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Children's Therapy

Developmentally Attuned Counseling for Children

Far from just being “little adults,” children possess a developmentally unique way of understanding their world and their place in it. When they are struggling with anxiety, depression, or other mental health issues, it is important that therapy adapt to their developmental level and “speak their language” – the language of play – to be most effective.

When we play with someone, our defenses go down and our openness to relationship and new learning increases. To be able to play with someone is an indication of feelings of safety. That openness and safety creates an environment in which the work of therapy can occur and healing in a child’s life can take place. Through play, a child may be able to show what he or she cannot otherwise describe, and when an attuned therapist or parent communicates, “I see what you are trying to say and you matter deeply,” a window opens to learning to relate to self, others, and the larger world in healthier ways.

Arbor Cove Therapy, LLC provides counseling to children ages three and up that has relationship, as well as play and other forms of connection and creative expression at its heart. Our clinicians are trained and highly skilled in a number of modalities effective with children and excel in selecting the approach that best meets your child's stage of development, needs, and abilities.

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Some of the issues we treat include:​​

  • Adoption

  • Aggression / oppositional defiance

  • Anxiety disorders / phobias

  • Attachment problems

  • Depression / mood disorders

  • Difficulty adjusting to change or transition 

  • Fear

  • Behavior problems

  • Grief / loss

  • Problems with concentration, focus, and attention

  • Social problems

  • Trauma (e.g. from abuse, neglect, bullying, separation from caregivers, medical procedures, traumatic accidents)

  • Withdrawal / isolation

Parents Play a Vital Role in Children's Therapy

You are an integral part of your child’s time at Arbor Cove Therapy, LLC. Ideally, we want you in therapy sessions together! Together, we become a team focused on helping your child build or strengthen relationships; resolve conflict; express feelings in healthy ways; reduce anxiety; learn about the brain, body, and emotions; feel safer and more confident in themselves and in the world; and practice regulation skills.

 Sometimes, a prerequisite to this work is helping parents build their comfort level with play and emotion and explore the dynamics of their feelings of connection to their child. Family therapy sessions may also be helpful in addressing your child's difficulties within the larger dynamic of the family. In situations where a parent can't be in session with their child, perhaps due to childcare needs, we schedule parent sessions on a regular basis in the office or online to discuss progress and suggestions for how to support your child at home. Ideally, therapy with children is a true team effort consisting of child, parent, and therapist jointly working together. 

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We invite you to watch the videos below to learn more about the value of therapeutic play and some of the ways we work with children and families. We love what we do! 

Contact Arbor Cove Therapy, LLC, to learn more or schedule an appointment. We serve the needs of Roswell, Alpharetta, Marietta, Cumming, Johns Creek, Sandy Springs, Canton, Woodstock, and the surrounding North Metro Atlanta area for counseling / psychotherapy, psychological testing, and telemental health services. More broadly, telemental health services are available to legal residents of Georgia (Kathryn Smith, LCSW, RPT; Lee Anne Dickerson, PsyD; Susan P. Richardson, MS, LPC, NCC), Virginia (Dr. Lee Anne Dickerson), and Florida (Kathryn Smith, LCSW, RPT).