How to Find a Counselor or Therapist for Your Child
 |
Posted by Mala Matina in Family section |
|
This is an excerpt from What Parents Need to Know About ODD by Dr. James Sutton - Doc's site
If you think your oppositional and defiant child might benefit from counseling, here are some great ideas and suggestions for locating a counselor or therapist. This is an excerpt from Dr. Sutton latest project, an audio/workbook program entitled What Parents Need to Know About ODD. This program, which uses a workbook and two audio CDs, is scheduled to be available in mid fall of 2002.
It’s very possible that you won’t need professional assistance in working with your oppositional and defiant child. But if you do, let me offer a few suggestions for finding a counselor, psychologist, therapist or social worker for your child. Look for someone who:
1. Is credentialed and experienced. Ask.
2. Devotes a good part of their practice to working with children and adolescents or families as a unit.
3. Understands oppositional and defiant behavior thoroughly.
4. Will work with you on school problems, including attending school meetings on occasion.
5. Will connect with your child so well that the youngster begins to see the therapist or counselor as an advocate, not an adversary. (An excellent early indicator her is that the youngster either looks forward to follow-up sessions, or at least attends without complaint.)
A personal referral, someone recommended by a person who knows you and your needs as well as the professional and their track record, is the best way to go. Check with your pediatrician, family physician, school counselor or a friend who’s been there.
If you can’t line up a good referral, don’t necessarily go straight to the Yellow Pages. Oppositional and defiant youngsters can be either incredibly tough on counselors and therapists, or their behavior is so good in the professional’s office that they don’t see the problem (and want to release your kid after the second visit).
Counties with large populations often have a county psychological association (and probably similar associations for counselors, social workers and therapists). They generally operate a referral line. The folks handling the phones or returning the calls can save you a ton of time and frustration by matching a few professionals to your specific needs. It’s nice to have a choice because factors like location and office hours can make a difference.
If you live fairly close to a major university, you might do well to contact the departments of psychology, counseling, social work or special education (or all of them). Not only can these folks often help you find a competent professional pretty quickly, these departments often operate counseling or therapy labs to train students. They’re actually looking for kids, and the cost is nominal or free. University students are supervised and highly motivated to do well; they regularly staff their lab cases with their supervising professors. And students working on their master’s or doctoral degrees are likely to have substantial experience anyway.
|
