Child and Adolescent Counseling

Working with children is a unique specialty in the world of psychotherapy. In many cases, your child’s therapist will incorporate activities, art, games, or other mediums to engage your child in the healing process. Child therapists understand that while adults often communicate primarily with words, children are more inclined to communicate better through play.

YES! Effective work with children requires an investment from caregiving adults. Your child’s counselor will determine the degree to which you are involved, but at a minimum, there will be a time for debriefing and collaboration set aside for you. Sometimes this is done while the child is present, and sometimes circumstances require that connection to be done separately. In any case, your child’s counselor desires to be available to address your questions and concerns each step along the way.

Recognizing that teens are developmentally on a quest for more independence, counselors strive to balance each teen’s need for privacy with the need for parents to be involved. Early in the process, counselors define their limits of confidentiality with teen clients to ensure healthy collaboration and communication between teens, parents and the counselor. In addition, counselors follow the guidelines required by law and their profession’s Code of Ethics.

The best way to start the process is to call our main office at 616-772-1733, and let us know you’d like to talk to someone about starting counseling. We have intake coordinators ready to connect with you, answer your questions and figure out which of our counselors might be the best fit for you and your situation. You can read individual counselor bio’s by clicking on this link.

The best way to figure out cost is to let us know your situation. The cost of counseling can vary greatly depending on different factors. Our counselors at Winning At Home are able to bill a variety of insurances, which may provide coverage for counseling. Before you call us, it might be helpful for you to call your insurance provider and check what mental and behavioral health coverage you have in your policy. If you are not using your insurance to pay (i.e. if the counselor who’s the best fit for you does not take your insurance), we bill on a sliding scale based on your income, and your counselor can also talk with you about your specific need and your own financial situation—there are options! Don’t let finances prevent you from calling us.

Counseling is a lot less awkward than people think. At Winning At Home your counselor wants you to be comfortable and at ease while you share. There will be a chair to relax in and a calm environment for you to start your conversation. You’ll be encouraged to speak freely and your counselor will help guide you if you don’t know how to express or explain what you’re feeling. 

It’s important you know that all your counseling sessions will be confidential. People go to counseling for a lot of reasons, most of which are for normal and common life issues not just severe mental issues. Counseling can help you to not feel completely overwhelmed by your emotions and circumstances. It’s a sign of emotional maturity to be open to seeking help when you know you’ve hit a wall. Facing something like sudden job loss, grieving the death of a loved one, financial problems, anger management struggles or strained family relationships (just to name a few) is hard! You might really benefit from having a professional walk alongside you to help teach you the tools you need to move forward. We consider people who seek counseling to be strong, not weak.

No. Counselors are not able to prescribe medication. However, your counselor will know of trusted psychiatrists in the area if you both conclude that medication would be a beneficial part of your treatment.

For the most part, sessions last approximately 45-50 minutes.

It’s generally a mutual decision between you and your counselor when it is appropriate for your counseling sessions to end.

As a faith-based organization we believe faith can be an effective tool in the healing process. We recognize that a person’s faith is significant to their well–being. We integrate faith by encouraging clients to get connected and established with a faith community that supports their health and healing.

We completely respect the rights and preferences of each individual client when it comes to faith and spirituality. If a client does not wish to incorporate faith into the therapeutic process, we are glad to provide care without this and are just as committed to helping them reach their goals.