I'm ready to start therapy for my child, now what?
The first step in starting the therapy process is picking up the phone and calling 218.730.7862 or sending an email to [email protected] to indicate you are ready to start the therapy process. We will have a brief phone call to see what your child's needs are and to get a little bit more information if I would be a good fit for your child. Learn more about me HERE!
If you feel like after our conversation that I would be a good fit for your child's needs I will gather some contact information, payment information, and get you set up with an electronic portal where you can communicate with me about your child and access and sign our intake paperwork. I will also be sending you a questionnaire about your child, some background information and reason for beginning counseling. This should take less than 15 minutes and helps us "hit the ground running" during our first session.
What can I expect from my first session?
The first several session are about understanding what the therapy process will be like and asking you and your child a lot of questions. Some of these questions are asked with parents alone, with young people alone, or with everyone together., so for this reason at least one parent or legal guardian needs to be present at the first session. All of these questions are about different areas of a child’s life, not just what difficulties brings them into the office, to get to help me know all the complexities that make your child, well.. your child!
I will be asking about school, friendships, family relationships, medical history, spirituality and several others areas. This is to help me identify each young person’s unique situation, strengths, and areas of struggle. No two clients are alike and by gaining insight into all the different areas of a young person’s life it can help us develop a path forward that is tailored to your child. We will also identify “treatment plan goals”, which are specific things you and your child would like to see when we know the therapy process is done.
During a typical session for the younger people I see, sessions start with a check in with parents with regards to specific things that happened over the week, engagement in mental health activities outside of the session, and other areas of strength, success, or concern. I want to know both what went well over the week as well as the areas of struggle. If parents have “adults only” information to check in about, part of the check in can be between myself and parents alone.
After the check in the child is in the session alone and we are using therapeutic techniques to help the child work towards their goals. This may look like play therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). For older adolescents and teens depending on the reason for entering therapy and family dynamics regular sessions may look exactly the same as above. However, most adolescents and teens tend to benefit with having the whole session to themselves with periodic parent check ins regarding progress. Older young people are better at identifying progress, areas of struggle, and areas of success without the support of their parent.
Whether your child is younger or older the therapy process is flexible and adapts to fit the need of each family depending on what is happening during their life for any given session. Sometimes the “check in” portion can turn into relational therapy between parent and child. Other times there are not a lot of new things to report so the child has the entire session to themselves. Additionally some sessions may be parent only sessions to help support parents with identifying, navigating, and implementing the most effective parenting techniques for their child.
Is what my child talks about confidential? Will you keep information from parents?
What is discussed in therapy is confidential between the child/family and therapist and is protected by Minnesota law. There are some exceptions to confidentiality including if a young person intends to harm themselves, if a young person threatens to harm someone else, or if a member of a vulnerable population including children (your child or another child under the age of 18), an elderly person, someone who is mentally handicapped is being hurt or prenatal abuse.
As a parent you do have the right to access to information about your child’s therapy. However, if young people know that parents will know every detail about what they disclose in counseling they may not feel safe to go into areas of difficulty for fear of parent reaction. For this reason for older young people that I see I may recommend more confidentiality between the young person and myself than what is shared to parents. However, if your child is being hurt or harmed in any way parents will know immediately.
Sometimes parents wish for me to coordinate with an important person in a child’s life such as a school social worker or medication provider. If this is the case only necessary information will be shared after specific forms are signed stating that parents consent to this with this communication. If this is something you would like for you child we will discuss information to be released in depth during your therapy session.
Lastly, some information about your child’s therapy will be shared with your insurance company if you are using insurance to pay for therapy services.
If you have any questions about the limits of confidentiality or what stays private and what does not please feel free to ask!
If you work with parents too, does that mean you think my child's problems are my fault?
Absolutely not! Parenting children is hard and difficult - which can become pretty complex if your child has big feelings and challenging behaviors that won't budge even when you are using you're best techniques, skills, and tips you read on parenting blogs or from your best friend. Parents need support too. And there are likely some changes that could help you feel better in your relationship with your child and help you feel less stuck! That is what is at the core of parenting work we will do together for your child.
How long are appointments?
Typical sessions last between 45 to 60 minutes. Each individual session can be different and care is made to wrap up the session with enough time to help your child ground enough to re-enter their day. Therapy is hard work, so much care is taken to not begin to work on something sensitive or difficult that can’t be brought to closure before the session time ends.
How often do we meet?
Typically therapy starts out with weekly appointments. Once young people are making progress towards their goals sessions transition to every other week. At this point when symptoms have stabilized at low levels and relief from difficulties is achieved we will have several monthly “maintenance” appointments to ensure that the benefits of therapy are persisting and to support the young person in independently using skills to manage emotions, make helpful choices, and maintain relationships.
How long does therapy last?
I am here to support you and your family for as long as you need. There is no one “right” course of therapy or time frame. For problems that have been present for longer, more sessions may be needed. For young people that have current life stressors such as bullying at school, divorcing parents, moving schools or homes, or difficulty meeting basic needs the therapeutic process may be slower.
For some starting the therapy process can make difficulties worse as they are getting to the root of the issue. For others things get immediately better as the child has a “honeymoon” period, but then returns to the way things were when families first sought counseling. However, for most young people things slowly progress with some weeks making more progress towards goals and other weeks being a bit more difficult. This mimics life’s normal “ups and downs” but when a family looks back at what was happening in their child’s life when they began the counseling process and where they are down the road they are able to see the leaps their child has made towards mental wellness.
What if my child doesn't want to come to therapy?
Starting something new can be really scary! It can usually help to calm big fears for a child to see what their therapist will actually look like and to know a little bit about what they might be doing during the first couple of sessions and reassure them they won't be getting a shot (which believe it or not is the number one worry I get from young children!) You can also let your child know that therapy is a safe and private space, where therapy will go at their pace - and likely could even be fun!
You can also let your child know that mental health difficulties are actually quite common for children and teens and that there is likely someone (or multiple people) they know that also receives therapeutic support. Therapy doesn't mean you're "broken" or there is "something wrong with you" - mental health symptoms are just a sign that there is a chemical imbalance in your body and brain and likely some experiences that your brain is storing in memory that are leading to distressing symptoms.
What should I do between sessions?
What you can start doing right now, today, is to make sure your child has a good sleep routine, appropriate exercise, and eating foods that support mental wellness. These three things will significantly boost your child’s mood and mental health and wellness. Typically between therapy sessions you and your child may be assigned “homework”. This is not typically a work sheet, more of a thinking (how can I see the problem/issue/stressor in a different way or say a different message to myself) or a doing (what do I need to add to my routine or remove to function better) task.
I often ask parents to track how often or long a behavior happens so we can assess progress or I may ask parents to try different strategies or techniques to support their child. Often times the parenting tool box that families have when beginning therapy is great…for some children. Often times the young people I see need a slightly different set of tools. As a parent you are the most important person in a child’s life. Change is hard, and if it is hard to change as an adult with good set of skills and tools, insight, impulse control, and healthy decision making strategies can you imagine how hard it is for children to change? Based on their level of development they need supportive safe adults to create positive structure in their lives to support them in growing and changing to live a life that feels better for them.
How do I pay for therapy?
Most clients choose to use their insurance to cover the cost of therapy. I am an in-network provider for most insurance companies. Learn more about what insurance Create Wellness Center for Child and Family Therapy accepts at our Insurances and Payment section.
Your insurance company can answer questions about if services are fully covered, if there is a co-pay or payment towards a deductible needed, restrictions on number of sessions allowed per year, or if a referral is needed for the service. I encourage clients to call their insurance company directly to be clear about their specific plan’s mental health benefits. Therapy can also be paid for with private pay.
What if I need to cancel?
There is a $75.00 late cancellation fee for appointments cancelled within 24 hours of an appointment for non-emergency reasons. I often hold a late-cancel list so if you can notify me outside of the 24 hour window there is a likelihood that someone else will be able to use that appointment time. The best way to cancel is to call 218.730.7862 or send an email to [email protected].
What type of mental health difficulties do you work with?
Our Cloquet, Minnesota practice offers therapy services exclusively for children and teens who are struggling with big emotions and difficult life events. Create Wellness offers mental health counseling for children and teens with anxiety, difficulties with anger, depression, and trauma.
We offer other specific types of specialty therapy including Play Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Learn more about starting therapy HERE.
The first step in starting the therapy process is picking up the phone and calling 218.730.7862 or sending an email to [email protected] to indicate you are ready to start the therapy process. We will have a brief phone call to see what your child's needs are and to get a little bit more information if I would be a good fit for your child. Learn more about me HERE!
If you feel like after our conversation that I would be a good fit for your child's needs I will gather some contact information, payment information, and get you set up with an electronic portal where you can communicate with me about your child and access and sign our intake paperwork. I will also be sending you a questionnaire about your child, some background information and reason for beginning counseling. This should take less than 15 minutes and helps us "hit the ground running" during our first session.
What can I expect from my first session?
The first several session are about understanding what the therapy process will be like and asking you and your child a lot of questions. Some of these questions are asked with parents alone, with young people alone, or with everyone together., so for this reason at least one parent or legal guardian needs to be present at the first session. All of these questions are about different areas of a child’s life, not just what difficulties brings them into the office, to get to help me know all the complexities that make your child, well.. your child!
I will be asking about school, friendships, family relationships, medical history, spirituality and several others areas. This is to help me identify each young person’s unique situation, strengths, and areas of struggle. No two clients are alike and by gaining insight into all the different areas of a young person’s life it can help us develop a path forward that is tailored to your child. We will also identify “treatment plan goals”, which are specific things you and your child would like to see when we know the therapy process is done.
During a typical session for the younger people I see, sessions start with a check in with parents with regards to specific things that happened over the week, engagement in mental health activities outside of the session, and other areas of strength, success, or concern. I want to know both what went well over the week as well as the areas of struggle. If parents have “adults only” information to check in about, part of the check in can be between myself and parents alone.
After the check in the child is in the session alone and we are using therapeutic techniques to help the child work towards their goals. This may look like play therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). For older adolescents and teens depending on the reason for entering therapy and family dynamics regular sessions may look exactly the same as above. However, most adolescents and teens tend to benefit with having the whole session to themselves with periodic parent check ins regarding progress. Older young people are better at identifying progress, areas of struggle, and areas of success without the support of their parent.
Whether your child is younger or older the therapy process is flexible and adapts to fit the need of each family depending on what is happening during their life for any given session. Sometimes the “check in” portion can turn into relational therapy between parent and child. Other times there are not a lot of new things to report so the child has the entire session to themselves. Additionally some sessions may be parent only sessions to help support parents with identifying, navigating, and implementing the most effective parenting techniques for their child.
Is what my child talks about confidential? Will you keep information from parents?
What is discussed in therapy is confidential between the child/family and therapist and is protected by Minnesota law. There are some exceptions to confidentiality including if a young person intends to harm themselves, if a young person threatens to harm someone else, or if a member of a vulnerable population including children (your child or another child under the age of 18), an elderly person, someone who is mentally handicapped is being hurt or prenatal abuse.
As a parent you do have the right to access to information about your child’s therapy. However, if young people know that parents will know every detail about what they disclose in counseling they may not feel safe to go into areas of difficulty for fear of parent reaction. For this reason for older young people that I see I may recommend more confidentiality between the young person and myself than what is shared to parents. However, if your child is being hurt or harmed in any way parents will know immediately.
Sometimes parents wish for me to coordinate with an important person in a child’s life such as a school social worker or medication provider. If this is the case only necessary information will be shared after specific forms are signed stating that parents consent to this with this communication. If this is something you would like for you child we will discuss information to be released in depth during your therapy session.
Lastly, some information about your child’s therapy will be shared with your insurance company if you are using insurance to pay for therapy services.
If you have any questions about the limits of confidentiality or what stays private and what does not please feel free to ask!
If you work with parents too, does that mean you think my child's problems are my fault?
Absolutely not! Parenting children is hard and difficult - which can become pretty complex if your child has big feelings and challenging behaviors that won't budge even when you are using you're best techniques, skills, and tips you read on parenting blogs or from your best friend. Parents need support too. And there are likely some changes that could help you feel better in your relationship with your child and help you feel less stuck! That is what is at the core of parenting work we will do together for your child.
How long are appointments?
Typical sessions last between 45 to 60 minutes. Each individual session can be different and care is made to wrap up the session with enough time to help your child ground enough to re-enter their day. Therapy is hard work, so much care is taken to not begin to work on something sensitive or difficult that can’t be brought to closure before the session time ends.
How often do we meet?
Typically therapy starts out with weekly appointments. Once young people are making progress towards their goals sessions transition to every other week. At this point when symptoms have stabilized at low levels and relief from difficulties is achieved we will have several monthly “maintenance” appointments to ensure that the benefits of therapy are persisting and to support the young person in independently using skills to manage emotions, make helpful choices, and maintain relationships.
How long does therapy last?
I am here to support you and your family for as long as you need. There is no one “right” course of therapy or time frame. For problems that have been present for longer, more sessions may be needed. For young people that have current life stressors such as bullying at school, divorcing parents, moving schools or homes, or difficulty meeting basic needs the therapeutic process may be slower.
For some starting the therapy process can make difficulties worse as they are getting to the root of the issue. For others things get immediately better as the child has a “honeymoon” period, but then returns to the way things were when families first sought counseling. However, for most young people things slowly progress with some weeks making more progress towards goals and other weeks being a bit more difficult. This mimics life’s normal “ups and downs” but when a family looks back at what was happening in their child’s life when they began the counseling process and where they are down the road they are able to see the leaps their child has made towards mental wellness.
What if my child doesn't want to come to therapy?
Starting something new can be really scary! It can usually help to calm big fears for a child to see what their therapist will actually look like and to know a little bit about what they might be doing during the first couple of sessions and reassure them they won't be getting a shot (which believe it or not is the number one worry I get from young children!) You can also let your child know that therapy is a safe and private space, where therapy will go at their pace - and likely could even be fun!
You can also let your child know that mental health difficulties are actually quite common for children and teens and that there is likely someone (or multiple people) they know that also receives therapeutic support. Therapy doesn't mean you're "broken" or there is "something wrong with you" - mental health symptoms are just a sign that there is a chemical imbalance in your body and brain and likely some experiences that your brain is storing in memory that are leading to distressing symptoms.
What should I do between sessions?
What you can start doing right now, today, is to make sure your child has a good sleep routine, appropriate exercise, and eating foods that support mental wellness. These three things will significantly boost your child’s mood and mental health and wellness. Typically between therapy sessions you and your child may be assigned “homework”. This is not typically a work sheet, more of a thinking (how can I see the problem/issue/stressor in a different way or say a different message to myself) or a doing (what do I need to add to my routine or remove to function better) task.
I often ask parents to track how often or long a behavior happens so we can assess progress or I may ask parents to try different strategies or techniques to support their child. Often times the parenting tool box that families have when beginning therapy is great…for some children. Often times the young people I see need a slightly different set of tools. As a parent you are the most important person in a child’s life. Change is hard, and if it is hard to change as an adult with good set of skills and tools, insight, impulse control, and healthy decision making strategies can you imagine how hard it is for children to change? Based on their level of development they need supportive safe adults to create positive structure in their lives to support them in growing and changing to live a life that feels better for them.
How do I pay for therapy?
Most clients choose to use their insurance to cover the cost of therapy. I am an in-network provider for most insurance companies. Learn more about what insurance Create Wellness Center for Child and Family Therapy accepts at our Insurances and Payment section.
Your insurance company can answer questions about if services are fully covered, if there is a co-pay or payment towards a deductible needed, restrictions on number of sessions allowed per year, or if a referral is needed for the service. I encourage clients to call their insurance company directly to be clear about their specific plan’s mental health benefits. Therapy can also be paid for with private pay.
What if I need to cancel?
There is a $75.00 late cancellation fee for appointments cancelled within 24 hours of an appointment for non-emergency reasons. I often hold a late-cancel list so if you can notify me outside of the 24 hour window there is a likelihood that someone else will be able to use that appointment time. The best way to cancel is to call 218.730.7862 or send an email to [email protected].
What type of mental health difficulties do you work with?
Our Cloquet, Minnesota practice offers therapy services exclusively for children and teens who are struggling with big emotions and difficult life events. Create Wellness offers mental health counseling for children and teens with anxiety, difficulties with anger, depression, and trauma.
We offer other specific types of specialty therapy including Play Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Learn more about starting therapy HERE.
