As a registered Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist
• I work with children and young people individually and in groups.
• I work alongside parents, family members and carers.
• I work with parent couples.
• I provide parent & infant consultations and sessions.
• I provide consultations to health and social care professionals, and to schools, when there are concerns about a child or young person.
Through the use of play and/or conversation I offer a safe and confidential space to get to know a child or young person, and to help them to understand their thoughts and feelings about the things going on in their life.
Sometimes the problems are developmental or related to illness; these worries can also bring about emotional distress and changes of behaviour in children and young people.
The relationship between the child/young person and the therapist is central to the psychotherapeutic approach, and treatment ranges from short-term to several years long depending on the need of the child/young person.
Psychotherapy can help children and adolescents with many different experiences, symptoms or conditions such as:-
• anxiety
• emotional aspects of intellectual (learning) disability
• emotional aspects of physical disability
• separation and attachment difficulties
• fostering and adoption difficulties
• family breakdown, divorce and separation issues
• problems with toilet training
• emotional and conduct disorders
• bullying
• depression, suicidal thoughts and self-harm
• bereavement issues
• trauma and post-traumatic stress
• impact of severe deprivation and abuse
• dissociative disorders
• eating disorders e.g. anorexia and bulimia
• emotional aspects of chronic illness
• neuro-developmental disorders e.g. ADHD (attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder), ASD (autistic spectrum disorders)
Useful leaflets:-
Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy: A guide for parents, carers and families has been published by the Association of Child Psychotherapists (ACP) and can be accessed by clicking on the link below:
http://www.childpsychotherapy.org.uk/publications/leaflets-guides/
Help! A guide to psychotherapy for children - with a note to parents and carers has been published by the Harris Meltzer Trust for the Association of Child Psychotherapists and can be accessed by clicking on the link below:
www.harris-meltzer-trust.org.uk/pdfs/Help.pdf