Support to improve mental health, social wellbeing and development
It can be difficult to pinpoint whether a child or teenager needs professional help, particularly as they are growing, learning and constantly changing.
But if you feel like something just isn’t right, or if you notice your child has been behaving out of character, then seeking support early can make a big difference.
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How does counselling help?
Talking to a counsellor can help your child to modify negative or unwanted behaviours, ease stress and anxiety, and to improve their relationships and social skills.
Our qualified counsellors can work with children aged four years and up. Different types of counselling are available depending on age, such as play therapy which is available for young children.
Counselling can also help with aspects of home and school life, identifying issues, and helping to increase overall wellbeing for children and teenagers.
What issues can counselling help with?
Counselling can help with a wide range of issues including and relating to:
- anger management
- anxiety
- bullying and cyber bullying
- change
- concentration
- coping
- death, loss and grief
- depression
- family violence
- gaming addiction
- gender or sexual identity
- mental health
- parent/child relationships
- school refusal
- school relationships
- separation and divorce
- sibling conflict
- social issues
- step/blended families
- stress
- trauma
The benefits of counselling
Counselling can improve both the current and future wellbeing of your child or teenager. Establishing healthy mindsets and attitudes from an early age increases their resilience and enables them to adapt and respond effectively to life’s challenges.
While it’s natural for children and teenagers to display some challenging or moody behaviours, counselling can improve their relationships with family and peers, and establish a better quality of life for everyone in the family.
Our counsellors can collaborate directly with schools and counsellors at your child/teenager’s school, establishing wrap-around support.
Children and teenagers do not need a referral from a GP to access our counselling service, and we can cater the number of counselling sessions to their individual needs.
I’m a teenager/young adult – how can counselling help me?
If you’re feeling sad, depressed or anxious, or if you’re experiencing problems at home or at school, speaking to a counsellor can help.
Our counsellors can help you to relieve and manage stress and to solve problems - you can even talk about issues with friends, family, relationships and bullying.
We can provide you with tips and tricks, offer support, or even just be there to listen and chat. Talking about your concerns can feel like lifting a weight off your shoulders.
You may have a counsellor based within your school who you can talk to, or you can call us to ask about counselling at one of our offices (listed below).
Find more information here.
Are counselling sessions confidential?
For children under the age of 16, parents/guardians are invited to attend the first counselling session with or without the child to discuss concerns*.
Personal information discussed during counselling sessions may be disclosed with parents/guardians of children and teenagers under the age of 18. Our counsellors will always ask the child or young person for their consent to share information with parents, except in situations where the child/teenager or someone they know is at risk of harm, or if the information disclosed is of an extreme nature.
Parents may be asked to join counselling sessions in the last 10 minutes with the child’s consent, to discuss issues, support and progress.
Fees
Our counselling sessions are charged on a sliding scale – this means that the fee for each counselling session is dependent on your income. If you are experiencing financial hardship, we can discuss payment options for you.
If you have a Concession Card or a Health Care Card, or you are a student, counselling is $20 per session.
Our counselling services are subsidised by the Commonwealth Government.
More information
*This does not apply to our School Counselling program – parents/guardians are not invited to attend the first counselling session if the child/teenager is accessing our School Counselling service.
Contact us
To make a booking or to enquire about this service, please select your nearest office.
DandenongEppingFootscrayGeelongPakenhamTraralgonWarragul
Other services
You might also be interested in some of the following services offered at CatholicCare: