Children and Therapy

Oftentimes parents are not willing to bring their young children to therapy because of fear that their teenager will expose them to issues that they are not comfortable with them witnessing as such an innocent age. Although this intention is noteworthy, disalllowing children from the process can often prevent a therapist from having a real sense of what the family looks and feels like and thus prevents him from getting an accurate sense of how the energy of the family plays out on a daily basis. In addition, young children may also have the ability to on some level create a level of temperance in teens to avoid the temptation of exploding for fear of upsetting the children. This physical reminder to maintain control may be the tangible element needed to allow for problem-solving that might otherwise not occur in a potentially more explosive environment. Young children also have the capacity to soften difficult talking points by virtue of their cute mannerism that can temporarily distract tough dialogue. Although this can at times be a distraction, it can also be telling to see who chooses to distract themselves from the therapeutic process and engage the children and who is able to acknowledge them yet still stay focused on the purpose of treatment. Children often hold the pulse of the family and a therapist can learn much from witnessing other family members interactions with them.