Child Life Therapy Family Support

50-minute sessions tailored to family’s needs.

Individualized sessions supporting families through various stressors and overwhelming circumstances. Caregivers are part of the process if disclosure of new information is part of the session. Creative interventions support processing new information, making sense of stress responses, and building resilience and practical coping skills. Interventions are chosen and adapted based on developmental level, interests, experiences and treatment goals.

Education is integrated throughout treatment. Age‑appropriate explanations about the brain, stress, trauma and how the body responds supports understanding reactions and feel empowered. When relevant, developmentally appropriate preparation and explanation for diagnoses and medical procedures is utilized to reduce fear and increase understanding.

Examples of Support: Grief and loss, Medical diagnoses, treatment and procedures, medical fears and phobias, acute and chronic trauma, family changes, including divorce, natural disasters and community trauma and other stressful life events.

What to expect:

• Discussion with caregivers prior to working as a family

• Individualized creative interventions focused on specific need

• Interventions may be multi session dependent or change from session to session

• Each intervention ends with coping skill to utilize during life events and environments and to practice at home

Potential Benefits:

• Disclosure, if needed, is done in a developmentally appropriate manner with appropriate language provided by clinician

• Increased coping and utilization of coping skills in various environments and situations

• Brain body connection and understanding

• Developmentally appropriate understanding of trauma, grief, and overwhelming events

• Validation and normalization of feelings

• Increase in emotional vocabulary

• Processing traumas and finding meaning

• Legacy building

• Utilization of knowledge and coping skills

Mindful skills and self‑regulation strategies are taught and practiced in session to support coping with day‑to‑day challenges and larger stressors. Progress is reviewed regularly so treatment stays focused, measurable and responsive to each child’s evolving needs.

Child life therapy is strongly advocated for by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) as an essential component of pediatric support and as the standard of care to reduce anxiety and pain through developmentally supportive ways.

Disclaimer: Child life services are designed to support the emotional, developmental, and coping needs of children and families facing medical experiences, illness, hospitalization, or grief — they are not a form of medical treatment or clinical mental health therapy. If your child is experiencing a medical or mental health emergency, please contact 911, your child's physician, or an appropriate emergency service immediately. The information provided on this website is for general educational and informational purposes only and reflects the perspective of a certified child life specialist. It is not intended as medical, psychological, psychiatric, or therapeutic advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and should not be used as a substitute for consultation with a licensed physician, therapist, or other qualified healthcare provider. Every child and family is unique; outcomes and appropriate approaches may vary and should be discussed individually.