What Pediatricians Want Parents to Know About Child Therapy

Therapy Is the First Step for Childhood Mental Health Concerns

"Should my child see a therapist?" It's a question I get often. The percentage of kids, mainly school-aged, who have anxiety and depression has skyrocketed in the past 10 to 20 years. While there are many reasons that can suggest why this has happened, including social media, peer pressure, increased percentage of adults with mental health issues in the home, and being able to acknowledge mental health issues without the societal stigma as much as it has been, the bottom line is that therapy is still the first step in management for kids.

What Pediatricians Can—and Cannot—Do for Your Child's Mental Health

Unlike adults, medications are not as available. Medications have age limits. We can't use them with younger kids because they may not be safe. And there are fewer child psychiatrists. This means your child's pediatrician is often the first line provider when it comes to addressing mental health issues in your child.

Now, with that said, we do not have the same training as a psychiatrist, and there are absolutely limitations on what we are able to manage, and we are not therapists.

How to Identify Possible Triggers Behind Your Child's Emotional Struggles

If your child is having mental health issues, the first thing is to try to figure out if there is a specific reason. Are they getting bullied at school? Is there a family history of mental health issues? They often run in families. Is there instability in the home or domestic violence? Understanding triggers will help a therapist be able to address the main causes of your child's mental health better.

Finding the Right Therapist for Your Child

For children under 7, it's really hard to find a therapist. Many child therapists start seeing kids at age 7 and don't see younger. For kids under 7, they often need what is called play therapy, and that requires specialized training.

For kids over age 7, some will need talk therapy, some will need cognitive behavior therapy, some will need dialectical behavior therapy, and some will need a specific type of therapy called EMDR, which is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. The therapist will be able to figure out which type is needed after talking with your child and formulate a therapy plan.

We start screening for depression at the well-child visits at age 12. Your child will fill out a depression screen every year, and if there is anything concerning, we will discuss options with you on how to help your child.

It's sometimes hard to find a therapist, and sometimes it takes meeting with more than one therapist before your child finds one they are comfortable opening up to.

I like to tell kids that therapy is something that everyone needs. Everyone they meet either has been in therapy, is currently in therapy, or will be in therapy at some point in their life. And there are a lot of great therapists out there.

If you think your child would benefit from therapy after talking to your pediatrician, the next step is to check with your insurance. Mental health benefits are often different from medical benefits, so you will need to make sure you check with your insurance on the coverage, cost, and who is in network before you schedule with a provider.

Your pediatrician can often help you find a provider or at least help guide you on the path to start finding a therapist, but it's usually the parents who need to do most of the work to get into the therapist themselves.