Consultation
Bringing
up children is one of the most important and difficult jobs
there are. Sometimes parents lose confidence in themselves
at transition points such as the birth of a baby, major
geographical moves, school transitions, the onset of
adolescence, separation of divorce. A few sessions to think
together about what may be the meaning of a child’s
distress or difficult behaviour can often assist its
resolution.
Brief
Therapy
Brief
psychotherapy (typically four or five sessions) can often
be helpful for parents with their young children, or for
adolescents who do not want to commit themselves to a
long-term therapeutic relationship.
Long-term
Psychotherapy
Where
problems are deep-seated or long-standing it may be
necessary to commit to a therapy of at least a year’s
duration. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy is a process that
has its own momentum and cannot be rushed. There needs to
be time for a therapeutic relationship to develop, for the
conflicts at the root of the problem to be brought into the
therapy setting, to be worked through, and, hopefully,
resolved. With children, things can sometimes “get worse
before they get better” and parents and therapists need to
work closely together to “hold” the therapy when negative
feelings have come to the fore. Long-term psychotherapy
involves sessions one or more times a week.
Watch, Wait
and Wonder
“Watch,
Wait and Wonder” is an intervention begun in New Zealand
and developed in Canada. It can be very effective with
babies and young children and their parents. A child is
seen together with a parent (or parents) when the two are
having difficulties with their relationship. This may
sometimes happen when a mother has suffered a period of
depression around the birth of her baby, or may be affected
by past losses which are complicating her relationship with
her child. It may be difficult for a mother to adjust to
her new role after years of being in the workplace, or
maybe a return to work and the introduction of child-care
or school needs some thought and working through. The
intervention is play-based, and the mother or father is
encouraged to follow their child’s lead.
Learning
Difficulties
Parents may be shocked and
distressed to discover that their child has learning
difficulties, be they of a “global” nature or specific
difficulties such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD or
difficulties on the autistic spectrum. Help from a
paediatrician, clinical or educational psychologist,
psychiatrist or occupational therapist may be necessary to
diagnose these difficulties and to understand their nature
and extent. Actual diagnosis may come as a relief to some
parents (“It’s not all my fault”) and can mark a new
beginning in your relationship with your child. But it is
important to see the child beyond the “label” and child
psychotherapy can be helpful to families exploring these
concerns, or coming to terms with a recent diagnosis.
