Child & Adolescent
Art Therapy
Art therapy is a modality used as a means of exploring inner issues. Because it is nonverbal, it is a safe way to express feelings that can sometimes be intense or destructive. Art therapy does not require artistic ability by the client but is used to gain insight and understanding about oneself. It is often used with children and young adults during therapy sessions.
Attachment/Bonding
Attachment Therapy
This therapy focuses on improving the attachment between the child and parents, working towards resolving the child’s fear of being close to others. Because the child often does not trust others, therapy includes parent and child so that the relationship development happens between them. The therapist provides the structure and guidelines, creating a safe space to allow the child to have the courage to attach to his/her caregivers. Educational components and parenting techniques are all part of the therapy process, including guidance into bonding activities and setting consistent limits.
Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP)
CPP is a trauma-focused intervention for children (0-5) and their parents used when children have experienced a traumatic event and, as a result, are presenting with some difficulties. This may include maltreatment, the sudden and/or traumatic death of someone close, a serious accident, sexual abuse or exposure to domestic violence. The child is seen with the parents or caregivers and they are treated as a dyad in therapy intervention.
Attachment & Bonding Assessments
An attachment and bonding assessment is a specialized assessment that evaluates the quality and nature of a child’s bond and attachment with his/her caregivers or parents. This addresses who in the child’s life offers the greatest centrality in a child’s emotional life, identifying strengths in relationships, emphasizing areas of need.
Support Group for Caregivers of RAD children
This support group is facilitated by a trained foster parent who has experience with reactive attachment parenting. The support group is offered as an opportunity for parents who are experiencing a high level of stress to find support and understanding in order to help their child and maintain as a family. This is not a therapeutic group. The group meets at Wholeness Healing Center the first Wednesday of the month from 7:00-8:30. No child care is available.
Behavioral Modification
Behavioral Modification therapy focuses on changing behaviors through reinforcement and reward of positive behaviors and desensitization. Desensitization involves confronting something that causes extreme anxiety, discomfort or fear and overcoming the unwanted responses.
Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP)
CPP is a trauma-focused intervention for children (0-5) and their parents used when children have experienced a traumatic event and, as a result, are presenting with some difficulties. This may include maltreatment, the sudden and/or traumatic death of someone close, a serious accident, sexual abuse or exposure to domestic violence. The child is seen with the parents or caregivers and they are treated as a dyad in therapy intervention.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
DBT is a comprehensive cognitive behavioral treatment that emphasizes the psychosocial aspects of treatment. This treatment focuses on problem solving and acceptance-based strategies within a framework of dialectical methods. DBT works within four modalities of skill development – distress tolerance, mindfulness, emotional regulation and interpersonal effectiveness.
Although originally developed to help with those diagnosed with Borderline Personality disorder, DBT is applicable and effective for people living with a range of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, addictions, bi-polar and post-traumatic stress disorder. Practicing mindfulness alone helps people with or without mental health conditions. It helps to improve well-being, attention to the present moment, and increase positive emotional experiences while decreasing negative emotions and distress.
Hypnotherapy/Hypnosis
Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy is the process of psychotherapy with a client who is in the hypnotic altered state of consciousness. (Wellness Institute) The Hypnotherapy process can help clients “access and release previously blocked emotions and work on the age-regressions. Once that happens, clients have the opportunity to reframe some of the previous words that have become imprinted in a person’s mind, keeping him/her locked into similar unhealthy behavioral patterns, becoming their “lifescript”. Emotions that have been stored for years can be released and then clients can be open to healing, as participants learn to trust their intuition. This can also be used for past-life work or dream sessions.
Hypnosis
Hypnosis/hypnotherapy has a 93% recovery rate after six sessions, making it one of the fastest and most efficient ways to address many issues. Hypnosis/hypnotherapy is the treatment intervention comprised of inducing a participant into a relaxed, suggestible state and then offering post-hypnotic suggestions for the relief of symptoms.
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
MBSR is a program used to learn how to calm your mind, and learn to manage your stress, pain and/or illness. Through the process, you learn how to be mindful in your moment, staying fully present and being fully aware (not zoned out and relaxed) but “paying attention on purpose” while cultivating an attitude of non-judgmentness. The focus is on learning how to be mindful while becoming aware of thoughts, feelings, your body, habitual patterns and learning how to become more responsive rather than reactive in your life. Initially, Jon Kabat Zinn developed this program for people with chronic pain. It is now taught worldwide for all populations wanting to manage their life in a more effective, calm way. The central focus of the program is intensive training in the mindfulness practice and its integration into everyday life. Both teachers have been trained in MBSR through the Center for Mindfulness in UMASS and are working towards their certification which takes years to complete.
See our programs for the Mindful Approach to Living
Teens and children
In this 9-week course participants will learn a specific way of paying attention to the breath, body, thoughts, feelings and the world around them. Through this practice, participants will learn that they can choose what they want to say and how to act (responding versus reacting). They can learn how to focus their attention, improve their schoolwork and test taking, improve athletic performances, increase creativity, and better their relationships.
Children's Group
This is a nine-week, one-hour, group. The first session includes the parents and children for an orientation. See our program for the next starting date.
Adolescent Group
This is a nine-week, one-hour, group. The first session includes the parents and children for an orientation. See our program for the next starting date.
Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback is a technique in which we train the brain to help improve its ability to regulate all bodily functions and to take care of itself. When the brain is not functioning well, evidence of this often shows up in the EEG (Electroencephalogram). By challenging the brain, much as you challenge your body in physical exercise, we can help your brain learn to function better.
Alpha Theta
Alpha Theta training uses brain training (neurofeedback) to teach the brain to move into a calm state allowing your brain to move into a very relaxed state, the same state that occurs when you meditate. These brainwaves are tied to a relaxed state and creativeness. In that state, one is able to learn to be responsive versus reactive to stimuli in the environment.
Beta Reset
Beta Reset is a technique of using neurofeedback training (brain training) to help regulate a dysregulated brain. It is useful for people that have chronic pain, PTSD, and refractory migraines. It is helpful in the neural and physiological correction of cognitive, affective and physiological pathologies. It can be especially effect in treatment chronic and neurodegenerative conditions.
Peak Performance
Reach your peak performance. Neurofeedback provides tools to train and improve your brain’s neurology just as you train your muscles when you exercise. Performing at your peak often comes with high demands. These high demands often trigger us into “fight or flight” responses which decreased our ability to succeed. Training the brain to create new pathways and connections optimizes your approach to living and succeeding.
Play Therapy
Play therapy is utilized with children to help them express thoughts, feelings and problems in a way that may be difficult to express verbally. It allows a means to work towards resolving issues. Play therapy may involve numerous activities such as playing with therapeutic toys, board games, puppets, and or clay manipulation among other things.
Stress Management
Stress management focuses on using the wide range of modalities and psychotherapies aimed at guiding a person to manage their stress, especially chronic stress. These modalities may include Dialectical Behavior therapy, mindfulness, hypnosis, neurofeedback, heart math among other modalities.
Trauma
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR therapy is a powerful therapy modality that removes the strong feelings and negative beliefs that develop as a result of a painful event. It is used for trauma work and has been found to work in just a few sessions to decrease the trauma symptoms, significantly allowing the person to overcome his suffering due to trauma. This therapeutic method was initially designed to resolve the distress caused by trauma. It has since been proven successful for a wide array of other disorders. It is also used for improving performance in many life areas and to increase positive self-thoughts while decreasing the negative thoughts increasing feelings of competence, self-worth and well-being. Eye movement, tapping, and/or sounds are used to create a bilateral stimulation.
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)
TF-CBT is an evidenced-based treatment model that is designed to assist children, adolescents and their families in overcoming the negative effect of a traumatic experience. This treatment is effective after multiple traumas or for a single traumatic event. Therapists are frequently able to help children experiencing the emotional effects of trauma and address and resolve these effects.