Individual and family counseling for mental and behavioral health

Every individual is unique, which requires an individualized approach to meet these needs. During the initial assessment, staff will work with you to understand your needs and develop goals and interventions accordingly. It is our priority to understand your unique needs and help address them. If we are not a good fit, we will help you connect with someone who is as soon as possible.

Parent-child interaction training (PCIT) ages 2-8

Parent-child interaction therapy, or PCIT, is a short-term, evidence-based program that focuses on strengthening the relationship between parent and child, as well as increasing the child’s positive behaviors. It should be noted that in this case, “parent” refers to those in caregiver roles (e.g., foster parents, adoptive parents, legal guardians, residential caregiver staff, etc.). For over 20 years, this approach has been researched extensively and has proven to be effective with children who have experienced some sort of abuse and/or trauma, or who are disruptive, easily frustrated, strong-willed, or display fluctuations in mood, as well as with parents who feel overwhelmed, depressed, guilty, or confused about how to manage their child’s behaviors. Typically this treatment works best with children 2-10 years of age.

The PCIT program consists of 14-18 sessions, broken down into two phases: relationship management and child management. The relationship management phase entails coaching parents on how to develop and use consistent, positive, and supportive communication when interacting with their child. Child management focuses on increasing the child’s compliance by using a combination of behavior management skills and effective discipline techniques.

A trained therapist observes the interactions between the parent and child behind a one-way mirror and coaches the parent through an earpiece. By utilizing live coaching, parents are taught commands and skills that enable them to immediately respond to and manage their child’s behavior in the moment, creating a realistic, hands-on experience. Though the program is comprised of 14-18 sessions, caregivers have frequently reported seeing improvements in as little as 3-4 sessions.

What to expect...

Where and how will services be provided?

  • Office setting or secure, encrypted Skype connection

  • Sometimes services will be provided in the home/school setting where the most challenging behaviors occur

What will services look like?

  • Depending on the need:

    • 1-2 sessions per week, typically 40-50 minutes per session

  • Services provided by a licensed professional with experience regarding the needs of the client

  • Types of intervention:

    • Solution-focused

    • Cognitive behavioral therapy

    • Behavior analytic interventions