How do I support a friend who seems emotionally unstable and might not have a great home life? (highschool)
One of my friends has been struggling a lot emotionally and I’m not really sure how to help without overstepping or making things worse.
He has ADHD and divorced parents, and from what I know things at home are not the best. I don’t think he’s being abused or anything, but his parents seem kind of neglectful sometimes. He’s often exhausted, sick, injured in random ways, or just clearly not taking care of himself properly. He walks like half an hour to and from school every day and I’ve never even met or seen either of his parents.
He’s really open and loud socially, but emotionally he’s all over the place. He also told me before that he had a porn addiction, which makes me think he’s probably been dealing with stress or loneliness for a while.
One thing that worries me is that when he has headphones on, if someone taps him or bumps into him unexpectedly he flinches really hard and kind of panics for a second. I don’t know if it’s anxiety, trauma, stress, or something else, but it feels deeper than just being startled.
I care about him a lot and I want to support him, but I’m also a teenager and not a therapist. I don’t know what’s actually normal, what’s concerning, or how much I should get involved.
What are good ways to support someone like this without making them feel judged or pressured? And at what point should I actually be worried enough to tell an adult or counselor?