Parenting support for children and teens: how I can help you best support your child
The decision to seek therapy for your child is not always an easy one. As a parent, you might feel helpless and at a loss to provide your child with what you know is needed right now. If your child has been struggling for some time, or if recent events have impacted your child’s typical resilience and ability to cope, I am here to help. I will listen to your concerns and challenges, and provide parenting support that helps create beneficial change for your child and family. My job is not only to support your child, but to empower you to feel more confident in your ability to successfully use recommended strategies that are most effective.
You can support your child to create effective and lasting change
I know you are hugely important in your child’s life, and can be an expert on how your child negotiates through the world. I know by reading this paragraph and looking at my website you are in the process of seeking positive change. I also know how imperative your support is to the success of the therapy process. It is a luxury for me to collaborate with you during sessions. Together we can create a manageable plan to implement strategies at home to decrease stress levels in your household. Since I only see your child for one hour a week, I need your help in supporting your child to generalize positive coping skills learnt in session to home, school, and community settings. I am always available for parenting support when new or unexpected challenges arise.
Autism help for parents
If you are a parent of a child with autism, I am here to give you parenting support to assist you in strengthening your child’s abilities toward achieving set goals. In my practice, I specialize in help for children and teens with autism. I will collaborate with you to develop a customized treatment plan that resonates best with your child’s temperament and unique, individual needs. Depending on his or her age, it might be a combination of behavioral therapy, developmental play therapy, and art therapy, with a mental health focus to target more complex cognitive and emotional issues. As a parent of a young person with autism, it can be very difficult to negotiate the best ways to seek and obtain effective resources for your child. In my work with children with autism and their families, I know how important it is to feel your child’s needs are being met. It is essential that your child is motivated to reach his or her full potential, yet able to effectively meet challenges across settings of home, school, and the community.
Parenting support FAQs
For children, if you are not present in the session, I will give your child the opportunity to share and collaborate with you during or at the end of the session time. With older children and teens, typically I have found more desire to keep information to themselves, but it depends on the young person.
If your child decides not to share with you during the session, I respect privacy, and if appropriate, I might instead talk about a broader goal or focus of the session. It is important that your child trusts me and feels safe to share confidential information. As we move through the therapy process, I am happy to provide general updates, helpful strategies to best support your child's progress, and with your child’s permission, provide you with more details. Your child's safety is my number one concern, so I assure you that you will be informed of all necessary information.
Yes! Depending upon age, I think it is often best to first inform your child that I will be meeting with you. It can be super helpful to include yourself in the goal of creating more peace overall at home, so your child feels the issues fall within the family, not just with him or herself. With younger children, meeting regularly for parenting sessions is an important part of the therapy process. With older children or teens, any info they would like me to share with you I am happy to share. Again, I do have to respect your child’s confidentiality as it is essential to maintain therapeutic rapport.