Actually, the first session starts with the parents! We will ask to meet with the primary caregivers before meeting with the child. It is important for us to understand what you as the parent sees and the goals that you view as important to your child. This is your opportunity to share your concerns and desired outcomes with your therapist. This is also an important opportunity for you to gain insight into your specific therapist’s approach and style. The therapist will be sure to outline the limits of confidentiality, your level of involvement in your child’s care, and certain boundaries the therapist might find appropriate. Once the therapist has met with the parents, they will schedule a time to meet 1:1 with the child and begin to develop rapport.

While you will likely not be attending sessions with your child very often, you are still going to be very involved! Your therapist will request to meet with you once per month to review your child’s progress and address your observations. Your therapist may also ask to speak with you during the last few minutes of your child’s sessions if needed. You may also receive some parent coaching feedback to utilize outside of the session! This can help to develop positive habits at home and create an environment for lasting change and connection.

If you are not comfortable attending the intake session with your child’s other parent, you can request to have separate 1:1 intake sessions with the therapist. We can accommodate this to ensure both parents feel they have a safe space to focus on the needs of their child during the intake process. However, all electronic communication to and from the therapist will need to include both parents copied on the same email. This ensures that both parents are equally involved and up to date on the child’s progress.

Most parents who bring their children to therapy will receive some sort of parent coaching from the therapist. Lasting change for children does not just occur from challenging themselves internally in therapy. Children are constantly soaking up their surroundings and adjusting to the boundaries set at home and at school. In order to create lasting change in children, their environment must also change to allow for more opportunities to use their new skills. To make this happen, your therapist may ask you to change the way you respond to a specific behavior, engage in different methods of behavior correction, or remove/add daily tasks the child has. These are opportunities for you to show your child how important their happiness and success is and how supportive you are of their journey. They will also feel relieved to know they are not alone in solving their problems. You may find that using your new skills also decreases various stressors and anxieties for you as well! It’s a win-win!

Depending on your child’s age and level of functioning, your therapist may recommend incorporating play therapy into their treatment. Play is not all about having fun (although it can be very fun indeed!)Children play so often because this is their brain’s way of understanding the world, testing out cause and effect, and even a way of processing feelings about their everyday life. Children’s brains don’t have the same capacity to sit and talk about how they feel like an adult brain can!

Our play space at CFC is equipped with representative toys, open ended activities, games, and art therapy equipment. Our child therapists are trained to analyze a child’s play behavior, attend to the emotion and logic a child is playing out, assist the child in becoming aware of their feelings, process traumatic experiences, and help them reach a desired outcome in their play. This allows the child to gain self awareness and a sense of control over their actions. What looks like simple play on the outside is actually a very complex learning experience!

We work hard to make sure therapy feels comfortable and respectful for your child. This helps your child see therapy in a more positive light. Most often, people have a lot of success by explaining the benefits of therapy to their child. The benefits for them are similar to the benefits for adults. They get an uninterrupted hour to discuss their successes, frustrations, and goals with an unbiased, friendly human being.

This is a great question. We always do our part to make sure all of our clients have a safe space to express themselves openly. Regardless of how young our client is, we always do our best to keep our conversations private. While we may disclose information to their guardian(s), we would not normally give a play by play of what was discussed in session. Most frequently, with the child’s consent, we would include the guardian(s) in a conversation related to our goals and progress. In order to maintain good rapport, the child is always “in the know” related to what is discussed with their guardian(s).
When a child is 12 years old, legally speaking, they have more of a right to complete confidentiality. Most often, this has to do with what kind of information they want shared with their guardians. There are reasons why a therapist would need to break confidentiality (ex: someone might be in danger), but only information pertinent to that situation would then be shared to ensure everyone’s safety.

The appropriate level of care for your child depends on their specific and unique needs. The experts and CFC can assist you in deciding the best course of action for your circumstances. Your child’s medical team can also offer you valuable insight.
The following is a crash-course on the varying levels of care:

Counseling & Therapy Services
This is the kind of treatment that CFC Therapy Group can offer. Individual therapy sessions are ideally attended weekly or bi-weekly. As the child’s guardian, you will be included in treatment to a varying extent.

Psychiatric Services
If you believe medication may be necessary for your child, it’s important to visit a psychiatrist who can help with diagnosing & prescribing.

Intensive Outpatient Program (sometimes abbreviated as IOP)
A typical IOP requires that clients come in for treatment 5 days a week for 3 hours each day. If you feel your child could benefit from more frequent, consistent care, an IOP might be a good option.

Partial Hospitalization Program (sometimes abbreviated as PHP)
PHP’s can be a good choice for children with more complex challenges. Often called “day treatment” a PHP is typically 5 days a week for 6 hours each day. These programs can be very helpful if an inpatient or residential treatment program isn’t quite appropriate for your kiddo, but you still want them to receive more intense care.

Residential Treatment
In a residential treatment setting, children will have 24-hour supervision since they will be living in the treatment center for approx.1 to 2 months.

Inpatient Treatment
Inpatient treatment is designed for children who are at risk of harming themselves or others. If you believe your child’s safety is at risk, inpatient treatment is most likely the best option. For about 3 to 7 days, your child will be cared for by individuals trained to keep them safe. This amount of time may be extended if progress towards constructed goals isn’t being made. It is possible that residential treatment will be recommended if this is the case.

It is not uncommon for a child to feel intimidated by the idea of going to therapy. Some children even feel angry or resentful because of their preconceived notions about therapy. If your child flat out refuses to attend, they may be feeling afraid or like their life is out of their control. It can be very helpful to include them in the process. Find a good time to explain exactly what therapy is and to remind them that a therapist’s first priority is helping their client. At the end of the day, you know your child the best, and the conversation you have with them will be unique. Most of the time, after a couple sessions, children feel right at home.

As your child gets older, you may find they want to share less about what was discussed in therapy. This is totally natural. As children continue to develop a sense of individuality and identity, they may experiment with setting some boundaries. As a parent, it can be difficult to feel like your child isn’t comfortable sharing things with you. Most often, it isn’t related to a child’s level of comfortability with you, but instead tied to their normal developmental milestones. They are just practicing doing some of life solo! They grow up so fast! Love the way you framed this!!

Most frequently, we recommend starting off with 60 minute sessions weekly. While 30 and 45 minute sessions are available, 60 minutes is usually the best choice when starting therapy with someone new. Sessions are typically attended weekly or biweekly. That being said, every client is unique, and a personalized plan will be developed with your therapist. Each case requires a different approach, and we create each plan carefully.

The cost of therapy depends on various factors. If you have health insurance, the cost may be minimal. Each insurance plan is different, and it is best to reach out directly to your insurance company to see what is covered. Some plans cover therapy fully while others require a co-pay or for you to pay your deductible before the cost is covered. Before we schedule you with a therapist, it will be important to know what kind of insurance you have. If you don’t have insurance, we have self-pay options. The cost will vary based on which therapist is the best match for you.

We totally understand that during a child’s session can be a great opportunity for you to get some errands done! We just ask that you please return back to the office at least a few minutes before your child’s session is over. It’s important that we know your child is safely back with a guardian so we can begin the session with our next client. If you have not returned, we will have to ask that your child sit quietly in the waiting area to wait for you.

Things can definitely come up between sessions, and we appreciate that you want to keep us updated. Please note that we are unlikely to respond with feedback or advice over email. Most likely, we would want to schedule a time to speak with you face-to-face or virtually to gather more information. If you believe your child is in danger, it is important that you call 911 or alert the appropriate authority immediately (your child’s doctor, psychiatrist, the police, etc.).

We find that it is very helpful to include guardians in the goal setting process. Your child will also be actively involved in the process. It is collaborative, and we make sure that everyone’s voice is heard.
Adolescent Therapy