Case Study: Bug Off, An Angry Teen

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Your phone vibrates. On the other end are your friends. You can almost feel their fear and frustration. You learn their teenage son is flipping out. The parents are perplexed because their son has always had a gentle disposition.

They can rarely get him out of his room now. And when he does, he barely speaks to anyone. Even then, it’s brief, cynical, and disrespectful. You learn that most of his habits are changing. Everything seems to be falling apart in his life.

The reason for the phone call was that the parents saw wounds on the teen’s arms. He had been cutting himself for a while but forgot to cover his arms. The parents tried to get information out of him, but the boy was unyielding. The parents persisted, and after feeling backed into a corner, he went into a verbal rant, pushed his parents out of the way, and ran outside. The parents knew of cutting, but never thought it would be a problem in their home.

Most unnerving was learning how this kind of behavior can lead to suicide. The parents are terrified, and they are asking for your help.

Case Study Questions

1. What would you initially say to your friends?
2. If the teenager refused to talk with you, how would you try to help him?
3. How do the parents figure into the boy’s struggles?
4. If the teen threatened suicide, what would you tell the parents to do?
5. What other questions do you think are relevant here?

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Rick Thomas

Rick launched the Life Over Coffee global training network in 2008 to bring hope and help for you and others by creating resources that spark conversations for transformation. His primary responsibilities are resource creation and leadership development, which he does through speaking, writing, podcasting, and educating.

In 1990 he earned a BA in Theology and, in 1991, a BS in Education. In 1993, he received his ordination into Christian ministry, and in 2000 he graduated with an MA in Counseling from The Master’s University. In 2006 he was recognized as a Fellow of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC).