Printable form to help teens and young people feel confident when approaching their GP about their mental health.

We know that taking the first step to ask for help can be scary and daunting, especially for teenagers and young people. This resource is here to help teenagers take that first step in approaching their GP.

To access mental health support, the first port of call is usually a trip to see your GP. Even for adults, this step can be a tough one - you may not know what to say or how to talk about how you're feeling. This form is here to help, by helping teens and young people plan what they would like to say in advance of their appointment.

This downloadable free GP referral form will even help young people think about what to say when they are booking an appointment, helping them to feel prepared and confident when talking about their mental health. It also features information on what they can expect from their appointment and space to write their appointment time and date.

What's included?

• Space for important details they'll need to remember when booking their appointment such as GP surgery contact details and their GP's name.
• My Symptoms - space to detail the symptoms they have been experiencing with a prompt to include things like thoughts, feelings, behaviours and physical symptoms.
• Examples - space to write examples of their symptoms so that they have some experiences to share with their GP which can help their GP when referring.
• Things I want to say - space to remember certain things they would like to mention, such as if their symptoms started after a certain event in their lives or anything else they simply wish to remember on they day.
• Things I want to ask - this box prompts your teen to think of any questions before their appointment such as what are the next steps?
• There is also space to jot down when their symptoms started, as these are all likely questions that will be asked by their GP at their appointment. This way, they can feel confident and prepared and know just what to say.

We would encourage your teen to take their filled in form with them for the appointment, and they can use the back to write down any notes or things they wish to remember that the GP has said.

This resource is completely free to download and use as we want as many teens and young people as possible to feel able to access support when they need it. Download it now. You can also sign up to access over 800 more resources for children and young people's mental health here.