The Power of One-on-One Parent-Child Time
Busy schedules make it easy to miss small moments of connection, yet even ten minutes of one-on-one time can have a lasting impact. Learn how to follow your child’s lead, be fully present, and strengthen your bond in simple, meaningful ways.
Navigating the Fall Semester: Managing Mental Health Through Life Transitions
As the fall semester begins, many young adults are balancing excitement with emotional overwhelm. From academic pressure to loneliness, this time of year brings real mental health challenges. Learn how therapy and simple habits can help you feel more grounded, supported, and in control.
Picky Eating and Mental Health: More Than Just Mealtime Struggles
Picky eating is often about more than just food. It can reflect a child’s anxiety, sensory sensitivities, or emotional world. Understanding the mental health side of picky eating helps caregivers move from power struggles to compassion and connection.
Move Your Body, Free Your Mind: The Role of Exercise in Teen Mental Health
Exercise is not just about building strength. For teens, movement is a natural and effective way to ease stress, boost mood, improve sleep, and build confidence. Whether it’s dancing, playing sports, or simply walking outside, even small amounts of movement can make a big difference in mental well-being. This post explores why exercise matters and how teens can get started.
What Your Child’s Behavior Is Trying to Tell You After School
The end of the school day often brings big emotions. Whether your child comes home tearful, irritable, or withdrawn, behavior is their way of communicating. Understanding what’s underneath helps parents respond with empathy and support. In this post, we share insights and strategies to help you decode after-school behavior and meet your child’s needs.
Helping Your Tween Navigate Friendship Challenges
Friendship ups and downs are a big part of the tween years—and they can be tough on both kids and parents. This post explores why social dynamics get more complicated around ages 9–12, common struggles like exclusion and peer pressure, and how you can support your child without overstepping.
A Parent’s Guide to Internet Safety: How to Encourage Safely Building an Online Community
Navigating your child’s online world can feel overwhelming—but you don’t have to do it alone. This post offers practical tips to help parents protect their children online while encouraging open dialogue and emotional well-being.
Supporting Kids Through Back-to-School Anxiety
If your child feels tearful at drop-off or dreads school mornings, you’re not alone. Back-to-school anxiety is a common response to change. With consistent routines, comfort strategies, and support from school staff, kids can learn to manage worry and build confidence. This post offers practical tools for parents to make the transition smoother for the whole family.
Easing the Back-to-School Transition: A Parent’s Guide to Supporting Kids in the First Few Weeks
The first few weeks of school can be just as challenging as the first day. Children may still be adjusting to routines, navigating new friendships, or managing worries. This guide offers practical ways parents can support emotional regulation, confidence, and connection during this early transition period.
What If My Child Resists Therapy? How to Encourage Them Without Forcing It
Is your child hesitant or resistant to therapy? You’re not alone…and it doesn’t mean therapy can’t work. Learn why kids sometimes push back and how you can support them without forcing it. This post shares gentle, practical strategies to help your child feel safe, seen, and ready to engage in therapy at their own pace.
When the News Feels Scary: How to Support Your Child or Teen
When scary news fills our screens, it’s natural for kids and teens to feel anxious or confused. In this post, we share simple tips to help you talk to your child about what's happening, ease their worries, and teach healthy ways to cope — all in an age-appropriate way.
How to Create an Affirming Home Environment for LGBTQ+ Youth
Creating a safe, inclusive, and affirming home environment can make a life-saving difference for LGBTQ+ youths. But it can be confusing understanding how to do that, especially in a world that seems to be constantly changing. Read more about practical ways parents and caregivers can build that kind of supportive space within their own families.
Understanding Mental Health Needs of LGBTQ+ Youth: A Guide for Parents
LGBTQ+ youth face unique mental health challenges, often stemming from discrimination and lack of acceptance, not their identities. This guide helps parents understand how to provide affirming support at home and seek compassionate, identity-affirming therapy. With the right care and environment, LGBTQ+ youth can thrive emotionally and mentally.
What Do I Do If My Child Comes Out to Me? A Parent’s Guide to Providing Support
When your child comes out to you—whether as LGBTQ+, questioning, or exploring their identity—it can bring up a wide range of emotions. This post offers gentle guidance on how to respond with love, support, and curiosity, even if you’re feeling unsure or overwhelmed. You don’t have to have all the answers—your presence and openness are more powerful than you think.
Behind the Bickering: What Sibling Fights Are Really About
Sibling fights might sound like everyday noise in a busy home, but beneath the shouting matches and tattling, there’s often something more going on. In this post, a child and teen therapist unpacks what sibling rivalry is really about—hint: it’s not just about who had the remote first—and how parents can respond in ways that build emotional awareness, connection, and long-term relationship skills.
How to Help Your Teen with Time Management
No parent wants to see their teen struggling to manage their daily responsibilities and school work. Here at Reach Counseling, our therapists have experience helping family and teens learn helpful habits and tools to increase their ability with time management. Here is a brief guide we’ve put together of some ways that you can begin to help your teen!
Promoting Positive Self-Esteem in Children and Teens
Boost your child’s confidence with practical strategies! Learn how to foster resilience and a strong sense of self-worth in children and teens.
Mindfulness Activities for Anxious Children
Looking for practical advice for how to support your child struggling with anxiety? This blog post highlights how anxiety in children often presents, reviews how various techniques can help manage anxiety, and introduces new mindfulness exercises.
Teen Blues or Something More? Identifying and Tackling Teenage Depression
Adolescence is filled with emotional ups and downs, but how can parents distinguish between typical mood swings and clinical depression? At Reach Counseling, we understand that teen mental health is complex. This guide breaks down the differences, highlights key warning signs, and provides expert-backed strategies for supporting your teen. Early recognition and intervention can make all the difference—let’s navigate this together.
The Silent Struggles of ‘Good Kids’: Recognizing Hidden Anxiety and Depression
Some children appear to have everything under control, excelling academically, following the rules, and rarely causing trouble. However, beneath the surface, they may be silently struggling with anxiety, self-doubt, or depression. Learn how to recognize the hidden signs of distress in high-achieving kids and ways to support them in opening up.