Child Counselling

How Therapy Can Help Your Child

If you're considering counselling services for your child, chances are that your child has recently experienced a major life event or trauma and/or is exhibiting one or more behaviours or symptoms that you feel are concerning (or at the very least, perplexing). These might include:

• Behavioural changes
• Inability to express or identify emotions
• Disconnection between parent/child
• Emotional dysregulation
• Mood swings
• Unexplained physical symptoms such as headaches, stomach aches, or exhaustion
• Inability to concentrate
• Difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or having frequent nightmares
• Social difficulties
• Anxiety
• Self-harming behaviours

At its core, the aim of child therapy is to identify the underlying causes for such behaviours or symptoms and then to work with the child (and parents/family, if appropriate) to understand and resolve them within a trusting, supportive, and solution-oriented environment. Depending on the age and capabilities of the child, our child psychologists will integrate a variety of proven and developmentally appropriate psychological approaches that may include Parent and Child Synergetic Play Therapy, Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, and more. Children will be supported in expressing themselves in healthy ways, learning to problem solve, understanding their own feelings and needs, and building resilience. We see the process as an active team effort between our child psychologist, child and parent. This active collaboration and team work sets you up for success at home. If you are looking for behavioral change, we can set you up with a positive solutions focused plan to enhance your child's response with you. Ultimately, our goal at One Life is to empower children and families to move forward in life with increased awareness, self-confidence, and a toolkit filled with concrete and helpful strategies.