Child & Adolescent Therapy

Does your child have trouble dealing with their emotions? Is their behavior sometimes disruptive to your home life? Have they experienced sudden loss or trauma?

As they grow, children and adolescents develop social skills and emotional intelligence. This awareness helps them to develop into healthy, happy, and successful individuals. But some children have trouble processing their emotions and this often leads to behavior that negatively impacts their school life, home life and overall well-being.

Effective Forms of Therapy for Children and Adolescents

Therapy offers children and adolescents a safe space to work through their thoughts and emotions. With the help of a specialized therapist, children can resolve problems, modify behaviors, and make positive and lasting changes.

When working with children and adolescents, We tailor our approach to the unique needs of each child and family. We take a collaborative, trauma-informed approach, often incorporating mindfulness and coping skill strategies. We frequently utilize Play Therapy strategies, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) interventions.  

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)

CBT helps children and adolescents identify harmful thought patterns. Once a child recognizes that his or her thoughts create their feelings and moods, they can learn to control themselves and their behavior. Research has shown that CBT is highly effective at treating depression and anxiety as well as help individuals, including children, deal with traumatic experiences.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

DBT offers children and adolescents comprehensive skills to manage painful memories and emotions and decrease conflicts in their relationships. This modality focuses on 4 main components: Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. 

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

ACT helps children and adolescents process their inner emotions. ACT provides context and understanding to emotions that can seem overwhelming. This allows kids to work through emotions and move forward.

Who is Therapy Right for?

At every age, children can be faced with life’s challenges. The following are some of the events and scenarios that can impact a child’s mental health and well-being:

• The death of a loved one
• Bullying
• Physical or sexual abuse
• Domestic violence
• Moving or attending a new school
• Divorce
• Social anxiety
• Depression
• ADHD
• Eating disorders

Therapy is not a quick fix to a child’s behavioral or emotional issues. It is instead a thoughtful and comprehensive process that provides children with insights and skills so that they may become masters of their thoughts and feelings. This, in essence, is how children develop into happy, healthy and successful adults.

If you would like to explore treatment options for your child, please give my office a call.