Psychology and children

How do children come to see a psychologist?

Children often see psychologists due to a parent, teacher or health professional being concerned about their behavior, social, emotional or neurodevelopment. There may be a change in the child’s behavior or a long-term problem that was previously manageable may be harder to deal with as the child gets older.

How can a psychologist help children?

Children often communicate using their behavior.
It is only as they mature that they use more language.
A psychology assessment can establish the meaning of a child’s
behavior and what this represents.
A child psychologist can help children find the right words to express
their worry or difficulty in place of using regressed or problematic behavior.
Children can learn skills to cope with feeling angry, sad or worried.

Can children have a mental health disorder like Depression or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

Yes, they can. A thorough psychology assessment will be able to establish if this is the case and what the best treatment would be.

How can parents benefit from seeing a psychologist?

We recognize that parents know their children best. They have typically been with their child for all of their child’s life. A psychologist facilitates this relationship by either working together with the parent and child, or with each party separately. Often, parents find it a relief when they come to understand why their child is behaving in a specific way and this allows them to be more patient and attuned to their child’s needs. Many parents find it very helpful understanding their own childhood and experience of being parented with this then informing their own parenting.

How can families of a young child benefit from seeing a psychologist?

A psychologist can facilitate discussion between all family members. Often each family member has a different perspective on the difficulty and a psychologist can help make sense of what it all means and help find common ground and values.