Through my experience it is really important to have a strong relationship working with both you, the parent/carer, and your child, together, at this age. So your child feels the most benefit but also so you, as the parent/carer are able to get guidance and support too, with supporting the needs of your child.

Therefore, there may be some sessions separately with each parent/carer, both parents/carers or the sole session for your child. There will also be sessions where your child and you may need to be present, together, so that I can work dyadically to best help work with your family as a whole.

I tend to work quite heavily with the arts (7 different mediums) for this age group as it allows your child to express themselves in a less threatening capacity but also as they may not have the cognitive ability to formulate the words or emotions needed, yet. This is especially apparent up to the age of 8 so the arts are a beautiful way to enter their inner world for better understanding of what needs may be present and showing up in the room.

From 8-12 the focus will be less on working dyadically (with heavy input from you, the family) but there will still need to be regular contact which looks more like the ratio of 5 child sessions to 1 Parent/Carer session.

Please note: Due to the nature of this work, I feel it really helps to have stability and preparation for everyone as a unit. So we work in 6 week blocks, assessing at the end of each block what is needed to continue the growth of the child and therapeutic journey, hopefully ending in alignment and harmony for the whole family. This is especially true if there are any bereavements or trauma present which means there needs to be a lot of consistency and containment from both me as a therapist but also from you, the parent/carer.