Therapy for High-Achieving Teens and Young Adults in Denver Tech Center
Individual therapy for teens and young adults ages 15–20 navigating anxiety, ADHD, OCD, and the pressure of high school, college applications, and the transition to college — in-person in Greenwood Village & Denver, CO, and via telehealth across Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Arkansas.
For Teens
You're one of the capable ones. You know it, your parents know it, your teachers know it. And somehow that makes everything harder — not easier.
When you're a high achiever, there's no room to struggle. No room to fall apart. No room to admit that the pressure is genuinely overwhelming, that you can't focus no matter how hard you try, that the thoughts in your head won't turn off, or that you've been white-knuckling your way through every day for longer than you'd like to admit.
You might recognize yourself in some of these:
Your brain won't slow down — you're always thinking, planning, worrying, replaying
You set an impossibly high bar and feel like a failure when you don't clear it — which is often
You can't focus the way you need to, no matter how much you want to
You have thoughts that scare you or that you'd never say out loud
You feel pressure from every direction — school, college apps, your family, your own expectations
Everyone thinks you're fine. You're not sure you are.
Therapy is a place where you don't have to perform. You don't have to have it together. You can actually say what's going on — and figure out what to do about it.
What We Work On With Teens
Anxiety and Perfectionism
The pressure to perform academically, socially, and in extracurriculars is real — and for high-achieving teens, anxiety often drives the engine. We work on understanding where your anxiety is coming from, breaking the perfectionism cycle, and building a steadier internal baseline that doesn't depend on your next grade or achievement.
ADHD in High-Achieving Teens
ADHD is frequently missed in teens who are still performing — because intelligence and drive can compensate for a long time. But compensation has a cost, and it often shows up as exhaustion, inconsistency, emotional intensity, and the feeling that everything is twice as hard as it should be. We work on understanding how your brain works and building strategies that actually fit your life.
OCD and ERP
OCD in high-achieving teens often looks nothing like the stereotype. It looks like intrusive thoughts you can't tell anyone about, rituals that eat your time, the need for certainty that never arrives, or perfectionism that goes far beyond normal standards. Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is the gold-standard treatment for OCD — and it works. We treat all OCD subtypes including Pure O, harm OCD, ROCD, perfectionism OCD, health anxiety OCD, and emetophobia.
The High School to College Transition
The jump from high school to college is one of the most significant identity shifts a person makes. The structure disappears. The social world resets. The academic demands change. For high-achieving teens who have relied on external structure and validation, this transition can be genuinely destabilizing — even when everything looks great on paper. We work on building the internal foundation to navigate that shift with confidence.
Identity, Pressure, and Fulfillment
Many high-achieving teens have spent so long optimizing for achievement that they've lost touch with what they actually want, enjoy, or value. Therapy is a space to slow down and figure that out — separate from what your parents want, what colleges want, and what you think you're supposed to want.
How It Works for Teens
The first session is a parent session. This gives Brittany the chance to gather background, understand your concerns as a parent, and make sure everyone is on the same page before the teen's first session.
From there, sessions are primarily with your teen individually. Confidentiality is maintained — your teen needs to know therapy is a safe space to be honest — with clear exceptions for safety concerns, which are explained to both the teen and the parents upfront.
Parent check-ins are built in periodically to keep communication open and ensure the work is aligned with what everyone needs.
For Parents
If you're reading this, you've probably noticed something. Maybe your teen is struggling more than they're letting on. Maybe the pressure has become visible — in their mood, their sleep, their irritability, their anxiety before tests or big moments. Maybe they've told you something that concerned you. Maybe you just know.
High-achieving teens are often the last ones to get support — because they're still functioning, still performing, still hitting the marks. The struggle is real but invisible, which means it tends to go unaddressed longer than it should.
Here's what I want you to know:
Struggling and high-achieving are not mutually exclusive. Some of the most capable, driven teens I work with are also carrying significant anxiety, ADHD, or OCD that no one around them fully sees. Getting support now — before college, before the structure disappears, before years of unaddressed patterns become harder to shift — is one of the most valuable investments you can make in your teen's long-term wellbeing.
What Parents Can Expect
You will be involved — but not in the room. The first session is yours. After that, your teen's sessions are confidential, which is what makes therapy work. Teens who know their therapist will report everything back to their parents don't open up — and therapy that doesn't involve honesty doesn't produce results.
You will be updated on the general themes and progress of the work, without specifics that break your teen's trust. If there is ever a safety concern, you will be told immediately.
Your teen's goals and your goals may not be identical — and that's okay. Part of the work is helping your teen develop their own relationship with their mental health, their own language for what they're experiencing, and their own motivation to engage. That's more sustainable than therapy driven entirely by parental concern.
What I need from you is a willingness to trust the process, respect your teen's confidentiality, and stay engaged without hovering. The teens who do best in therapy have parents who are invested but not intrusive.
OCD Therapy FAQs
My teen (or young adult) doesn't want to come to therapy. What do I do?
1
This is very common — especially with high-achieving teens and young adults who don't want to admit they're struggling or who worry about what it means about them. A light touch tends to work better than pressure. Sometimes framing it as a consultation rather than a commitment helps. Once teens have one session with the right therapist, resistance usually drops significantly.
Will you tell me what my teen or young adult says in sessions? I am paying for the sessions.
2
No — with specific exceptions. Confidentiality is essential for therapy to work, and your teen will know upfront exactly what is and isn't confidential. Safety concerns are always disclosed. General themes and progress are shared in parent check-ins. The specific content of sessions is your teen's.
Do you offer telehealth for teens?
3
Yes. Telehealth sessions are available for teens in Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Arkansas. In-person sessions are available at the Greenwood Village, CO office.
What if my teen needs more support than weekly therapy?
4
We'll talk about it. If a higher level of care is needed, I will tell you directly and help you navigate what that looks like.
Do you work with teens who have already been diagnosed with anxiety, ADHD, or OCD?
5
Yes — and with teens who haven't been diagnosed but are showing signs. A formal diagnosis is not required to start therapy.
ERP — Exposure and Response Prevention — is the gold-standard treatment for OCD and is fully appropriate and effective for teens. It is structured, evidence-based, and produces meaningful results. I will explain the approach in detail before we begin so your teen knows exactly what to expect.
SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) is a therapy designed to help families and parents better respond to OCD and Anxious behaviors, and is a great add-on for parents with kids with OCD, phobias, and anxious emotions.
What is ERP and is it appropriate for teens and young adults?
6
Your Teen or Young Adult Doesn't Have to Keep Managing Alone
High-achieving teens are often the most capable people in any room — and the least likely to ask for help. Therapy is a place where capability doesn't have to be performed, and struggle doesn't have to stay hidden.
If your teen is ready — or if you're ready to take the first step on their behalf — reach out for a free consultation.
In-person teen and young adult therapy in Greenwood Village & Denver, CO | Telehealth across Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Arkansas
Nix Baker Wellness is a private pay provider. We can assist with out-of-network reimbursement as requested. Nix Baker Wellness and Therapy is not a Medicaid or Medicare provider.
Ready to Schedule? Fill out the contact form below or schedule the initial consultation here--> Self schedule.
Nix Baker Wellness and Therapy
6200 S Syracuse Way
Suite 260
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
Call or Text: 847-916-8951
Fax: 847-916-6523
Office@NixBakerWellness.com