About Child, Adolescent & Young Adult Psychotherapy
The Aim of Psychotherapy
To help children and young people develop a deeper understanding of themselves and their relationships
To strengthen their ability to manage difficult emotions, communicate their needs, cope with change, form meaningful relationships and participate more fully in family, education, work and wider life
What Is Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy?
Psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapy helps children and young people explore and understand their emotional experiences.
It considers not only the difficulties that can be seen on the surface, but also the feelings, relationships, experiences and internal conflicts that may lie beneath them.
Some thoughts and feelings may be easy to recognise and discuss. Others may be less conscious and may instead be communicated through behaviour, play, relationships, physical symptoms or repeated emotional patterns.
The purpose of therapy is not to impose an explanation on a child or young person. It is to develop an understanding together, at a pace that feels manageable.
The Therapeutic Relationship: The relationship between the therapist and the child or young person is an important part of the work.
Within a reliable and confidential therapeutic relationship, young people can begin to communicate feelings that may previously have felt too confusing, frightening or difficult to express.
Patterns that occur in relationships outside therapy may also gradually become visible within the therapeutic relationship. Thinking about these experiences together can help a young person understand themselves and develop different ways of relating to others.
How Children and Young People Use Therapy:
Infants and Young Children
Babies and young children often communicate through their behaviour, play and relationships with the adults around them.
Therapeutic work at this age will usually involve parents or carers and may include observing and thinking about the relationship between the child and the important adults in their life.
School-Aged Children
Children may use play, drawing, stories and imaginative activity to express feelings and experiences they cannot yet communicate directly in words.
Children do not need to be able to explain exactly what is wrong before therapy can begin.
Adolescents and Young Adults
Adolescents and young adults are invited to speak freely about whatever feels important to them.
This may include relationships, education, university, employment, identity, independence, sexuality, physical health, self-esteem or uncertainty about the future.
What Can Psychotherapy Help With?
Psychotherapy may be helpful for children, adolescents and young adults experiencing a wide range of difficulties.
Developmental and Communication Difficulties
Developmental concerns, communication difficulties and emotional challenges associated with neurodivergence, including autism and ADHD.
Psychotherapy does not aim to change a child’s neurodivergence. It can offer space to understand their emotional experiences, relationships and developing sense of identity, while thinking about what helps them feel understood, supported and able to thrive.
Trauma, Neglect and Abuse
The emotional and relational effects of trauma, neglect, abuse or other frightening and overwhelming experiences.
Bereavement and Family Change
The lasting impact of bereavement, parental separation, family breakdown, adoption, fostering or changes in caregiving arrangements.
Chronic Illness, Disability and Medical Treatment
The emotional impact of chronic illness, disability, hospital admissions, medical procedures or uncertainty about physical health.
Eating and Body-Related Difficulties
Difficulties connected to eating, food, body image, weight, physical development or the relationship between emotional and physical wellbeing.
Identity and Life Transitions
Difficulties relating to identity, sexuality, body image, independence, education, university, employment and the transition into adulthood.
A child or young person does not need to have a diagnosis or clearly defined problem to benefit from psychotherapy. It may also be helpful when they seem unhappy, anxious, withdrawn or unlike themselves and the reasons are not yet fully understood.
Anxiety, Fears and Worries
Persistent anxiety, panic, irrational fears, excessive worry, separation anxiety or feeling overwhelmed.
In younger children, anxiety may also be expressed through bed-wetting, soiling, sleep difficulties, refusal to eat or drink, clinginess or reluctance to attend school.
Low Mood and Withdrawal
Persistent unhappiness, loss of motivation, low self-esteem, hopelessness, emptiness or becoming increasingly withdrawn, sometimes without an obvious explanation.
Aggression and Emotional Regulation
Angry outbursts, aggression, impulsivity, intense emotional reactions or behaviour that feels difficult to understand or manage.
Obsessive and Compulsive Difficulties
Obsessive thoughts, repetitive behaviours, rituals or compulsions that cause distress or interfere with everyday life.
Relationships and Social Interaction
Difficulties with friendships, family relationships, social situations or romantic relationships.
This may include repeated experiences of conflict, rejection, isolation or difficulty trusting and relating to others.
Risk-Taking, Self-Harm and Suicidal Thoughts
Self-harming behaviour, suicidal thoughts, risk-taking or other concerning ways of managing overwhelming feelings.
Where there are immediate concerns about safety, additional support from a GP, CAMHS, emergency services or another appropriate professional may also be required.