Child & Youth

“No one understands me.”   “I don’t know what’s going on with me?” “Will this feeling ever go away?”

Childhood and adolescence can be confusing and overwhelming stages in life.  Emotions are developing rapidly and there are more complicated feelings outside of anger, sadness, happiness, and fear that are beginning to surface.  Feelings such as loneliness, isolation, guilt, embarrassment, and excitement are present; however, it may be difficult for the youth to verbalize, which can lead to frustration and irritation.  Stressors can be found in all systems in life, such as school, family, and peer pressures, which can affect the individual growth and identity formation that is already in progress.  In 2015, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health estimated that one-third of students in grade 7 -12 reported experiencing some type of “psychological distress”.  This does not only include diagnosed mental illness but also experiences of situational stress and challenges.

Counselling can help children and adolescents by providing a safe, non-judgemental environment to express and process thoughts and feelings, as well as, find solutions that may make these stages more manageable.  Talking to someone outside of their personal world may prove to be beneficial because there is no affiliation to these parts of their lives.  Topics can be discussed more openly.  When children and youth are ready to talk about their concerns and find ways to improve their moods, thoughts, decision-making, communication and problem-solving, counselling can be an outlet that can be helpful.

Topics that may be helpful for children and adolescents to work through during counselling may include, but are not limited to:

• Parent-child conflict
• Identifying, expressing and regulating emotions and thoughts
• Handling extreme emotions such as fear, anger, sadness, and discomfort
• Parental separation and divorce
• Academic performance and stress
• Self-esteem
• Social skills development
• Grief and Loss
• Relationship concerns
• Anxiety and depression
• Sexual and gender identity
• Behavioural concerns
• Problem-solving and Decision-making
• Communication skills
• Anger management and conflict management

 

For more information or to book your telephone consultation and intake, please feel free to refer to my Contact page.

“You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf.”

~ Jon Kabat-Zinn