Soo… parents have had the talk and they've told the kids.
Even though they love their children very much, the marriage isn’t working and the family will be happier apart. Yup, it’s time to get divorced. So what next? Does that mean that parents need to rush out and sign those intake papers to start therapy for their kids?
0 Comments
In this Parenting Skills Series I am going to share some of the quick tips and phrases I share with parents daily in my practice to help them become the parents they want to be! When parents can have skills, tips, and tools to help them navigate in their parenting journey they grow in their confidence and regulation in supporting their children in life’s ups and downs!
Today is all about how to help kids develop distress tolerance skills and develop patience! I mean.... as much patience as is developmentally appropriate for kids! 
In this Parenting Skills Series I am going to share some of the quick tips and phrases I share with parents daily in my practice to help them become the parents they want to be! When parents can have skills, tips, and tools to help them navigate in their parenting journey they grow in their confidence and regulation in supporting their children in life’s ups and downs!
And today it is all about how to help kids make more effective choices. 
A little bit of reinforcement is worth its weight in GOLD for kids mental health. Okay, to be honest, this is true for adults too. We absolutely LOVE to be told that we are doing a good job, we are appreciated, or we are on the right track!
Want to know more about the power of reinforcement, and why we should throw it around like glitter? Check out more HERE! 
If your intake sessions, parent only sessions, or child therapy sessions don’t include some of the following comments from parents, you might not be a child therapist. It is SO common for parents to want and request things for their child like:
How many times have you watched kids create a block creation in the playroom? If you said “more than I can count”, well…. same. Whether it is blocks, legos, magnatiles, or cards there is one thing in common for every sturdy and tall standing tower - a secure and stable base.
And this is true for implementing parenting skills too! 
One thing I hear parents say often is “well… I can’t [insert consequence here] because he will just get mad and have a meltdown”.
The consequence can be anywhere from not having bike riding privileges when a child has broken the rule and gone outside the agreed upon boundaries to losing screen time in the morning when they are constantly 20 minutes late getting out the door because they can’t transition off their technology. 
Do you ever feel like you have 5,403 tabs open in your brain? As a therapist it’s not only coming to each session present and with the appropriate skill set and materials but also all the things that happen outside of the session that need to get done in a day.
I’m talking about returning emails, processing paperwork, ordering supplies (fingers crossed the Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce K Cups will last through the week) AND not to mention you can’t forget to order those pipe cleaners for that one project yet again! 
Did you know that some insurance companies require a note to be completed, sealed, and signed within 24 hours? If this doesn’t make you anxious - you are rocking it and kudos to you for getting your note practice down! Seriously, this deserves a celebration.
Specializing in working with kids is one of the most challenging paths as a therapist.
For one thing you likely don’t have voluntary clients (hello precontemplation in the stages of change model!) that may lack insight into why they are even in therapy. I mean, flipping chairs in the classroom isn’t that bad right? That was the old me! |
Hi, there!I'm Ann Meehan, an LPCC, 
Archives
March 2025
Categories
All
|
Privacy Policies | Terms of Use | Disclaimer
Contact
[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2025
Contact
[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2025