Often children, like adults, can benefit from therapy as children can also be experiencing emotional and behavioral problems. Child therapy focuses on helping children achieve social and emotional wellbeing. As individual therapy, it is also time-limited and it focuses on specific goals such as changes in behavior or in more general goals like increasing self-esteem.
Child therapy sessions are child centered and are focused on activities such as playing, drawing, building and pretending. Talking is also important; however some children cannot express what they are feeling or experiencing into words and are better at demonstrating these actions through play. By using different forms of activities the therapist develops a fun and comfortable relationship with the child in an environment that is free of outside rules and demands.
Child therapy helps children in a variety of ways. Apart from helping relief of symptoms, child therapy works on building self-esteem, improving communication, understanding feelings and problems, resolving conflicts with people, stimulating development and improving emotional vocabulary.