Child and Adolescent Therapy:
Childhood and adolescence is filled with wins, losses, lumps and bumps. These stages of life come with many transitions, challenges, and uncertainties that can lead many children/adolescents to experience difficulty coping and managing day-to-day stressors. Sometimes these challenges call for extra support. We take a client-centered approach to therapy to ensure our clients feel heard, validated and supported through a safe therapeutic relationship. Social, emotional, and behavioural concerns may be addressed through non-directive play therapy, structured activities, talk therapy, and/or other evidence-based approaches, such as cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT), dialectical-behaviour therapy (DBT), emotion-focused therapy (EFT), solution-focused therapy (SFT), etc. Treatment goals are developed to improve the individual’s well-being, develop coping tools, strengthen their resilience and achieve their full potential.
Among other concerns, we commonly see children/adolescents presenting with various issues, with or without a formal diagnosis:
- difficulties regulating their emotions
- behavioural issues, such as defiance, anger or aggression
- social challenges, such as bullying or difficulties developing adaptive social skills
- difficulty managing peer and family relationships
- mood and anxiety concerns
- obsessive-compulsive symptoms
- body image and self-esteem challenges
- a history of trauma
- grief and bereavement
- learning and attention difficulties
- executive function deficits
- difficulty adjusting to life transitions, including divorce, moving homes, changing schools, starting high school or college/university
- sleep concerns, including nightmares or insomnia
- toileting issues
- some developmental concerns
What is the structure?
Initial Therapy Sessions:
For children up to (and including) 9 years old: the first session is booked for 1.5 hours, and is meant only for parent(s)/guardian(s).
For children 10 to 15 years old: the first session is booked for 1.5 hours and is meant for both parent(s)/guardian(s) and your child/adolescent. Your clinician will help you guide how to structure this initial session.
For clients 16 years and older: the first session is booked for 1.5 hours and is meant to be primarily for the adolescent. Parent(s)/guardian(s) are encouraged to join for the first few minutes. Your clinician will help you guide how to best structure this initial session.
Subsequent therapy sessions:
Subsequent therapy sessions are typically booked for 1 hour.