

Research suggests that teaching essential life skills to teens may help improve their self-esteem as well as reduce depression, anxiety, and stress. Life skills education for teens can be considered a form of positive youth development. It's thought that teaching these skills not only prepares teens for adulthood, but may also make them more resilient in the face of stress and better able to resist engaging in risky behavior, like substance misuse.

Examples of essential life skills for teens

There are many basic, important skills required to succeed in virtually every area of life. These essential skills can range from specific ones like money management or first aid to broader skill sets like good communication skills and stress management abilities. See below for a closer look at some of these skills that many experts believe are essential for young adults to learn.

Daily living, health, and hygiene skills

Daily living skills are those that are required to take care of oneself and get through everyday life with a basic level of physical and mental health. Examples of basic daily living skills include grocery shopping, managing a budget, financial literacy, meal preparation, house cleaning, and laundry. Hygiene aspects are also critical, such as showering regularly, brushing and flossing teeth, and remembering to eat and sleep at consistent times without reminders from someone else.

Organization and management skills

Organization and management skills can be an important part of achieving at school, being successful at work, and managing a household. One key example includes organization of one's physical living and working spaces—that is, keeping things tidy, clean, in order, and easy to find. Another is time management, which tends to involve the ability to plan one’s own schedule and tasks and make and keep appointments.

Organization and management skills can also include goal setting and planning for the future. This includes the ability to look ahead and identify where one wants to go and to break a future desired outcome down into smaller steps that can be followed over time.

Communication and social skills

Strong communication skills can be important for teens to learn as well. Learning strong communication skills may help a teenager build or maintain relationships with parents, teachers, mentors, friends, classmates, and coworkers—which may be important for quality of life as well as for overall health. 

Examples of communication and social skills involve being able to speak honestly and openly as well as having tact and empathy. They also include knowing how to begin or engage in a conversation, whether it’s in person, on the phone, or via text or email. Today, teens with strong communication skills must also have some basic digital abilities, such as knowing how to avoid scams, protect their information virtually, and critically evaluate content seen online.

Essential life skills for emergency preparedness 

Emergency preparedness life skills that are often considered essential include any that help maintain safety and keep people alive and well. For example, basic first aid and CPR training are forms of emergency preparedness skills. More basic emergency preparedness skills, which may depend on where a person lives, involve knowing how and when to call for an ambulance, use basic self defense, start a fire, or read a compass. Another important preparedness skill for teens is knowing how and when to say "no" in peer pressure situations that might become dangerous, such as when offered hard drugs or a ride with a driver who is drunk. 

Stress management skills

Stress management and coping skills may help teens become more resilient and better prepared to face the challenges of adulthood. Examples could include knowing when to step away from an emotional situation before it escalates, how to regulate one's own emotions, how to recognize mental and physical signs of stress, and how to cope with stress in healthy rather than maladaptive ways.

How mental illness may impact life skills

While a lack of life skills may negatively impact a teen's mental health, keep in mind that learning life skills can also be more difficult for a teen with a mental illness. Teens living with mental health disorders—especially those that are untreated—may have to spend more time and energy managing their symptoms and, as a result, learn or practice fewer life skills.

Life skills and at-risk teens

At-risk teens are those who are thought to face a higher than average risk of substance use, mental illness, teen pregnancy, or violent behavior. Sometimes programs focused on life skills are geared specifically toward at-risk teens in an effort to try and prevent the negative outcomes they may be at risk for.

Life skills and adolescent education

Teens can learn important life skills in a variety of ways. Some types, especially communication and social skills, are often picked up by watching how peers, teachers, parents, and others act and speak. Teens can also pick up skills and habits through media, like TV shows, movies, and online, which is why monitoring their media consumption can be important. Finally, teachers, parents, or specific groups like scouts or after-school programs might explicitly engage in teaching life skills in an effort to prepare teens for the future. 

Education programs that teach life skills for teens

In addition to learning life skills at home, school, and extracurricular programs, there are also some teen education programs specifically designed to teach life skills. Studies suggest that teens who lack age-appropriate skills may be more likely to use substances, bully others, engage in violence, and contract sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which is one reason why formally teaching them can be so important.

How parents of teenagers can receive support

Parents or caregivers of a teenager may feel stressed as their child enters a new phase of life. Talk therapy is one example of a tool that may help parents and caregivers manage their own stress levels and mental health through what might be a trying time. A therapist can help a caregiver plan how to best support their child and manage their own stress along the way. 

Online therapy is often particularly attractive to parents and caregivers because it can take up less time in their busy schedules. With online therapy, clients can attend remote sessions with a licensed therapist from home or the location of their choice, as long as there's a wifi connection. Online therapy is also typically more affordable than traditional in-person therapy without insurance. 

Experiencing parenting stress?

Get support from a professional online

Research on online therapy

A growing body of research indicates that online therapy can often be effective, including for caregivers facing parenting challenges. For example, a systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2024 suggests that parents of children with additional needs can benefit from online therapy geared toward improving their well-being. The authors noted that parents caring for children with additional needs may have higher levels of stress and rates of mental health disorders. Receiving help, including when it’s delivered online, may reduce their stress and improve overall well-being.

Takeaway

Learning crucial life skills may help teens in forming healthy relationships, developing leadership skills, and better preparing for adulthood. Life skills may also help protect teens from engaging in risky behaviors, like substance misuse, or developing mental health disorders, like depression or anxiety. Some of the most important life skills for teens may be those promoting health, hygiene, good communication, emergency preparedness, and stress management. Parents who are stressed about their teen’s future might want to consider therapy to help them manage their worries.