Children’s Therapy

Children probably have the most difficult time dealing with transitions, especially when parents do not know how to talk to them or help them through these transitions. The transitions that children tend to struggle the most with are divorce of parents, moving, a parent returning to work, moving into school, transitioning into a new school, losing a friend who has left the school, or losing family or friends to death. These can be difficult for most adults, but even more so for children, because they don’t always have the words to express what they feel. So, at times, you will see children acting out their emotions at school or home, regressing in skills they used to do well, or feeling really sad and not wanting to be involved in things they used to love.

This counselor has training in art therapy, play therapy, and talk therapy, depending on what is comfortable for the children, and will use these to help them learn new skills to express their emotions. We may also provide family counseling or work with parents to help them learn to guide their children through these difficult times. If there is a divorce, this counselor may even work with both sides to help the parents get on the same page with parenting and to work together to exchange the children with as little disruption as possible, as long as the law allows.

Teenagers

Teenagers, like children, have some special needs when working with them. The teenager’s developmental stage is to learn how to make healthy choices, which requires parents to help them navigate them without being controlling. How this counselor chooses to work with teenagers and their families is to meet with the teen to figure out what they are struggling with, help them learn to communicate the issues with respect, and then work with the parents to help them teach their teen that making decisions always come with consequences when they make wrong choices. This counselor uses Choice Theory to help teens and their parents work together and teach Choices and Consequences in a non-controlling, healthy manner.

Teenagers also need to feel supported by their parents in their career choices and their transition from living at home to living on their own. My goal is to help them make this transition smoothly. The other issues that tend to come up with teens in drug and alcohol use. This counselor, when working with teens who have drug and alcohol issues, helps teach the parents about boundaries and consequences. If the teenager continues to use, this counselor will refer them for treatment at a drug and alcohol agency for teenagers. Besides just working with alcohol/drug issues and transitions with teenagers, this counselor also works with teens that struggle with depression and anxiety and eating disorders, and my goal is to help teenagers learn how to express their emotions in a healthy, respectful way, ask for what they need, and respect other peoples rules and boundaries, as well as set their own.

My Son Felt Comfortable

“I originally sought out Nannette’s help for troubles my teenage son was experiencing. My son was very reluctant to see a counselor and was not at all open to the idea. What happened next just amazed me, not only did my son feel comfortable opening up to Nannette, he actually looked forward to his subsequent sessions. The turnaround in my sons life is just amazing, for which I am extremely grateful.

After seeing such amazing results that my son had, I too started to see Nannette regularly to help me deal with issues in my life. I cannot stress enough what a profound difference she has made in my life. Nannette has provided me with tools which enable me to tackle problems which used to be impossible for me. I would not hesitate for a moment to recommend Nannette to anyone seeking a top notch professional counselor.

Chris J