What to Expect When Starting Child Therapy in Maryland
Therapy can help children, teens and young adults navigate life’s challenges. Perhaps your child is feeling stuck in the fog of anxiety, stress, or depression. Or, maybe their behavior has changed. And, they are not acting like themselves. Our child therapists can guide your child down a healthy path of emotional and behavioral development. We help them conquer their challenges and take steps to improve their lives. When behavior becomes challenging, our child therapists can help parents better understand their children. And, shift behavior in a more appropriate direction.
Common Reasons to Begin Child Therapy
Our child therapists have many years of experience working with a variety of different children. And, they’ve helped them work through a variety of different experiences. On top of that, our child therapists understand that each child is incredibly unique. So, they will start child therapy for a variety of different reasons. With this in mind, here are just a few reasons families pursue child therapy:
Anger and Irritability
Behavior Challenges at home or in school
Compulsive Behaviors
Depressed Mood
Delayed social skills
Obsessive Thoughts
Rigid Thinking and Behavior
Trouble getting along with peers
How Does Child Therapy Work?
In therapy, kids learn by doing. Your child’s therapist will guide children to learn coping skills and relaxation skills. And, build their strengths through a combination of talking and age-appropriate play. With younger kids, this might involve the whole family (or parents). This looks like drawing, playing, and talking. For older kids and teens, your child’s therapists will focus time in therapy on learning the skills they need. This will involve talking through feelings and learning to solve problems. Therapy builds helpful thinking patterns and healthy behavioral habits.
What to Expect During Your First Child Therapy Session
You have made an important first step. You noticed your child struggling and asked for help. Your child is scheduled for their first therapy appointment.
Now what?
The goal of the first child therapy session is to gather a full picture of your concerns. And, to understand your child and family. Your child therapist will spend time getting to know you and your goals for your child. They will ask follow-up questions about your child’s presenting concerns as well as history and background information. Most likely, you will find yourself talking about your child’s current symptoms or struggles.
What your child will experience during their first child therapy session
When your child meets first meets with a clinician, time will be spent beginning to make a connection. Your child will feel safe, accepted, respected, and relatively comfortable. We encourage you to use your child’s first session to assess whether the clinician feels like a good match. We will work with you to make sure your experience at Thinking Tree feels right for you and your child. As experienced child therapists, we know how important this step is for everyone involved. Family members are often involved in the process of child therapy. Young adult clients will meet with therapists individually. Unless they provide consent for parent(s) to attend.
How to prepare for your child’s first therapy session
Gather and bring any documents that you believe would be helpful for your therapist. When you make your appointment, our intake coordinator will provide you with instructions for completing online intake forms. Please complete these forms at least 24 hours before your intake appointment. Contact us with any questions.
Who participates in child therapy sessions?
A therapist might meet with the child and parent together or meet with the child alone. This depends on the style of therapy and the child’s age. Additionally, what the therapists feel would be most helpful. A child therapist might also meet with a parent to give tips and ideas for how to help their child at home.
How often will we meet with our child therapist?
After you and your child meet with the child therapist, you will develop a treatment plan. This will include agreeing on how often to meet. Your therapist will make a recommendation of session frequency based on your child’s needs. Typically, therapy sessions occur every week or every other week. However, our child therapists are more than willing to develop a plan with your child to fit their unique situation.
Collaboration with parents and other providers
Thinking Tree child therapists have helped hundreds of children and families. During your child’s initial therapy sessions, your therapist will conduct a thorough clinical assessment and interview to understand your concerns. They will work as a team with your child’s teachers, therapists, medical providers, and parents. This way, we get to understand your whole child. Together, they will guide your child on the path to healthy thinking and behavior. So, that they may grow into a confident and independent adult. We will support you in helping your child increase coping skills to manage symptoms. We want your child to reach his or her full potential.
Begin Child Therapy in Severna Park, MD
Your child does not have to live with symptoms that make it hard to be themselves. Child therapy can help your child learn to cope and reach their full potential! Our Severna Park counseling office has caring clinicians who specialize in child therapy services and more. In addition to meeting with your child in person, we’re happy to work with them through online therapy in Maryland. To start your therapy journey, follow these simple steps:
Meet with one of our caring clinicians
Start helping your child thrive
Services Offered at Thinking Tree Psychology
We offer a variety of services at Thinking Tree Psychology in Severna Park. Mental health services provided by Thinking Tree Psychology include family therapy, psychoeducational testing, and pain management. In addition, we offer therapy for chronic illness, therapy for ADHD, and therapy for young adults. We look forward to connecting with you!
Therapy Details
Therapy services are available for children, adolescents, and young adults. Our therapists work with individuals ages 5 through college age. Clinicians will provide treatment for adults on a case-by-case basis. So, be sure to inquire if you are an adult interested in services. We are offering online therapy in Maryland. This provides a convenient, safe way to attend therapy. Please visit our therapy overview page to learn more about additional therapy services. If you have additional questions, feel free to visit our FAQ page.