Kids Counselling Coquitlam: Nurturing Your Child's Emotional Well-being

Watching your child struggle with big emotions, difficult behaviours, or challenging situations can be heartbreaking. At Touch Brain Counselling, we provide specialized therapy designed specifically for children. Our compassionate child therapists create a safe, supportive, and engaging environment where kids can explore their feelings, develop coping skills, and build resilience, helping families across the Tri-Cities thrive.

Common Challenges We Address in Child Counselling

Children express distress in various ways. Our experienced therapists are skilled in helping children work through a wide range of issues.

Areas Where Our Coquitlam Child Therapists Can Help

• Anxiety: Including separation anxiety, social anxiety, phobias, general worries, and obsessive-compulsive behaviours (OCD).
• Emotional Regulation: Difficulty managing anger, frequent meltdowns, excessive sadness, or irritability.
• Behavioural Issues: Defiance (ODD tendencies), aggression, impulsivity, difficulties with attention and focus (ADHD support).
• Social Skills Difficulties: Challenges making or keeping friends, understanding social cues, or navigating peer relationships.
• Trauma and Loss: Coping with difficult experiences like accidents, bereavement, family conflict, or abuse.
• School-Related Stress: Academic pressure, bullying, school avoidance, or learning challenges.
• Low Self-Esteem: Negative self-talk, lack of confidence, or withdrawal.
• Family Changes: Adjusting to separation, divorce, relocation, or the arrival of a sibling.

Our Approach to Kids Counselling

We believe that therapy for children should be engaging, creative, and tailored to their developmental stage. We utilize an integrative approach, drawing from various evidence-based techniques to best meet your child's unique needs.

Evidence-Based Techniques We Utilize

Our skilled therapists are trained in a variety of effective modalities, such as:

• Play Therapy: Utilizing toys, games, and imaginative play – the natural language of children – to help them process experiences and express feelings safely.
• Art Therapy: Engaging children in creative expression through drawing, painting, sculpting, and other art forms to explore emotions and foster self-discovery.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Helping children understand the connection between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours in an age-appropriate way, learning practical coping skills.
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills: Introducing adapted DBT skills focused on mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness for older children and teens.
• EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing): Using specialized, child-friendly protocols to help children process and heal from traumatic memories or distressing events.
• Narrative Therapy: Empowering children to reshape their understanding of problems and develop more positive personal stories.
• Behavioral Therapy: Implementing strategies focused on understanding triggers and reinforcing positive behaviours.
• Neurofeedback: Utilizing advanced brain-training technology to help improve focus, attention, emotional regulation, and reduce anxiety (particularly helpful for ADHD or anxiety).

What to Expect in Your Child's Therapy Journey

We believe in a collaborative approach involving parents and caregivers as essential partners in the child's therapeutic journey.

Initial Consultation & Parent Involvement

Your journey typically begins with an initial consultation involving you (the parent/guardian). This allows us to understand your concerns, gather relevant history, discuss goals for therapy, and answer your questions. We value your insights and collaborate closely with you throughout the process, providing support and strategies for home.

Building Trust with Your Child

Our first priority is building a trusting and comfortable relationship with your child. Our therapists use warmth, empathy, and engaging activities to help your child feel safe, understood, and motivated to participate in sessions.

Confidentiality in Child Therapy

While therapy for minors involves parent participation, maintaining the child's trust is crucial. We uphold confidentiality appropriate to your child's age and development, while ensuring you are kept informed about their progress, general themes, safety concerns, and strategies, all within ethical and legal guidelines which we will discuss clearly with you.

Benefits of Child Counselling at Touch Brain

Investing in your child's mental health through counselling can lead to significant positive changes:

• Improved ability to manage emotions like anger, sadness, and anxiety.
• Development of healthy coping skills for stress and challenges.
• Increased self-esteem and confidence.
• Enhanced communication skills.
• Stronger family relationships and connections.
• Reduction in problematic behaviours at home and school.
• Improved focus, attention, and school functioning.
• Healing from past hurts or difficult experiences.

Getting Started with Kids Counselling at Touch Brain

If you're concerned about your child's emotional well-being or behaviour, taking the first step towards professional support can make a world of difference. Touch Brain Counselling proudly supports families throughout Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, and the surrounding Tri-Cities area. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with one of our dedicated child therapists and learn how we can help your child thrive.