Family Therapist in Philadelphia, PA

If You’re Looking For a Family Therapist In Philadelphia, You’re In the Right Place.

You’re probably here because you have concerns about your child and don’t know what to do to help them. You’re looking for a family therapist in Philadelphia to step in and help.

The stress and worry about your child’s well-being can become all-consuming — you worry about how they are now, and how they will be in the future.

I understand the feelings of concern and helplessness as parents see their child struggle.

What’s It Like to Work With Me as a Family Therapist in Philadelphia?

Many forms of therapy with a family therapist involve the client doing much of the talking and the therapist quietly listening and reflecting on what was said.  A lot of child therapy involves play and does not include the parents.  Parents don’t see the changes they were hoping for, and this leaves them feeling helpless and frustrated. They want to have an active role in helping their child.

As a family therapist in Philadelphia, I know how important it is to see improvements in your child’s functioning so that you can feel confident that you are on the right path together.  I also know that parents are the most powerful agents of change for children. Our work will primarily focus on what parents can do at home to support the healthy changes they are looking for in their child. 

Our first session will be with both parenting partners* in which you will tell me your concerns and any relevant background.  I will ask additional questions.  By the end of the session, I will give you a brief idea of my understanding of what your child needs along with a plan to achieve that. 

*I am happy to work with single parents, amicably divorced parents, and other parenting situations. I can be flexible, depending on the family configuration.

Our second session will include all parenting partners and all children living in the home.  After briefly reviewing the ‘rules of the (virtual) room’ with the kids, I will interview them from oldest to youngest. I will ask them each a similar set of questions, adjusted for their age.  These interviews are for me to begin to connect with your children and for them to connect with me. I will also be informally assessing them.

From there, we will start right in with addressing parents’ concerns and making changes in the home.  During sessions, we will problem-solve together, and I will give parents new strategies to try.  Sessions will be scheduled to give parents adequate time to practice the new strategies and to begin to develop new habits, usually every two weeks.

Subsequent sessions will check in with how the homework went and troubleshoot issues that came up.  Then we will move on to other areas that need to be addressed.

Strategies will take into account not only the child who brought the family to therapy but also the other children in the household.  Often, strategies will solve issues for more than one child and will apply to all of the children. 

Parents can choose whether they want their children to attend sessions or not.  Often, during our virtual sessions, kids can be playing in the same room.  This way they can overhear our conversation, will have a heads up on what changes will occur in their home, and can participate in portions of the conversation involving them.  However, they will not be asked to sit quietly in front of the screen the entire time, as this is not within most children’s capabilities.

Some parents choose to schedule sessions when the children are not there so parents can focus more fully on their work. 

You can expect me to be genuine, inquisitive, and straightforward.  I am happy to answer parents’ questions on a wide range of child development topics.

Our work together will equip you with the tools and confidence to help your child thrive.

To start working with a family therapist in Philadelphia, contact me today.