Child Therapy

Does your child continue to struggle, despite your best efforts?

Do you ever feel helpless when your child is having trouble dealing with their emotions?

It is incredibly difficult, as a parent, to watch your child struggle. Whether it is anxiety and worry, big disruptive behaviors, withdrawing, trouble with friends, or anything else, it hurts your parent heart when your child is suffering. Like adults, kids are not born with innate skills to know how to handle overwhelming feelings. Unlike adults, kids also don’t have the years of life experience, trial and error, and memory of changes over time to help them cope. While it is normal to experience hard feelings during childhood, all children handle them differently.

For some children, experiencing big feelings causes them to act out behaviorally, either verbally, physically, or both. For others, they may withdraw and not want to be around others to talk or play. Some kids will attempt to avoid the things that create these emotions, and may refuse to do activities that they previously enjoyed. Still others will cling closer to their parents or caregivers, preferring not to leave their side to do age-appropriate activities. When the big emotions begin to interfere in your child’s daily life, it is time to reach out for help.

Do you ever wish you just knew the “right” way to address your child’s behavior?

While there is no “right” way to parent, as every child and family is different, it can be incredibly frustrating not to know where to begin when it comes to changing your child’s behavior. There is so much conflicting advice these days, and it is so hard to know who and what to trust. It seems like everywhere you turn there is an influencer on social media, a news story, a new book, or another professional, telling you their version of the “right" way to address your child’s needs.

As your child’s parent, you are the expert in observing their needs. You will know better than anyone what the primary struggles are, what most interferes, and what is the hardest for your child to overcome. This knowledge, however, does not on its own afford you the understanding of the best approach for your child and family. Our team specializes in understanding each child and family’s nuances, and marrying recommendations with what matches those needs.

Have you ever wondered if your child might be anxious?

As a parent, it is difficult to figure out how to help your child when you are not sure what the problem is to begin with. Worrying that your child may be anxious, and what this means for their wellbeing, is a stressful thing to think about. Google searches, asking Chat GPT, and talking to other parents can sometimes help - or, alternatively, leave you more confused and worried than before.

Sometimes parents can tell right away if their child is experiencing anxiety. Some kids worry out loud or have specific fears. Other kids may appear reserved or shy, reluctant to try new things, or have big, angry reactions to seemingly everyday requests. Anxiety can also come out physically, especially in children and teens. Sometimes, kids only complain of stomachaches or headaches, but upon deeper inquiry, they are actually experiencing anxiety. Because anxiety looks different in each child, we help you learn what anxiety looks like in your family.

We know it is not easy to take the first step toward change, especially when it’s for your child. The stakes feel so high, and you just want to do what is best for them. We know therapy is not one-size-fits all, and we want to get to know you, your family, and collaborate to create a plan that fits your life - and better yet, actually helps.

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At San Clemente Psychological Services, we are child specialists. We have expertise in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for children and use our knowledge to provide the backdrop to your child’s treatment. As the expert on your child and family, you bring your experience and understanding of your child, so that we can work as a team to create a plan that works.

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What To Expect

Step 1: Reach out to us for a free screening call to determine how we can help your child, and who is the best-fit therapist for your family’s needs.
Step 2: We will then set your child up with a full assessment and intake visit, where we get to know you, learn details about your child and family, understand how these difficulties are impacting your child and family, and more. By the end of this visit, we want to set treatment goals with you, ensure you understand what treatment will look like on an ongoing basis, and ideally give you a starting point to get treatment underway right away.
- This initial appointment is split up to have some parts with everyone together (parent(s) and child with the therapist), and some parts with just your child and the therapist. Depending on the child’s age, our therapists sometimes spend some 1:1 time with the parent without the child in the room.
Step 3 and beyond: We typically start with weekly meetings to lay a good foundation for treatment and begin to see progress. Throughout treatment, we keep parents involved - the younger the child, the higher level of parent involvement. We will continue to collaborate with you, ensure we have action plans that make sense for your child and life, and evaluate progress to be sure we are seeing meaningful change.
Other important details: We work with children as young as 2 years old. Child therapy may include:
- Extensive work with parents - the younger the child, the more time we spend on parenting skills for your specific child. You are with your child all day, every day. Let's set you up for success!
- Working with your child 1:1 in ways that are developmentally appropriate (eg: play for younger children, drawing or games for older children, talking with older teens)
- Observations of your child in various settings, as needed
- Working directly with your child's preschool or school to ensure appropriate environmental supports are in place.
- Working directly with other important people in your child/family's life to ensure consistency in approach to your child's difficulties.

Why work with us?

We have years of experience treating children and their families. We pride ourselves on our inclusion of parents and parenting support to supplement therapy with children. We are specialists in productive, action-oriented therapy, even with young children! We successfully use play as a tool to assess, inform treatment, build rapport, and teach coping skills. We are also extensively trained in CBT for children, and love to watch the changes we see happen when families are engaged and ready for change.

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Anna Arya, PsyD

Dr. Anna works with clients across the lifespan, from preschool to older adults, focusing on ADHD, OCD, and the LGBTQ population. Dr. Anna sees clients both in the office and virtually.

Renata Halwani, LPCC

Renata works with clients across the lifespan, specializing in children, older adults, grief, and anxiety; she also speaks Portuguese. Renata sees clients both in the office and virtually.

Jennifer Keenen, AMFT

Jennifer works with clients of all ages. She specializes in anxiety, depression, and life transitions. Jennifer is available for both in-office and virtual appointments.

Child Therapy FAQs

We work with many kids and teens who fall into these categories, as well as parents who realize they may have had similar characteristics when they were children themselves. Working closely with parents and helping children to understand their own needs and behaviors, we help families create new, effective systems to support every family member's unique needs.

Parents are very involved in our treatment, but the extent depends on the age of the child. The younger the child, the more time we spend on parenting skills for your specific child. You are with your child all day, every day, and we want to you up for success! For older children, tweens, or teens, we move to more of a “check-in” model, where we check in with parents at the beginning and/or end of sessions, so we can get reports of progress and share our action plans and what to work on between appointments. However, this is all dependent on the specific situation for your child and family.

We regularly work with children on their social relationships! From having difficulty with social skills and cues, to trouble making or keeping good friendships, we have experience with it all. We will assess the situation and your child's perspective, set collaborative goals, and get your child on the right track for friendships.

Bullying is a serious problem, and can lead to depression, anxiety, school refusal, and more. If you're concerned about your teen being bullied and his/her response to it, mental health treatment is recommended to address the issue.

We know you dream of a life where your child is happy, and thriving. Where your family is not in chaos. Where you don’t feel defeated, but instead, hopeful. Where things may not be perfect, but they are good. We are here to help you make this dream a reality.

Don’t wait to get started. Book a screening call today or contact us to learn more.

Book Now Contact Us

Child Therapy

Does your child continue to struggle, despite your best efforts?

Do you ever feel helpless when your child is having trouble dealing with their emotions?

Do you ever wish you just knew the “right” way to address your child’s behavior?

Have you ever wondered if your child might be anxious?

What To Expect

Why work with us?

Anna Arya, PsyD

Renata Halwani, LPCC

Jennifer Keenen, AMFT

Child Therapy FAQs

My child is "spirited," a "deep feeler," or "highly sensitive" - what do I do?

How are parents involved in treatment?

Can you help my child with social relationships?

What if my child is getting bullied?

We know you dream of a life where your child is happy, and thriving. Where your family is not in chaos. Where you don’t feel defeated, but instead, hopeful. Where things may not be perfect, but they are good. We are here to help you make this dream a reality.