As a mother myself and with a career in education, I understand the problems children and teens face and the difficulties they often have in expressing these worries.
Some of the most common reasons parents seek help include issues such as the child being worried about going on a sleepover or a school residential, not wanting to go into school, food issues/fear of sick, sleep problems, bullying, nail biting, hair pulling, difficulty making friends or anger outbursts. Teenagers in particular often come to see me for exam stress, driving tests or friendship issues.
Symptoms of anxiety, stress and low mood are not always easy to explain and can present with physical symptoms too such as tummy aches, headaches, feeling nauseous, repetitive behaviours and sleep problems.
During the sessions I give a detailed explanation of how the brain works to both the child/teen and parent/guardian(s) in an age-appropriate way so that they understand why they have been feeling or behaving in these unhelpful ways.
Every week we will focus on the positive things in the child or teenager’s life to build up their self-confidence and help them regain a greater level of emotional resilience. After a solution focused discussion helping them to identify steps towards their preferred future, we use guided relaxation to help consolidate these small steps and create new positive thinking patterns.
Have a read of this testimonial from a very happy mother:
“Vicky is amazing! She immediately put our 12 year old daughter at ease and built such a lovely rapport with her. The sessions were so helpful with helping my daughter manage her anxiety and to understand her emotions. She came away from every session so calm and positive. Vicky pitched the sessions perfectly and we honestly can’t thank her enough for how much she has helped. She continues to use the techniques Vicky talked to her about. It has also really helped us as parents with how to approach and support our daughter through some stressful times. I thoroughly recommend solution focused hypnotherapy and especially Vicky who is the warmest, most gentle and approachable person. Thank you 😊
EB”