Children and teens sometimes need help adjusting to stressors and difficult life experiences, and often their behavior, rather than their words, is the biggest clue that something is wrong.

Signs your child may benefit from counseling include:

• Difficulties at school, with teachers, friends or academics
• Sudden changes in mood or behavior
• Frequent stomach aches or headaches with no apparent physical cause
• Difficulties with sleeping, eating, or going to the bathroom
• Irritability, extreme “temper tantrums,” excessive anger or aggression
• Sad or scary dreams, nightmares, or fantasies
• Preoccupation with ideas, thoughts or feelings that seem age inappropriate
• Concerns about substance use
• The experience of a traumatic or overwhelming event
• Self-harm or suicidal thoughts

Therapy can benefit children and teens in a variety of ways, including helping them to heal from traumatic events, express their emotions, develop positive decision-making and problem-solving skills, form healthy social relationships, and more effectively communicate problems and concerns.

At Samaritan Center, we work with both children and their parents to identify challenges, set goals, and track progress. Our therapists have a deep understanding of child and adolescent development and are experienced with helping children and teens express and make sense of their big feelings and difficult experiences.

We help children, teens, and their families with the following types of therapy and support:

• Sandtray TherapyPlay Therapy
• Incorporating art into counseling
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing  (EMDR)
• Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)
• Parent coaching and Positive Discipline workshops
• Family Therapy, which can include parents and/or siblings
• Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI)
• Synergistic Play Therapy