Our integrative treatment approach draws from the most effective Empirically-Based techniques and is individually tailored to your child's communication and learning style. We incorporate the following treatment modalities:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is the most empirically-validated treatment technique, and primarily focuses on identifying and changing distorted thinking patterns. In this approach, clients take an active part in therapy through psychoeducation, exploring one's own behavior, thoughts, and emotions with various activities, and completing short homework assignments (such as trying deep breathing for 10 minutes).
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Acceptance and Commitment therapy teaches mindfulness skills to help clients live more consistently with their personal values. Clients are also taught to be more flexible in their thinking and adapting to life situations. The therapist helps the client recognize ways that they may sometimes try to ignore or control emotional experiences in a negative way, which may lead to more difficulties.
Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)
Interpersonal Therapy was developed as a treatment for depression, and focuses on a client's relationship with other people in their lives. Because early stages of depression often cause problems in interpersonal relationships, this model focuses on a person's attachment and communication style to strengthen and improve relationships with friends, family, and others. With an improved support network, the client can more easily progress through the recovery process.
Psychodynamic and Insight-Oriented Therapy
Psychodynamic therapy is a more "in-depth" therapy approach, and is particularly useful in understanding and treating personality problems. This treatment approach is relatively unstructured, and relies on the interaction between the therapist and client as a model of how a person relates to others in their life. This technique focuses on exploring a person's past and particularly relationships with early caregivers.
Play Therapy
Through play and language, the therapist helps a child explore significant life events that may have an impact on current situations. Play therapy utilizes games and toys to help a child address unresolved trauma, explore thoughts and emotions, and experience personal growth at the child's pace. This form of therapy is empirically-validated and more developmentally appropriate to child mental health treatment.
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Instead of exploring a client's past in depth, the Solution-Focused therapy approach focuses more on the present and finding solutions to problems. The therapist helps the client focus on their strengths and other ways they have been able to overcome challenges. The model fosters positive expectations that problems can be solved quickly and easily, and is typically very brief, lasting about 3 to 4 sessions.
Contingent Reinforcement
Contingent reinforcement applies principles of operant conditioning to the naturalistic environment. The therapist works collaboratively with the client to identify behaviors they most want from one another, and help negotiate a contract for their exchange. This approach strongly relies on parents being actively involved in helping children stick to their negotiated behavioral exchanges.
Adlerian Parenting Techniques
Alfred Adler was a colleague of Sigmund Freud's and believed that each person strives to feel confident and competent in their abilities. Adlerian parenting techniques involve a pragmatic, problem-solving approach, that is characterized by an educational process in which the therapist helps the client have more positive attitudes towards themselves and to be better integrated with their social world.