Assessment:

Children and adolescents present a unique challenge for both assessment and treatment. Typically, symptoms of children and adolescents are unsophisticated and tend to fall into two broad categories, externalizing and internalizing symptoms, with a possible combination of both. Externalizing symptoms refer to behavioral concerns and tend to include hyperactivity, impulsivity, aggression and conduct problems. Internalizing symptoms include anxiety, fearfulness, inhibition, depression, low motivation or interest, and isolation. There are many causes to these symptoms and frequently, children are unable to articulate why they may be feeling the way they do. Some causes of these symptoms include:

• An attention deficit
• Learning disorder
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Difficulty coping with life circumstances
• Overwhelming stressors
• Behavioral disorder

A comprehensive assessment attempts to determine the underlying issue maintaining the symptoms and thus informs the course of treatment or intervention. By understanding the causes of the symptoms, a more accurate and appropriate treatment plan can be developed.

Treatment: Just as there are unique issues related to the assessment of children and adolescents, there are also unique concerns with their treatment. As most parents and adults know, common responses to adult questions of “how was your day” or “how do you feel,” frequently receive the response of “I don’t know” or “fine.” Children do not verbalize their feelings knowingly much of the time. Instead, they appear to act on them and as such, traditional individual talk therapy with a child or adolescent may not be the most effective route to take in treatment. Therefore, Salveo Consulting provides the following services:

Group therapy: Salveo Consulting offers group therapy for adolescents as groups tend to bring out the most salient and honest issues. Within a group, an adolescent is much more likely to present his/her true self with peers rather than in individual therapy with an adult.

Activity-Oriented Therapy: The therapists at Salveo Consulting engage children in games or structured activities to facilitate interaction and opening up. Children are much more socialized to play than to talk about feelings and what is bothering them. Therefore, this mode of intervention renders more progress towards their treatment goals.

Parental Consultation: Children with special needs require different types of approaches, and in parental consultation, therapists work with parents to assist them in using the most effective techniques for their child.

Behavior Management: Salveo Consulting develops behavior management plans based on the principles of reinforcement. These plans are quite effective in increasing a positive or desired behavior that happens infrequently and decreasing maladaptive behavior. The therapist works with the parent to develop, implement and fine tune the behavioral plans.