Helping Your Child With Social And Emotional Challenges
Is your child ready for the upcoming school year?
Our counseling office works with kids ages 6 years and up who attend local elementary, middle, and high schools in the Greensboro and surrounding area.
Our aim is to provide effective care where kids, parents, and families feel connected and have the tools that they need to move forward in life successfully. We do this by engaging in specialized training to improve the quality of care. Counselors at Santos Counseling engage in trainings that focus on play therapy, trauma-informed care, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), and other evidence-based approaches.
Our counseling office helps parents and kids with their counseling needs. We provide individual counseling for kids and parents as well as family counseling.
5 Common Reasons That Kids Go To Therapy:
1. Difficulty managing their mood.
Your child may have a hard time controlling their big emotions. You may notice this when you see that certain things just set your child to go from zero to 100. Some kids show that they have difficulty managing their mood by displaying anger, shutting down, or going quiet.
2. Their school performance has declined.
With the new school year starting, it’s important to consider how your child did in the previous school year and if they are emotionally ready for the upcoming year.
The 2024 school year starts in August and I’m sure that you are thinking about what you can do to help your child have a successful year. Working with a counselor can provide your child with coping skills needed to manage their mood as well as develop a healthy mindset to help them be successful in the classroom.
3. Your child is isolating
If you notice that your child is spending less time with peers, it’s important to be curious and figure out why. I encourage you to speak with your child on the topic. Talk to them about what you are noticing and create a plan of action.
Working with a counselor can give your child a safe and productive space to understand why isolation is taking place and how to address it effectively.
4. Your child has experienced a difficult life transition
Regardless of age, navigating difficult life transitions can be difficult. Kids who go through the divorce process, moving to a new school, a family death, and other challenging life experiences benefit from counseling.
I want you to consider how the life event has impacted your child and if you see a space where counseling can be of help. If so, reach out to us today.
5. Your child is engaging in risk behaviors
If you notice that your child is saying things or behaving in a manner that will lead to a negative ending, I encourage you to consider working with a counselor. Often risk-behaviors are hiding the core of what is taking place.
In our counseling office, we see kids who display risk-related behaviors in the form of acting or lashing out. They may disrupt the classroom, use profanity towards parents and adults, or engage in behaviors that are problematic for their health and future. Such as substance use, skipping school or class, not turning in materials, and fighting.
One of the most important things you can do as a parent is get an early start.
Ways counseling can help your child.
You have two great options that can help your child. Your child can work with an individual counselor, or the family can pursue family counseling. The reading below provides insight on what to expect from individual counseling and family counseling.
Individual counseling for your child.
Individual counseling is great when the focus is primarily on the child. What takes place is that your child can work with the counselor to receive specialized care on the difficulty they are navigating as well as on reaching goals that are specific to them.
An example of this is:
Let’s say that your child is struggling with an eating disorder. Individual counseling can help your child learn how to heal and recover from the eating disorder and the symptoms connected to it.
Family counseling for your child
Family counseling can be effective when family members are willing to work with the counselor. This type of counseling involves a few members of the family being willing to receive feedback and the family collectively working on addressing a challenge and reaching goals.
An example of this is:
Your child is struggling with responsibility and ownership in the home. They are having a hard time doing their chores and showing respect to their parents. The parents notice that when they try to parent things escalate and often end in everyone being upset and nothing getting solved. Family counseling can give the family system a safe space to identify what is taking place and work on implementing tools that help with addressing the challenges. One example is addressing the challenge of conflict or helping members be better listeners. In the end, the goal is that the family can move from a place of feeling “stuck” to “thriving” in their family system.
More helpful reads:
5 Ways To Prepare Your Child for a Successful School Year
1. Encourage your child to practice self-care
Try to do your best to encourage your child to have a slow-down point in the day. One example can include your child taking a 30-minute break at 4 PM each day. During the 30-minute break, your child can engage in activities aimed to help them disconnect from the day-to-day chores and tasks.
2. Monitor social media
Let’s start by acknowledging that social media can be wonderful. It is a space that allows kids and teens to connect and socialize with each other. At the same time, it can be a daunting space where disconnecting is a difficult task. Counselors at Santos Counseling encourage parents to monitor social media in the manner of time and impact. Time means that your child treats social media just like they would any other space. Giving your child an allocation of time helps them with time management and effectively using the device. Impact takes place by noticing the relationship your child has with their device.
3. Give your child a supportive team
Did you know that research shows that kids who attend counseling show an improvement in mood, self-esteem, and overall life satisfaction? Working with a counselor can give your child a supportive agent to help them navigate difficulties in life as well as reach goals. You can also invite teachers, coaches, and other persons to your child team.
4. Help your child set realistic expectations
You can approach setting realistic expectations using SMART goals. These are goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound. Our counseling office has noticed over the years that children with unrealistic expectations often experience challenges ranging from emotional to social. Consider having an honest conversation with your child about the goals for the upcoming school year, sports, and other areas of life. Make it a point to ensure that your child will be challenged and supported along the way.
5. Be a leader for your child
Take a close look at how you (parents) manage your emotions, communicate, and navigate hurdles in life. Reflect on how you communicate with your child on a verbal and non-verbal platform. Now do your best to ensure that your child is observing healthy and effective leadership. Doing this can help your child have a wonderful example that they can lean on.
