Parental Guidance and Helping the Family
Children and adolescents with problems or psychiatric disorders affect other family members. However, problems in the family also have an impact on the child.
Parental Guidance
You should always be involved when your child needs help. The younger the child, the more critical your role becomes. Ineffective discipline and too much punishment are common when a child’s behavior results in parental feelings of inadequacy, anger and guilt.
Dr. Turecki will advise and educate you, so that you can better understand your child’s problems and deal with the behavior more effectively.
Effective discipline relies less on punishment and more on structure, planning and simple, clear rules.
“Planned discussions” between the parents, and later with the child, should always be held away from the heat of the moment, not when you and your child are upset or angry. Planned discussions are used to make a fresh start, to establish a consistent approach between the parents, to define clear rules and expectations and to enlist your child’s cooperation.
Sympathetic management, as distinct from punishment, is a way of responding to behavior that your child cannot control.
Encouragement and praise are not only effective but will also help you feel better about yourself as a parent.
Other Help for Families
Sometimes more than parental guidance is needed such as:
- Family therapy
- Adult therapy for a parent
- Couples therapy
- Child therapy
- Careful attention to the needs of the siblings.