Raising children is among the most rewarding things we do — and among the most humbling. When a child or teen is struggling, parents often feel it just as keenly. Counseling can support the whole family: helping children find words for big feelings, helping teens navigate a turbulent stage, and helping parents feel more confident and less alone.
Child Behavior
Children move through many stages and developmental tasks on the way to adulthood. Challenging environments and difficult experiences can affect that development. A child may need help with school stress — test anxiety, bullying or peer pressure — or with talking through feelings about family changes such as a divorce, a move, or a serious illness.
Therapy helps children develop problem-solving skills and teaches them the genuine value of asking for help. It offers additional support with important developmental tasks: building trust in others, developing initiative, and forming healthy friendships. Therapists experienced with families can help parents find an approach that fits their child and their household.
Adolescent Behavior
Adolescence is the unique stage of life between childhood and adulthood. It includes a preoccupation with self, a tendency toward black-and-white thinking, and the psychological work of preparing to separate from the family. Teens experience significant physical changes and important neurological development. They also encounter peer pressure and rising expectations — their own and others' — for greater responsibility and independence.
One important task of these years is realizing that the adults in their lives are not perfect. Teens begin to experiment with which values and teachings to keep, working hard not to lose their sense of direction. In the process, a teen may alternate between reaching for support and pushing it away. These can be the years when some begin to cry out for help in earnest, and teens in crisis are more prone to self-destructive behavior. Even so, teens manage far better — sometimes exceedingly well — when they are supported, understood, and allowed to express and process their experiences, alongside age-appropriate expectations. A good therapist helps parents understand adolescent development and respond effectively to confusion, turmoil or crisis, while helping the teen build decision-making, interpersonal and safe coping skills.
Parenting
Raising children is rewarding, demanding and often confusing all at once. What parents want is for their children to grow into healthy, happy, productive adults. What they often get along the way are more challenges than they ever imagined — and moments of feeling discouraged, de-skilled, or at their wits' end. When problems arise, parents naturally wonder, "Is this a normal part of growing up, or could something be wrong?" It is never wrong to seek a professional consultation about your situation. Within therapy, parenting successes, worries and frustrations can be shared in a non-judgmental setting, with the therapist as an ally in understanding your child and strengthening your own skills and confidence.
Academic Underachievement
Academic underachievement is not itself a diagnosis, nor is it usually the root problem. It is a symptom — a sign that something in a student's life is interfering with their success, and that normal development is being hindered. The causes are varied: an undiagnosed learning difference, attention difficulties, a medical issue, or situational stress such as a parent's illness or a divorce. A mismatch between a school's teaching style and a child's learning style can also play a role. Because the causes differ so much, further evaluation by a pediatrician and a mental-health professional is often warranted, and your specific observations of your child are invaluable in sorting it out. Counseling can help an underachieving child cope with the lowered self-esteem, anxiety and frustration that often come with school struggles — and help parents move past blame toward practical support.
For developmental milestones and guidance on children's well-being, the American Psychological Association is a trusted resource.
Help for the Whole Family
Whether your concern is a young child, a struggling teen, or your own confidence as a parent, support is available. You may also want to read about anxiety and stress or browse all of our therapy specialties. When you are ready, get in touch through our contact form.