Children & Families

My role is to help children, through therapy, to make sense of their thoughts, feelings and experiences and to assist their parents and carers in understanding these needs and struggles, so enabling them to be supportive. It is important to help parents understand how their own experiences of childhood may shape how they are as parents and how these experiences may then influence their relationship with their children.

In addition to my extensive professional experience, my rigorous and continued training has prepared me to observe children and to make sense of how they express their thoughts and feelings (both conscious and unconscious) in what they do and say. We will work together to establish a shared understanding of how each child is shaped by their experiences. By exploring in depth their worries, difficulties, important relationships, hopes and fears during our sessions together, we can discover a child’s sense of self in the context of these relationships.

Children

The wide range of difficulties which children may experience can impact on their development, their school work as well as their personal relationships; within the family, with their friends or their peers. These difficulties may range from anxiety, behavioural concerns like bullying or being bullied, oppositional and uncontrolled behaviour, withdrawal and isolation, insecurity, sadness, anger, depression, grief, issues of sense of self, issues of sexuality and gender identity, self-harm including cutting, eating difficulties/disorders and learning difficulties.

Consultation with Parents or Carers

As part of the therapy process for the child, I will also independently meet with parents or carers. These important sessions are necessary so that I can understand what the child means to the parents and how the parents feel about the child. A parent’s perception, understanding and expectations of their children can be substantially shaped by their own experiences of growing up and this can also substantially impact on their parenting style. Exploring these links will enable the parents to make sense of their children’s feelings and behaviour. These meetings will be offered periodically throughout the therapy as it is important to understand the family context within the whole process.

How long the therapy lasts will depend on the needs of each child. This will be discussed with the parents or carer after the initial consultation and with the child after a number of assessment sessions (from one to three). At our initial session, the parents or carers will be given a contract outlining the practical arrangements and at the same time, I will provide the child with a separate contract outlining both the practical arrangements and the confidentiality boundaries.

If necessary, and where appropriate, I will also work with other professionals in order to assess and plan interventions and sometimes I might refer a child to another therapist or service if I think that this will be beneficial for them.