RE: seeking advice for upcoming 1st counceling appt

[Guest guest]

Gretchen,

That is great! Did you like the counselor? Did he/her give you any helpful

information? It is a scary thing to take a child to a counselor the first

time but I have found even though my son would fight it a lot he kind of

liked the attention also. For many kids it is hard to talk about so don't

get disappointed if that happens. For me it helped to remind myself that

this is someone I don't need to hide the strange behaviors like with all my

friends and the outside world but let the counselor see it all. They have

the knowledge to actually see what the problem is and how to help you both.

At first for me, it was hard because we all talked so open about everything,

but I started realizing that my 9 year old son was much more innocent about

all this then mom who was really the one most embarrasses. I think at times

I was scared that the therapist would think my son was such a horrible child

but you have to remember they have always seen worse and that is what they

do.

Good luck next week, hope things go well!

Adele

_____

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Gretchen

Sent: Tuesday, October 10, 2006 8:40 PM

Subject: seeking advice for upcoming 1st counceling appt

I made my 7 year old daughters first counceling appointment today. I

take her next Tuesday & I'm not sure what to expect. Any input/ advice/

personal experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Gretchen, mom to Tristan 7, PWS, OCD, SID, Hypotonia, Sleep Apnea,

Uninhibited Bladder Spasms & Allergies...

[Guest guest]

My daughter Becca (11) started going to a therapist a few months ago.

She has been very open to the therapist about her " dares " (that's what

she calls them), even though it makes her uncomfortable. I am

fortunate that Becca is so open and honest, as I believe she knows

that is the best way to get help. They have done a lot of talking and

positive reinforcement when Becca tells her dares that she won't do

them. The two also have gone on a " Spider hunt " because of her fear of

them as well. She actually did this on her own over the weekend in our

basement.

We have recently started confronting some of her " dares. " For example,

because she has many about knives, I will spontaneously put knives on

the dining table, at a time other than supper. We then sit and talk

about anything, anything except the knives. Then she goes and writes

down how she felt about that exposure. When she's ready, we will try

actually performing the dare, such as touching the knife to her leg,

and get her reaction.

I hope this helps you. I know it must be so hard for our kids to talk

about these things, so I hope your daughter is willing to do so, as

mine was. Please let us know how things turn out.

>

> I made my 7 year old daughters first counceling appointment today. I

> take her next Tuesday & I'm not sure what to expect. Any input/

advice/

> personal experiences would be appreciated.

>

> Thanks,

> Gretchen, mom to Tristan 7, PWS, OCD, SID, Hypotonia, Sleep Apnea,

> Uninhibited Bladder Spasms & Allergies...

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Gretchen,

I read several books about ocd (Freeing your child from ocd by Tamar

Chansky) which helped me understand ocd and know what to look for in

a therapist. Two of the therapist said they worked with ocd and

used CBT and ERP but after several visits the first therapist said

he tried it once and it didn't seem to work. I kept bringing my son

tohim but it didn't feel right. We went to another theerapist

twice. The first visit I knew she wasn't right for us. She talked

alot and asked questions, but they didn't really focus on dealing

with ocd. She said " OCD is really difficult to treat " . She said

that again on the second visit and I realised it must be difficult

for her because she probably doesn't know how to treat it. Finally,

I got the name of another therapist from another list member who

lives nearby. On the first visit (and only one so far) I knew he

knew what he was talking about. He started talking about ocd and

explaining it right away. He gave us things to work on at home

right away and was able to explain some behaviors my son had that

were ocd that I didn't even realize he had. My son liked him and

said for the first time that he feels this person will be able to

help him.

Learn what you can about ocd, trust you gut feelings and best of

luck!