CHILD THERAPY:

Child psychotherapy offers the child a safe and containing place in which to express difficulties and anxieties. It is generally a change in behavior (sudden unusual symptoms or difficulties in school or at home) which prompt parents, a close relative, or teachers to seek assistance. These symptoms are a way for the child to express a difficulty, an emotional pain that cannot be verbalized. The behavior becomes an ally and has intrinsic meaning. Therapy attempts to understand the meaning of the behavior.

Children often experience difficulties, most of which are developmentally appropriate. However, some symptoms are concerning and deserve particular attention: behavioral disorders, language delays, school difficulties, withdrawal, sleep disorders, somatizations... Overwhelmed parents then witness their child experience significant difficulty overcoming specific events or stages of development. It is often faced with these struggles that parents decide to consult with a psychologist. 

It is my role to pay attention to all modes of communication between the child and his environment. Unlike adults, children do not always use verbal means to communicate their feelings. Even when the child is very communicative, he often uses language differently than adults do. It is in the non-verbal and verbal interaction that his emotional functioning may be best identified. During therapy, I use games, books, drawing, modeling, and role-play, based on the child’s preference and comfort level and based on his motor skills, intellectual and creative functioning.

Parental involvement in the psychotherapeutic work is extremely important because parents are the ones who care for the child on a daily basis. Their support is essential to the progress of therapy. Up to the age of 10-11 years, the therapy is done in close collaboration with the parents: their observations as well as their parenting styles represent an important source of information and help me better understand the child. Starting around pre-adolescence, the child is in need of increased autonomy and the relationship with the parents is a little more distant, even if their participation remains useful.

Confidentiality in sessions with children is of the utmost importance. It is crucial to respect the therapeutic space of the child because that is the only way that he will feel comfortable enough to express his personal and intimate struggles. Psychological consultations are designed to help both child and parents achieve a better relationship.

Fields of intervention:

  • Hyperactivity
  •  A drop in school grades
  • Sudden aggression, violence
  • Divorces, blended families
  • Sleep disorder, waking up at night, nightmares, insomnia
  • A loss of excitement, sudden sadness, constant crying
  • Birth in the family
  • Difficulties in school
  • Irritability
  • Anxieties (separation, nocturnal) and fears
  • Difficulties in the parent/child relationship