Our offices in Lexington, Frankfort, and Richmond KY offer experts in helping children with mental health, individual, and family counseling issues, and family therapy. We work with younger children and adolescents and with their parents and caregivers to provide an outcome you all desire. While some practices treat adolescents and children because they have to, we do it because we love to! There is a difference in providers, we care, and it shows. Our clinicians use play therapy, PCIT -Parent Child Interaction Therapy, Family Therapy, and other forms of treatment to help. Call us today 859-338-0466 or contact us now!

What is child therapy?

Child therapy is a division of counseling and therapy services and provides the opportunity to integrate different therapeutic methods in order to assist your child with any issues he or she may be facing. There are different types of child therapy, including family therapy, group therapy, individual therapy, CBT, play therapy, and more. As your advocate, a child therapist wants to help your child and family reach the highest potential of well-being.

Child therapists are able to analyze your child’s situation, brainstorm changes and solutions that can be applied in your child’s life, break down barriers and build trust and rapport, and suggest methods of treatment or medication if needed.

Child therapists are needed to assist particularly difficult or misunderstood children get in touch with their feelings, attempt to resolve their problems, improve their well-being, and open up to someone about the issues they are facing. Behavioral problems and mental health issues or illnesses can become detrimental if untreated, and can have permanent effects if not addressed shortly after their appearance. The child therapist will work with the child to resolve issues and will also help the family to mend broken lines of communication and teach them to effectively work together as a team. Family counseling is sometimes offered in addition to child counseling.

Signs that your child may need therapy

Does my child needed child therapy?

The Surgeon General released a report in 1999, stating that 20% of children between the ages of 9 and 17 have a psychiatric disorder. Sometimes, these symptoms can remain hidden and irrelevant; however, being on the lookout for any of the below symptoms is important. All children will undergo hormonal changes as well as other changes, including mood, behavior, and interests, but precipitated events can lead to detrimental circumstances.

Benefits of Child Therapy

Many children will undergo hormonal changes, situational issues, trouble adjusting to changes, and other normal developmental patterns. However, if your child faces any of the symptoms below, especially if they are struggling with more than one, they may be potentially at risk. Recognizing symptoms and seeking treatment early is necessary in order to prevent any collateral damage.

Some symptoms that your child needs child therapy might include:

– ADD/ADHD

– Difficult learning or focusing in class

– Acting out, anger, violence

– Vandalism, theft, destruction of property

– Bedwetting

– Inappropriate sexual behavior

– Teen pregnancy

– Eating disorders

– Developmental delays

– Regression in toilet training or other developmental achievements

– Change in academic performance, failing grades, or missing homework if uncharacteristic

– Bullying or being bullied

– Withdrawing from friends

– Avoiding social situations

– Changes in appetite

– Lack of interest in previous interests or hobbies

– Depression or hopelessness

– Mood swings

– Unexplained absences or tardies from school

– Alcohol or drug use

– Frequent physical complaints such as headache or stomachache

Triggers for changes in your child’s well-being might include school stress (including text anxiety, bullying, trouble fitting in with others), family issues (death, illness, divorce), abuse, trauma, neglect, move, change of schools, and start of middle or high school.

Should my child see a therapist?

Seeking child therapy for your young child or teenager can help alleviate some problems, as well as providing an outlet for your child to seek guidance without fear of judgment from family members. Child therapists can also detect any psychological disorders that might need medicinal treatment or other types of therapies to fully achieve successful results.

What should my child expect?

Child therapy takes many different forms. There are different types of child therapy, just as there are many different categories of adult therapy. Talk to your child therapist prior to the first setting if you would like more information on what techniques they will use.

Individual child therapy is a very commonly utilized therapy technique. Individual therapy is a one-on-one situation with the therapist and the child, in which they will analyze the child’s problems and address concerns, while together discussing the child’s potential to achieve a healthier well-being. This setting allows children to speak without fear of being judged by parents or siblings.

Family therapy is another option, and might be used in conjunction with other types of individual therapy in order to observe the family dynamic. Sometimes, the child’s behaviors or problems might derive from a lack of communication or stability in his or her family, and addressing familial issues in a group setting can be helpful for breaking down barriers and dismissing preconceptions, while strengthening the family unit and their communication skills.

Group therapy is another option for your child, in which he or she will attend sessions with other children who are similar in age and who might be facing similar problems. By communicating as a group, your child will be able to relate to others, understand that he or she is not alone, and feel comfortable communicating as there are others who understand and can possibly relate to their situation. Similar to family therapy, this can be used in conjunction with individual types of child therapy in order to maximize the effects.

CBT, or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, is a technique in which negative thoughts or mindsets are broken down and replaced with positive or effective thoughts. CBT is also used to demonstrate and teach coping skills, relaxation techniques, stress management skills, and by bringing attention to negative thought processes in order to reconstruct them. CBT is usually performed in a group setting, and can assist your child with depression anxiety, and stress.

Commonly recognized as “talk therapy,” psychoanalytic therapy is also a potential method of therapy for your child. Talk therapy is usually not effective on young children who are unable to accurately vocalize and describe their emotions, but it can be appropriate if used with older children or teenagers. Talk therapy provides an individual setting in which the child therapist will have the opportunity to analyze the situation and provide guidance to your child.

Types of Child Therapy

Also common in child therapy, especially when dealing with young children, is play therapy. Play therapy is a common technique used for young children’s therapy sessions, in which the child therapist will use toys, dolls, art, games, or other play activities in order to provide a more interactive and therefore meaningful therapy session. Young children are often either uncomfortable sharing their feelings, or might have trouble vocalizing them accurately. Instead, play therapy provides a great alternative to talk therapy, in which the child therapist will be able to observe your child in a natural setting, therefore providing the opportunity to analyze your child’s behaviors without interruption. Play therapy can also provide the opportunity for the child therapist to build rapport with your child and ease into difficult topics through unconventional methods, such as using dolls to pretend, or playing games together.

Don’t hesitate! Call us today!

We offer many different avenues of counseling, and child therapy can help your young child or teenager overcome obstacles, stress, and pain. Please view our Counseling Processes if you have any questions.

Don’t let your child’s problems fester and become increasingly worse seek help as soon as you begin to recognize warning signs. Call us for more information or to schedule today at 859-338-0466 or contact us here!