Working with Children and Young People
Clinical work with children and young people
Dr. Rachel Parsons is passionate in working with children and young people. Working therapeutically in a sensitive, empathic and playful way to engage and support children and young people is an area of passion.
Rachel has clinical experience in supporting children and young people in the following areas;
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Complex emotional and behavioural difficulties
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Neurodivergence – Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
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Anxiety or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
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Difficulties attending school
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Emotional dysregulation
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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
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Developmental issues
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Sleeping difficulties
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Challenges separating from parent/caregiver
Clinical assessment is the focus of the initial appointments and is an integrated process into ongoing intervention and support.
Please note, Parsons Psychology does not take referrals solely for ASD or ADHD assessments.
Working with those who support children
Children live and thrive in a supportive and caring system. Many times, when working with children therapeutically this will also involve working collaborative with those who also support children – school, Paediatrician, GP, Occupational Therapist, Speech Therapist etc. This may also include sessions with parents to better understand their child's presentation and to support therapeutic goals being integrated into the home environment.
Working systemically allows for best practice support for children in understanding their needs and presentation, and their future development.
Talking to children about coming to see a psychologist
Some children may be open and willing to come and see a psychologist and talk about the important things in their world and others will feel unsure and nervous. Regardless of how your child is feeling, sometimes children might benefit from reading the below ‘Questions kids might ask’ section.
Further, during the initial intake phone call we can discuss talking to your child about coming to see a psychologist more specifically.
Questions kids may ask
It is understandable that many kids may have questions about coming to see a psychologist. After meeting many children for the first time, I am familiar with the questions they usually have.
The below questions may give you an idea about what to talk to your child about prior to the first session. Or some parents might like to show these questions to their children so you can discuss together.
"What will the first session be like?"
The first time I meet with someone, I will talk a bit about myself and what I do as a psychologist. I can answer any questions you may have or anything you might be wondering about. But mainly, the first session is for me to get to know you, I might ask about your hobbies, the things you love, your family, what school is like and maybe some of the hard parts that I might be able to help with.
Will I be on my own, or will my mum/dad be with me?
When I first meet with a child, I would often invite you and your parent/grown up (whoever has brought you) into my office together, so I can introduce myself and talk about why we are meeting. If you feel comfortable, after we have had a chat together, I would ask your parent/carer to wait just outside in the waiting room, while we spend some time talking and playing together. Even though this is usually how I do things, if we need to do things differently, to help you feel comfortable, that is of course okay!
For older kids and teenagers, we would usually just meet without your parent with us.
What will we talk about? What if I don't know what to say?
Lots of kids feel worried that we won't have anything to talk about! I have been talking and working with kids for a long time now and I work hard to help kids feel comfortable and safe. I always have things to talk about, so there won't be any awkward silences!
Will we just talk the whole time?
No! When I work with kids, there is lots of talking and chatting but there is also space for reading stories, playing and having fun! I have lots of great books I love reading and some of the games I play with kids include Uno, Jenga, Spot It, and I have lots of fun fidgets to play with too!
