Teens in foster-care?

ummm, i was a teen in foster care and at the time i didnt want to discuss much of anything...

i was in foster care on and off since i was 9 with my parents' rights terminated when i was 14. i had lots of mental health problems (still do)...i was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and was anorexic. i was also self-harming. i had been sexually abused, assaulted and exploited. i had been through abuse, incest, manipulation and torture.

i did "group" (therapy) in a group home that i was in for a couple months one time, and it wasnt effective. i also have severe social anxiety. it was a nightmare. for me to talk about my feelings when its not anonymous (like on the internet) totally shuts me down and even on the 'net it can mess me up for a bit. thats actually pretty common when kids have been through sexual abuse. i didnt start talking about a lot of what i went through until about two years ago (im 25 now) and not even a lot then.

organize a group by keeping it small, or splitting them off into smaller groups so they can bond and support each other. dont make them talk about anything the first day. help them get to know each other and get used to each other.

focus on keeping a safe space. focus on trust. i dont know what the situation is of the kids youre dealing with but i have ptsd, even now. i feel unsafe ALL THE TIME. sometimes i feel like im trapped inside of my body and terrified. i felt that x100 as a teen. safety will be THE BIGGEST factor in whether or not they will even talk.

sometimes they will want to discuss normal teenaged topics. we still lived in the regular world, and were teenagers. but they will have lots of body issues, lots of trust issues and anger issues. its hard to even scratch the surface sometimes.

i dont know if i helped. im not trying to be negative but sometimes this is the reality. most kids in foster care still havent disclosed all the abuse they went through and sometimes "group" can be really triggering, and if they dont get enough support when its over, it can actually make it unsafe for them.

good luck.

well i have no idea what all goes through there mind being in that situation so I am on the outside looking in, but some thing I would suggest to talk about are:

1. How do you feel/did you feel when you pass/passed the age where they saying being adopted gets hard.

2. Fears about being in foster care until the age where you have to leave and start life. Like what plans do some have? College plans? Trade school plans? Living in another city/state?

3. What are some benefits they feel as being in foster care? How has it helped them deal with things and how has it helped growing up with people in their same situation?

4. And just talk about deep issues like feelings towards being a foster child in general.