Parent-Child
Interaction Therapy
Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an evidence based treatment for children ages 2-7 and their caregivers focused on decreasing externalized behaviors (tantrums, defiance, aggression, refusing to listen and follow directions), increasing social skills and compliance while improving the parent-child relationship. Children who participate in PCIT develop higher self-esteem, communication skills and cooperation, and caregivers learn consistent parenting techniques to gain confidence in dealing with behavioral struggles.
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PCIT is conducted through "coaching" sessions during which the caregiver and child are in a playroom while the therapist is in an observation room watching interactions through a one-way mirror. The caregiver wears a "bug-in-the-ear" device through which the therapist provides in-the-moment coaching on skills the caregiver is learning to manage the child's behavior. Treatment protocol recommends weekly therapy sessions to ensure caregiver mastery of skills, improvement of child’s behavior and relationship enhancement.
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We are also trained to provide PCIT adapted for older children ages 7-10 (PCIT-OC), which aims to keep as much standard PCIT in place as possible, with some developmentally appropriate adjustments.
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For more information on PCIT please check-out the PCIT International website at www.pcit.org
Internet-Delivered Parent-Child
Interaction Therapy
I-PCIT is an internet-based adaptation of PCIT, allowing us to teach parents skills for managing problem behaviors and increasing parenting confidence in the comfort of the home environment. A recent study found that families that used I-PCIT not only saw tremendous benefit, but had higher rates of excellent responses to treatment compared to regular PCIT. I-PCIT is available when access to regular services are limited, for example due to the current COVID-19 stay-at-home restrictions. I-PCIT can also be an option for families seeking services who live far away.
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For more information on PCIT please check-out the PCIT International website at www.pcit.org
PCIT for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM)
PCIT-SM is an adaptation of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) developed by Dr. Steven Kurtz. PCIT-SM is an evidence based intervention that combines PCIT and a behavioral intervention for children with selective mutism. PCIT-SM teaches parents skills to maximize opportunities for child verbalization while eliminating parent behaviors that support avoidance of verbalizations. PCIT-SM includes learning Children Direct Interaction (CDI) skills taught in PCIT and then progresses to Verbal Directed Interaction (VDI) skills. VDI are direct skills that teach parents the use of guided questioning and positive reinforcement to increase likelihood of verbalizations. VDI utilizes gradual in-vivo exposures to generalize the child’s verbalizations in different environments and with different individuals. VDI in-vivo exposures start with experiences the child has had success in and then progress through a hierarchy of experiences.
For more information on PCIT please check-out PCIT International at www.pcit.org
PCIT for Anxiety
PCIT has been successfully adapted and shown to be an effective treatment for anxiety disorders in young children. PCIT for anxiety provides parents with specific tools to counteract the cycle of negative reinforcement patterns that serve to strengthen avoidance in their child with anxiety. Parents learn how to coach their child to “face their fears” through a hierarchy of exposure tasks that begin with easy and progress gradually to more difficult or feared tasks. This treatment is designed for children ages 2-7 with: social anxiety, specific phobia, excessive worry, separation anxiety and general anxiety.
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For more information on PCIT please check-out the PCIT International at www.pcit.org
Trauma-Focused Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy
TF-CBT is recognized as one of the most effective interventions for children who are experiencing emotional, cognitive and psychological symptoms related to one or more traumatic life events (including complex trauma.) TF-CBT is a short term treatment model (8-25 weeks) proven to be effective in improving post traumatic stress symptoms, depression, anxiety, externalizing behaviors, sexualized behaviors, and feelings of shame, guilt and mistrust.
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TF-CBT recognizes the importance of parents/caregivers in the child’s healing process. This treatment strives to give parents the resources and skills necessary to cope with the psychological ramifications of trauma. Parents participate in sessions individually as well as jointly with their child. Parents can process their personal distress regarding the child’s traumatic experiences, learn effective parenting skills to manage problematic behaviors and skills to promote positive and supportive interactions.
For more information on TF-CBT check out www.tfcbt.org
Eye Movement Desensitization
and Reprocessing Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an extensively researched, effective short-term psychotherapy method proven to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and panic disorders. EMDR therapy focuses on changing the emotions, thoughts, or behaviors resulting from the distressing issue and allows the brain to resume its natural healing process.
Eye movements, similar to those during REM sleep, will be recreated by asking you to watch the therapist's finger moving backwards and forwards across your visual field. Sometimes, a bar of moving lights, handheld buzzies, or headphones are used instead. With repeated sets of eye movements, the memory tends to change in such a way that it loses its painful intensity and becomes a neutral memory of an event in the past. Other associated memories may also heal at the same time. This linking of related memories can lead to a dramatic and rapid improvement in many aspects of your life.
For more information about EMDR, please visit EMDR International at www.emdria.org.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the gold standard therapy model for treating children with anxiety and depression. It is a short-term, goal-oriented treatment that takes a hands-on, practical approach to problem-solving to help children overcome a wide array of maladaptive behaviors. CBT teaches children that their thoughts, feelings and behaviors are all interconnected, so changing one of these can help children replace negative thought patterns with more productive ones and practice alternative ways of handling stressful situations.