Families and Children

Children and Adolescents- Children and adolescents are often over developed in some areas and underdeveloped in other areas.  This is especially true for adolescents in the digital age.  When this occurs, the pieces of the puzzle don’t fit snug together.  Some pieces of the puzzle are overlapping and others leave gaps in between the pieces.  Children’s life experiences account for these pieces and how they fit together.  Sometimes parents experience this as, “Why is my 12 year old having temper tantrums like a two year old?” We can’t go back and change a child’s life experience, but we can help them process some experiences that were too much for them to manage emotionally and we can find new ways to help them gain the experiences they should have experienced, but have not yet experienced.  This is how therapy helps children.  I use many techniques, including play therapy techniques; art therapy techniques and talk therapy to assist children grow and emotionally heal. 

Families- Families often struggle through transitions in the life cycle.  These transitions often include: marriage/newlyweds, parents with young children, parents with adolescents, launching children, and blending families…these new phases of life often throw families.  Parents and children (even adult children) often become frustrated and irritated.  Communication in the family breaks down.  Individuals in the family may feel unsafe and anxious.  Others may become depressed and/or angry.  Family therapy helps families gain insight into the family and increases the ability to see the family as a working system with its own unique dynamics.  Once an increase in insight is achieved, new skills such as enhanced communication, managing stress and other feelings, and parenting effectiveness can be learned and incorporated at home and into everyday life.