Information for those with parental responsibility
in Market Harborough, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire.
I speak from personal experience when I say it’s hard being a parent. In fact, parenting probably throws up more challenges than ever before as so many of us live a fast-paced life with less time to connect face to face.
I realise that taking your child for counselling can be daunting and worrying. You might be concerned about what they will say; that it’s a reflection on your parenting or that you have ‘done something wrong’. While it’s perfectly normal to feel that way, it’s also helpful to see counselling as something positive. A service that offers the external support that your child might need to negotiate the challenges of their individual world.
How counselling can be a positive force for change
Children and young people experience difficulties for a wide range of reasons.
As the people closest to them, parents and carers want to be able to solve a child’s problems. However, that very closeness can sometimes get in the way. In my experience, children and young people often find it easier to confide in people that they don’t have strong emotional ties to. That’s why at Harborough Young People’s Counselling, I offer a safe space for them to explore and share their feelings, as well as helping the young person develop strategies to manage difficulties in their lives.
It can be hard for parents and carers to adjust to the fact that teenagers and adolescents are developmentally wired to pull away from them, increasingly turning towards their peers for comfort and support. That’s a normal physiological part of growing up. It’s not a rejection of your family or your relationship, even though it may feel that way at times.
A word about confidentiality…..
If you are worried about your child, it’s completely natural to be curious about what is said in the therapy room. However, it’s an essential part of the client-counsellor relationship that what happens in the counselling room is kept confidential. The only exception to this is when something is discussed that suggests a person could be at risk, or if the client has given me permission to share information with a parent or person with responsibility.
Insights
Mental Health Awareness Week – why community is key for children and young people
The week of 12th to 18th May marks national Mental Health Awareness Week. The initiative is organised by the Mental Health Foundation and has been running since 2001. This year’s theme is community, which focuses on the importance of creating connections and...
What young people need to know about stress
April marks Stress Awareness Month, a national initiative that has been going for over 30 years. Now run by the Stress Management Society, a non-profit organisation established in 2003, this year’s theme is #LeadWithLove which is based around the ideas of kindness...
Children’s Mental Health Week – emotional regulation
The week of 3rd to 9th February marks the 11th annual Children’s Mental Health week organised by mental health charity Place2Be. The aim of the initiative is to raise awareness of the mental health issues and challenges that young people face, helping children,...
