Children and Adolescents
Bring out the best in your kids
As parents, we all want our children to be happy, healthy, and successful - growing new skills and developing great relationships with others along the way. However, a child’s growth and development isn’t always a straight line. Certain stressors can impact children in unexpected ways, leading to emotional outbursts, mood swings, or unresolved anger issues.
The Family Care Centre by Edgar Psychological helps to uncover the root cause of your child’s struggles, meet those problems head on and give your child the strength they need to succeed.
70% | of mental health problems have their onset during childhood or adolescence [1] |
17% | of children ages 2-5 years meet diagnostic criteria for mental health problems [2] |
[1] Government of Canada. (2006). The human face of mental health and mental illness in Canada. Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada
[2] Clinton, J., Kays-Burden, A., Carter, C., Bhasin, K., Cairney, J., Carrey, N., Janus, M., Kulkarni, C. and Williams, R. (2014) Supporting Ontario's Youngest Minds: Investing in the Mental Health of Children Under 6. Ontario Centre of Excellence for Child and Youth Mental Health.
Our Psychologists can help with:
Family Concerns
Parenting and communication skills
Transitions like divorce or the death of a loved one
Disagreements and power struggles
Behavioral Concerns
Tantrums
Aggression towards peers and adults
Chronic disregard for authority
Impulsivity
Difficulties with attention and concentration
Bullying
Stealing and lying
Preoccupation with death or violence
Developmental regression
Emotional Concerns
Persistent feelings of sadness, anger, stress and worry
Low self-esteem
Separation anxiety
Difficulty making friends
Diagnoses
Social Communication Disorders
Conduct Disorder (CD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)
What is the purpose of a Child Psychologist?
A child psychologist can help you and your child recognize difficult situations and provide you with the necessary tools to handle them as they come. Therapy is a special and safe space where children receive the care and attention they need during troubled times.
All children go through stages of internal conflict which may lead to changes in behavior and emotional state. Some children have trouble coping with transitions, family changes (e.g. a birth of a sibling or divorce), traumatic events, losses, and physical illness. Many children (and parents) need a little extra help to navigate optimally through these rough patches.
Benefits of counselling and therapy for children
Understanding your child’s experiences, feelings, and thoughts is crucial if you want to get to the bottom of what’s bothering them. Accessing counseling for your child through Edgar Psychological is a first step in the right direction. Unresolved problems can impede a child’s development, but with the right counseling in the formative years, you can provide your child with healthy skills and strategies that they can use for their life time. Benefits of counseling may include:
Higher self-esteem
Better social skills
Better problem-solving and decision-making skills
Decrease in aggressive or problematic behavior
Stronger communication skills
Fewer instances of acting out in school
Improved grades
Improved relationships with peers
Decreased Anxiety
Elevated mood
What to expect
At Edgar Psychological, the process begins with a parent interview where we discuss your concerns and gather information about your child and your family history. Based on that information, we will determine the most effective intervention. Sometimes a few parenting sessions are all that is needed; other times, individual child or interactive parent-child therapy is recommended. Recommendations to parents, as well as referrals to other professionals, are also sometimes integral parts of the process.
Group social skills training
We also offer the following social skills training for children and teenagers:
Emotion Regulation for Children Group (for ages 8-12)
Emotion Regulation Skills for Teens Group (for ages 13-17)
Spots are booking up fast! Reserve your child’s spot today.
Next steps
If you are concerned about your child's mental health or have received a diagnosis for your child that you need support with, our team of psychologists can help. Contact us to learn more about how we can help your child or to book an appointment.
Our Therapists can help:
