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How to Prepare for your child's admission to Residential Treatment

Jemma Strain
Published: 04/04/2025 | Updated: 02/04/2026
Authored by: Jemma Strain, B.S. Psychology
Edited by: Emma Loker, BSc, PgDip

Preparing for your child’s residential treatment might feel strange and unknown. Although you know it’s the best choice for their well-being, it might seem like hiking up a mountain without a map. Right now, you might not know the correct steps to take, but with guidance, the journey will become clearer. 

In recent years, the number of teens needing inpatient or residential treatment for mental health conditions has increased. In the last decade, feelings of ongoing sadness and hopelessness increased in young people by around 40%, with the COVID-19 pandemic creating a new set of challenges for teens. This information means that many parents and teenagers have gone, or are going through, the same experiences as you and your child.1-3

If you’re unsure about the best steps to take to prepare for your child’s admission to residential treatment, professional mental health advice can help. This article can also make the process clearer by talking about:

  • How to prepare your child for residential treatment 
  • What to pack for residential treatment
  • Preparing siblings for a child’s residential treatment
  • Mental health therapy preparation information
How to Prepare for Your Child's Admission to Residential Treatment

Preparing for Residential Treatment for Kids

Knowing that they have to spend time away from family, friends, and school can, understandably, be a scary time for a teenager. They may feel anxious about what to expect, fearful about what they’ll miss out on, or worry that they won’t get better. These are all natural emotions – but this doesn’t mean that they’re any easier to cope with. 

As a parent, you can play an integral role in helping your child prepare for residential treatment, easing their anxieties and concerns. Yet, the likelihood is that this is also a new experience for you. Talking to a mental health professional can help you understand how to prepare for your child’s residential treatment, but the following steps can also work as a guide.

Steps to Prepare for a Child’s Residential Treatment

Allow Them to Participate in the Transition

Residential treatment for your child should just happen to them – they play a central role in the transition and treatment. In fact, the success of treatment often depends on a teenager’s active involvement. Talk to them about what their concerns and preferences are. If they’re not allowed to have certain preferences in residential care, it’s good to explain why this is the case. While they may not be permitted all of their wishes in treatment, this doesn’t mean that their wants can’t be considered within reason.4

Talk to Them About the Timeframe

Change can be scary for a teenager. They need predictability to feel secure and to thrive. Routines can improve mental health, lead to positive treatment outcomes, and result in better cognitive and emotion regulation skills.5

While elements of the treatment program might shift according to their changing needs, you and a mental health professional can talk them through what to expect. Giving them a clear timeframe around when the transition will happen and when it might end can provide a sense of structure and stability. 

Reassure Them That You’ll Be There Each Step of the Way

As a parent, you are a beacon of security and safety for your child. Being actively involved in your child’s treatment can help improve their recovery and boost your bond with them. Your level of involvement might depend on your child’s symptoms, needs, and age – but reassuring them that you’ll be there as much as possible can make a big difference. From helping them pack and visiting them, to attending therapy sessions, you can help them feel supported and loved during a challenging time.6

Arrange Finances

Financial worries can be a burden on families. Knowing how you’re paying for treatment and taking care of any necessary paperwork ahead of time allows you to focus on your child’s needs – free from distraction. For instance, if you need to sort out any insurance matters, it’s good to do this ahead of your child’s transition into treatment. 

Get on the Same Page as Other Adults

Every adult playing a role in your child’s treatment should be on the same page – so regularly communicating with them is important. Mental health professionals may discuss the best approaches to your child’s treatment, so it’s good to be aware of any potential treatment changes and your child’s rights. 

Also, it’s good to liaise with your child’s school and how treatment will affect their education. Educators can take steps to reduce any impacts on academic achievement and may require your involvement. 

At every stage of discussion with the other professionals involved in your child’s care, it’s important to fill your child in on what’s happening. This can help them feel involved in their care and more empowered to heal.

Spend Meaningful Time With Your Child

Studies have shown that quality time with loved ones has overall positive benefits for a teenager’s mental health. Before your child goes into treatment, you can help them feel more relaxed, accepted, and motivated by spending time doing fun activities with them. Watching movies, taking walks, playing a game – as long as you both enjoy doing it together, that’s what matters.7

A practical way you can help your child prepare for residential treatment is by helping them pack. We discuss some items your child should bring to treatment next. 

What to Pack for Residential Treatment for a Child

Your child’s needs and a treatment center’s requirements might vary slightly, so there may be some variation in what to pack and not pack for residential treatment for a child. However, there are some general items that you will likely need to bring, including…

  • Identification: This might include your child’s passport, driving license, or another form of acceptable identification
  • Medications: If your child has been on any medications, prescription or otherwise, it’s important to pack these, including any prescription information. These medications may have to be in an unopened, sealed container
  • Important contact information: Your child will be allowed to contact you by phone or mail. To be able to do so, they will need to bring the contact information of the people they want to stay in touch with, including their phone numbers and addresses
  • Insurance documents: Certain facilities might ask you to pack your child’s insurance documents
  • Appropriate clothing: Your child will need both comfortable indoor and outdoor clothing that is appropriate for the season. This might include a dressing grown, jacket, sleepwear, and a sweatsuit 
  • Toiletries: Items like toothpaste, a toothbrush, shampoo, deodorant, and so on. Many facilities may request that these items be unopened or sealed 
  • Contact lenses or glasses: If needed, your child should also pack these items
  • Keepsakes: Being away from home might make your child feel homesick. Bringing objects such as photos, letters, or stuffed animals can make a teen feel more comfortable and at ease in a new environment 
  • Recreation items: Your child will have downtime during treatment, so they might want to bring books, art supplies, or a notebook to write about their experiences. However, it may be important to bring books or magazines of appropriate content 

 

Preparing Siblings for a Child’s Residential Treatment

It can be tough to juggle the needs of a child with mental health conditions and those of the wider family. If your child has brothers or sisters, they may also be feeling lost or in turmoil ahead of their sibling’s admission to residential treatment. Change, in any form, can be scary – and siblings may not know what to expect or how to support their loved one. 

Unfortunately, siblings of children with mental health conditions may be more at risk of developing mental health issues. However, it’s possible to reduce this risk by helping them understand more about their sibling’s problems and treatment.8

When preparing siblings for a child’s residential treatment, aim to…9,10

  • Explain what their sibling’s diagnosis is and how it affects them: Educating all members of the family about a mental health condition can equip them with knowledge on how to support a loved one. Support groups and government resources can help family members understand how to advocate for a teen’s well-being. 
  • Discuss how treatment can help them get better: Siblings may feel frightened about permanent changes to a loved one’s personality. Explaining how your child’s conditions led to behavior changes and how therapy can help them get better can ease their concerns. 
  • Give them the option of visiting their sibling: Family involvement in residential treatment can improve a teen’s outcomes for recovery, sense of support, and social skills. Talking to siblings about the options of visiting or taking part in family therapy may help. A Professional can talk you through the suitability of family therapy for your child’s needs.

Mental Health Treatment Preparation for Children

There’s a wide body of evidence that shows that the more teenagers are involved in treatment preparation and choices of therapy, the greater the success of therapy outcomes. When teenagers’ voices, preferences, and goals are considered, they can feel more empowered, independent, and motivated to succeed in their recovery.11,12

During an assessment, a mental health professional will likely talk to you and your child about the most effective therapy options for their symptoms. Yet, mental health assessments can be ongoing practices that can change based on your child’s needs. Therefore, suitable therapy options might shift. 

When preparing for residential treatment, it can help to explain the following therapy options to your child – and how these might change throughout depending on their symptoms. 

Professional mental health advice is an excellent resource for a parent when their child is in treatment. However, the following “don’ts” of supporting a child in treatment can also help.

Residential Treatment Therapy Options:

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT is routinely offered in residential treatment for teens as it has been proven to improve the symptoms of a wide range of mental health conditions. A therapist uses CBT techniques to target teens’ thoughts and actions, identify negative patterns, and help teens build healthy ways of coping. 

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR): Research has shown that mental health conditions can stem from negative previous experiences, such as trauma. EMDR is used in residential treatment to treat trauma, change how it is stored in the brain, and help a teen move past negative experiences and form more positive beliefs.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation: In residential treatment, TMS may be used to treat mental health conditions that have previously resisted treatment, such as outpatient therapy. TMS is a non-invasive therapy that uses magnetic fields to activate nerve cells in targeted areas of the brain – improving outlook and mood. 

Interpersonal therapy: Parental involvement in therapy can improve a teen’s symptoms, especially if there are relationship dynamics that are contributing to mental health difficulties. Interpersonal therapy can highlight issues in relationships, help teens and families work through them, and figure out better ways of coping. 

Group therapy: Residential therapy in a group setting can provide a safe, supportive space in which teens can share with people their own age who have been going through the same experiences.

Mindfulness-based therapy (MBT): MBT combines elements of CBT with non-judgmental mindfulness techniques to help teens combat negative emotions and moods. Through MBT, your child can learn how to not fall into a negativity cycle and build more positive self-beliefs.

How to Prepare for Your Child's Admission to Residential Treatment

Mission Prep: Easing the Transition Into Inpatient Care for Kids

When faced with the prospect of inpatient care, a teenager may feel a range of emotions from relief to apprehension or outright resistance. This range of emotions can be difficult for you, as a parent, to manage – especially when trying to cope with your own worries. 

Mission Prep can help. Our team of licensed professionals offers residential treatment options for a variety of teen mental health conditions in various locations. Therefore, we are well-equipped to help families prepare for residential treatment for a child. We also tailor each treatment program to every child’s individual needs, so can answer any questions about the most suitable treatment for your family’s needs. Whatever your concerns about residential treatment, Mission Prep is available 24/7 to ease your worries. Contact us to learn more. 

References

  1. Mojtabai, R., & Olfson, M. (2020). National Trends in Mental Health Care for US Adolescents. JAMA Psychiatry, 77(7), 1. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.0279
  2. American Psychological Association. (2023, January). Kids’ mental health is in crisis. Here’s what psychologists are doing to help. Monitor on Psychology. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2023/01/trends-improving-youth-mental-health
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS). https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/index.html
  4. Carter, B., Young, S., Ford, K., & Campbell, S. (2024). The Concept of Child-Centred Care in Healthcare: A Scoping Review. Pediatric Reports, 16(1), 114. https://doi.org/10.3390/pediatric16010012
  5. Selman, S. B., & Dilworth-Bart, J. E. (2024). Routines and child development: A systematic review. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 16(2), 272-328. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12549
  6. Haine-Schlagel, R., & Walsh, N. E. (2015). A Review of Parent Participation Engagement in Child and Family Mental Health Treatment. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 18(2), 133. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-015-0182-x
  7. Blum, R. W., Lai, J., Martinez, M., & Jessee, C. (2022). Adolescent connectedness: Cornerstone for health and wellbeing. The BMJ, 379, e069213. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2021-069213
  8. McKenzie Smith, M., Pinto Pereira, S., Chan, L., et al. (2018). Impact of well-being interventions for siblings of children and young people with a chronic physical or mental health condition: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 21(2), 246–265. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-018-0253-x
  9. Mottaghipour, Y., & Bickerton, A. (2005). The pyramid of family care: A framework for family involvement with adult mental health services. Advances in Mental Health, 4(3), 210–217.
  10. Honig, A., Hofman, A., Rozendaal, N., & Dingemans, P. (1997). Psycho-education in bipolar disorder: Effect on expressed emotion. Psychiatry Research, 72(1), 17-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0165-1781(97)00072-3
  11. Edman, K., Gustafsson, A. W., & Cuadra, C. B. (2022). Recognising children’s involvement in child and family therapy sessions: A microanalysis of audiovisual recordings of actual practice. The British Journal of Social Work, 52(6), 3480-3500. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcab248
  12. Langer, D. A., & Jensen-Doss, A. (2016). Shared Decision-Making in Youth Mental Health Care: Using the Evidence to Plan Treatments Collaboratively. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 53, 47(5), 821. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2016.1247358