Parenting/Family Issues

Families are the foundation of our society. Having a strong and supportive family foundation is essential, in today’s society we have a diversity of types of families including blended families. Unresolved parenting and family issues can take an emotional and physical toll on the growth and development on children. Psychiatrists employ a host of therapeutic skills, including psychotherapy, family counseling, couples counseling, individual counseling, coping skills, parenting strategies, and supportive listening. These therapeutic skills can help families through life altering events, as well as support them through emotionally difficult times. Psychiatrists also refer patients for further treatment and counseling to providers in specialize in various treatment areas. Author Todd Parr is a valuable resource in books related to topics below.

Adoption Related Issues

The emotional and behavioral well being of adopted children is often tantamount on their adoptive parent’s minds. Adopted children may be at increased risk for mental disorders, such as ADHD, separation anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder, impaired social skills, and major depression. In addition, the parents and siblings of adopted children may also be at increased risk of mental health issues, including depression. Counseling with a child and adult psychiatrist can be a proactive way to help the family cope with any emotional and behavioral issues arising from adoption.

Family Therapy

Family therapy can be helpful for families in any situation that is causing grief, stress, or anger or discord among the family members. It can help family members understand each other better in hope of resolving the underlying conflict. Family therapy can identify the issues causing the discord, and seek to work through the conflict as a family unit. This form of therapy often helps family members understand each other’s strengths, weaknesses, fears and motivations in order to provide them with the better communication and coping skills to resolve their conflicts successfully.

Couples Therapy

Couples therapy can help partners resolve their conflicts through better understand of themselves and their partner, identification of conflict areas, through improved communication skills and a restoration of a healthier level of functioning. Couples often seek treatment with a psychiatrist for a wide array of issues, including communication difficulties, anger, financial stresses, substance abuse, child rearing, infidelity, or intimacy issues. Psychiatrists are available as well to make referrals to marital therapists for further treatment.

Behavioral Issues

Every person goes through difficult or troubled times at some point in their lives, and children are no exception. These difficult times usually represent normal growth and development as children struggle to find their own identity and way in life, and can be more pronounced during times of change, such as death in the family, moving, or new siblings. When these become persistent inappropriate behavioral and emotional responses, professional assessment and intervention with a child psychiatrist may be needed.

Parenting Strategies

Anyone who is a parent can attest that parenting can be hard work. Parenting a child with emotional or behavioral issues can be even harder. A child psychiatrist can help parents develop effective parenting strategies specific to their child, including identifying triggers, appropriate discipline, and when and how to medicate in order to help parents provide a loving and nurturing environment for their child. Support and compassion are integral parts of treatment.

Parent Child Relational Problems

Parent child relational problems involve a problem in the method a parent and child communicate with one another. This disorder is not due to one person in the relationship, but is the result of the relationship itself. In some cases, the relationship may take on characteristics that are not present in the people themselves, but only present between the two. The relationship may be disordered when there are recurring arguments or conflicts, lack of communication, avoidance, or undue stress between a parent and child and it can lead to disruption in the home. Appropriate discipline, worry or overprotection, suspicion, or unresolved parental conflicts can be the crux of parent child relational problems. A child and adult psychiatrist can help parents and children learn to identify triggers, improve their communication, improve coping skills and provide families with hope.