How to Find a Child Psychologist
Making the decision to seek therapy for your child is difficult. Psychological services might be sought for a number of reasons- maybe your child has a learning disability and needs assessment, or there has been a divorce and you are concerned about adjustment to new living situations, or perhaps your child began having nightmares after a car accident and your pediatrician suggested therapy might help. A child psychologist or child therapist may be utilized for a number of reasons- but- how to find one.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
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Consider the reason why you are seeking therapy for your child. Do you want help with parenting strategy? Is the problem primarily related to school or school problems? Did your child experience a traumatic event you are concerned about? When you interview the therapist it will be good if you have an idea if you know what the main issue or "presenting problem" is.
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Assess your financial resources. Are there financial resources to pay for therapy? Private pay therapy with a Licensed Clinical Psychologist can run up to $165.00 per session in many parts of the country. If the psychologist wants to see your child weekly, that can be quite costly. Masters level therapists and social workers in private practice may be somewhat less expensive. Other options include using free low cost/no cost community mental health care, counseling available in many school districts, and utilizing insurance benefits.
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Research options for therapy. Talk to your pediatrician, school, and friends to get the names of good child therapists in your area. Call them and get an idea of their fees and availability of appointments.
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Check with your medical insurance company. Utilizing medical benefits may significantly reduce your costs. However, insurance companies only pay when a disorder is present. If your child does not have an emotional or medical disorder that psychological services can be billed for they will not help you. Also, if you do not want those benefits accessed because of possible ramifications of that later (for example if you know you will be applying for insurance again soon and do not want a pre-existing condition)- you may want to avoid billing insurance.
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Call your child's school and see what services are available through the them. Many schools run social skills groups and anger management groups as well as individual counseling services at no charge. The therapists may only be available during the academic year and they may be students- but there may be services. If your school does not offer these services, they may have resources.
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Utilize community resources- the community center may also have parenting classes, groups and therapy at low cost. "211" is a nationwide social service directory phone number that is available in more than half of the country at the time of this writing. Calling 211 will give you a person who can look up counseling services, low cost medical services, homeless shelters, youth shelters and a number other services. (You should remember that number- if it is not available in your area now, it will be)
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Call a few of the therapists you have found and make appointments for a consultation.
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Ask the therapist how they work with children- do they do play therapy, do they work with parents and children both, will they be giving you an idea of how you can help at home? How do they handle confidentiality? There is no right answer. However, therapy does not exist in a vacuum- and as a parent you are entitled to know what background the therapist comes from, what methods they use what their treatment goals are, and how they are progressing in those goals. You also need to know how best to help your child- and a good therapist will be able to tell you all of the above without revealing every detail of your child's words to you.
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Once you find a therapist you might like to try and have met them, the arrange an appointment with your child. Before dropping a young child off at a therapist's office, you should introduce them and make sure they are comfortable. Remember- the therapist is a stranger, and you have taught your child to not talk to strangers. Many therapists may be content to whisk your child away to the play room without giving you a backwards glance- however, you should take the time to make the introduction and set the stage for the relationship.
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Stay in the therapy office during the therapy session. Don't run to the store or bank during your child's sessions. Therapy can reveal upsetting emotions or your child may need to use the restroom or just want you. If - for some reason- you need to leave briefly- make sure the therapist has a way to reach you immediately if needed.
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Continue to talk regularly or meet with the therapist to make sure that you are helping your child in the best way possible and also to keep on track with the therapy goals. Many children will say that they just play during sessions only to give the parents the idea nothing important occurs - however, children do learn through play without realizing it. Also, children will disclose information during a game or in play that they may not realize. Ask the therapist if you have questions.
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Tips & Warnings
Always educate yourself about what your child is going through- ask the therapist how you can help the situation and get an answer.
Trust your intuition about your child, don't let another person's opinions make you doubt your own. Always voice your questions and concerns.
Not every therapist is a good fit for every child. Listen to your child and your instincts and also what your child's behavior, attitudes, and emotional growth tell you. If they say they hate therapy but their grades are improving, seem happier, and have been more responsible with chores... then that is different than a child who is not improving. Similarly, a child who loves to play at therapy and is making no improvement outside in the world may not be benefiting from treatment.
