Child Play Therapy
It isn’t possible to counsel children in the same way that we counsel adults or older adolescents for a variety of reasons. Children haven’t always attained the maturity or communication skills to discuss their feelings, thoughts or problems verbally. Play is a meaningful and significant way for kids to express fears, confusing thoughts and/or distressing feelings. In a play therapy room, children use toys and play materials to “say” what they may be unable to say with words. Our professionally trained child therapists at TPS work with their young clients in a designated Play Therapy room.
Play Therapy is beneficial to a child who is experiencing difficulties in the home, school or community. It is a legitimate and well-documented means of treating young children who are struggling with emotional issues.
Counselling for Adolescents
At Toronto Psychological Services, we understand how difficult it can be for an adolescent to admit they have a problem because it means acknowledging..... not avoiding... the fact that something is keeping them from becoming the person they know they can become. Our trained therapists offer sensitive, confidential counselling to teens.
Approach to child and younger teen treatment
The 6-session assessment period: It is essential that a therapist gain a thorough understanding of the concerns of the parents 
and the difficulties that the child may be having. For this reason, children and younger teens aged 2-16 years always begin treatment at Toronto Psychological Services with a 6-session assessment period.
The assessment period involving treatment is not a diagnostic assessment which includes standardized testing and written report. Go to Psychological Assessments on our website to learn more about formal assessment for autism, education, development, behaviour, social and emotional issues.
How does it work: If a child is 2-12 years of age, parents attend an intake session and final feedback session without their child. Teens, aged 13-16 years attend the intake and feedback session with their parents.
Approach to older teen treatment
Older adolescents 17+ attend all sessions with or without their parents, depending upon teen/parent needs and expectations. Sessions may be booked on a per-session basis.
Issues that children or adolescents may experience:
- Agression ~ Anger
- Anxiety ~ OCD ~ Panic
- Assertiveness
- Attachment
- Attention ~ ADHD
- Autism ~ Aspergers.
- Behaviour ~ Conduct
- Blended family
- Body image
- Depression
- Development differences
- Divorce ~ parental separation
- Eating Disorders
- Emotional
- Grief ~ Loss
- Learning Disability
- Recovery from Abuse
- Selective Mutism
- Self-Esteem
- Shyness
- Sibling rivalry
- Social difficulties
- Trauma