Information for Parents Under Fives Clinic
Being a parent can be an incredibly difficult job. It can be troubling and exhausting as well as joyful. It is not possible to get it right all of the time, and it may feel that it is not possible to get it right any of the time.
All children are different, coming into the world with their own personalities which may or may not fit well with their parents. While some seem to be easy to care for, others can be more difficult to get to know and to like, and these feelings may be very hard to manage. There may also have been events such as illness, loss or separation which will have had their role to play.
The aim of our clinic is to offer a chance to think about the difficulties while children are still very young, to give the best chance of addressing problems so that family life is not just survived but can be enjoyed as much as possible.
Who is the clinic for?
The service is provided for babies and children of up to and including 4 years old who have difficulties that have not been improved by the help offered by Health Visitors or others involved.
How will we work together?
You will be offered up to 5 appointments to tell us what is worrying, distressing or puzzling you, and to try to think with us about what might be happening. We will be interested in hearing about the experiences you have had together as a family so that we can build up a picture of how things have been for you. We may initially invite just you as parent(s) or carer(s) before meeting your child. It may be helpful to meet other family members too. When children come to the clinic there are play materials they can use to show us their thoughts and feelings. We cannot provide a diagnosis in this clinic, there are other services that can provide that.
Linking with other professionals
Where other agencies are involved with your family, it might be useful for us to hear from them about your child or to let them know that you have come to see us. This will only happen with your permission and we would discuss all conversations with you first. Sessions at the clinic are confidential unless there are signs that a child is at risk of harm.
Who will be seeing me?
The staff group includes professionals from Child Psychotherapy, Mental Health Nursing, Therapeutic Social Work, Clinical Psychology and Child Psychiatry. You will be seen by one or two staff members. The same people will then be present at all of your appointments.
How long will the meetings last?
The sessions will each last 50 minutes.
What will you be looking for?
You may already have tried a range of strategies and been given a lot of advice to help your child. We will be working with you to try to understand the meaning behind the puzzling or difficult behaviour as this understanding can often be helpful, particularly when things are stressful and upsetting.
What happens next?
Often this brief series of sessions can make a difference, but sometimes more meetings may be helpful or we can think together about other ways forward.