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.

The following are a few different types of psychotherapy available to children and families. Each offers unique approaches and techniques to bring about positive outcomes. Sometimes a therapist may choose to use just one specific treatment, and other times he or she may find a combination of various treatments is the best approach.

EMDR Sandtray

When combined, EMDR and Sandtray techniques offer a number of opportunities and benefits as listed below. 

1. provides distance from the traumatic event so children are able to bring up elements of what is in conflict for them within the context of a story or a world.

2. uses the child’s primary language of play.

3. has the potential for accessing memories from early traumatic experiences that may be below the child’s conscious awareness and ability to process on their own.

4. using sand, figure (i.e. toys and miniatures) and sandtray procedures helps the child stay present, especially when the child is in constant movement, bringing figure in or out of the tray.

5. engages the right brain, giving children who are verbally constrained by trauma another avenue and channel of expression.

6. offers entrance into memories that are difficult or distressing otherwise.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) 

CBT helps children to 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.

Family Therapy 

Family therapy is great for helping families improve communication so they can resolve issues. Sessions can include the entire family, including children, siblings, parents and grandparents, or just one or two individuals. 

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 our office a call.