Child Therapy in NYC
What is child therapy and what are signs that my child needs it?
During the course of development, children experience a range of emotions that can lead to mental health disorders. By identifying these problems at an early age, you are improving their mental health in the long term. Mental health disorders among children are common: 1 in 6 children in the US have some sort of mental health diagnosis (CDC).
These are some signs that therapy may be helpful for your child:
- Have high levels of stress or anxiety
- A sudden decline in academic performance
- Withdrawing from social activities
- An unwillingness to to open up about their feelings
- Lost interest in activities they once found enjoyable
- Strong desire to spend time alone
- Excessive anger
- Persistent sadness
Seeking therapy for your child is not a sign that you have poor parenting skills, nor is it a negative sign on your child and their future. Rather, therapy can help your child develop more skills to deal with their challenges. Ultimately, the skills your child will develop from therapy will be beneficial in the long term, such as opening up about feelings, and managing emotions in a healthy manner.
What happens during the course of child therapy?
During therapy, your child therapist will first consider all aspects of your child’s identity and development, including their age, personality, behavior, and school performance. Your child’s treatment plan is highly dependent on their needs, which can include treatment for mental health disorders such as trauma or anxiety, or behavioral issues. Often, therapy involves many relevant parties, such as school teachers or counselors, who are able to give more insight on your child’s behavior at school.
Therapy itself can take several forms as well. For younger children, play therapy, which involves interacting with your child while they play with toys or do other activities, can help your child talk about their feelings. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which is common in adult therapy, is highly effective for children as well. For children, CBT can help train them to reframe negative thoughts and beliefs that contribute to unhealthy behaviors. A child who has a belief that bad things might happen to them if they do specific things may be able to learn to respond to those thoughts and reassure themselves that things will be okay.
Parental coaching services may also be beneficial and a part of child therapy. Parent coaching is when one or both parents (or any primary caregiver) meet with a professional coach in an effort to foster goal achievement related to parenting. In this non-judgmental setting, the coach can use psychoeducation and evidence-based strategy to navigate familial issues related to children.
Find a child psychiatrist at Integrative Psych
Integrative Psych is an NYC-based private practice specializing in child and adolescent therapy. Many of our clients are based in Brooklyn, Queens, New Jersey, Manhattan (Chelsea, Village, Lower East Side, Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Tribeca, SoHo), Connecticut, Westchester but our therapists are licensed to treat anyone in the state of New York.
At Integrative Psych, most of our experts have extensive training and experience in Child Psychiatry. For example, Dr. Ryan Sultan and Dr. Justin Mohatt have published numerous articles in the field, are sought after speakers, and are regularly featured on the news and in magazines for topics related to child psychiatry.
Integrative Psych takes a comprehensive and holistic approach to diagnosing and treating your child’s mental health. We will carefully explore your child’s childhood history, their school performance, and current development. We will evaluate how your child’s mental health symptoms affect their day-to-day life, including school and relationships, before making any recommendations. Comprehensive treatment may involve tailored medication or different talk/behavioral therapies, depending on what works best for your child. Decisions about what treatment or treatments to pursue are made as a team, between your child and clinician. Once your child has begun care with us, we will see them regularly to monitor progress and make any adjustments necessary to ensure that they benefit fully from their treatment at Integrative Psych.
At Integrative Psych, we are your premier destination for integrative and evidence-based therapy in New York City. Our team of experienced and compassionate therapists specializes in a wide range of mental health services, tailored to meet your unique needs. Whether you are seeking assistance with psychodynamic therapy nyc, bipolar disorder nyc, high-functioning anxiety nyc, complex PTSD nyc, or any other mental health concerns, we are here to support you on your healing journey.
At Integrative Psych, we firmly believe in the power of mindfulness-based therapy nyc to promote emotional well-being and personal growth. Our therapists are adept at integrating mindfulness-based techniques into their practice to help individuals cultivate present-moment awareness and develop healthier coping mechanisms for stress, anxiety, and other mental health challenges.
If you’re seeking therapy for your child and are interested in working with one of our therapists, book an appointment here.
