Our Core Services:

• Counselling & Psychotherapy for Adolescents
• School Counselling Service
• Parenting Strategy Work
• Bespoke Workshops for Adolescents / Parents / Teachers

Some of the main issues addressed through psychotherapy/counselling work with adolescents:

• Anxiety / Stress / Panic Attacks
• School Refusal / Bullying
• Self-harm / Suicide / Depression
• Eating Disorders
• Addiction
• Self-Esteem / Self-Image
• Anger
• Family Trauma
• Bereavement / Illness
• Family Breakdown / Separation / Adoption
• Sexual / Emotional / Physical Abuse
• Relationship Issues
• Post-Traumatic Stress
• ADHD / ADD / ASD
• Attachment Issues

Why address mental health in schools?

When an adolescent is struggling with their development, learning can be impeded significantly, behavioural issues may emerge and school refusal can occur. Simply stated, unmet mental health needs impede students‘ overall success in school.  And it is not only the students whose progress may be impeded. Teachers who come into contact with students in difficulty can feel overwhelmed, deskilled and helpless. Evidence has shown that intervening early can help in addressing issues of vulnerable students who may be at risk of developing mental health problems. However, scarce resources due to cutbacks are impacting on a school’s capacity to provide counselling support and programs to address the social and emotional needs of students.

At LAPCC we work closely with second level schools to provide educative modules that aim to inform, support and improve student’s mental and emotional states. Our training modules can be tailored to meet the needs of the school.   Examples of modules include self-harming behaviour, bullying, coping with anxiety, exam stress and body related issues. These modules aim to provide a safe framework within which students can begin to understand and develop strategies to cope with life challenges. It will also aim to encourage a student to seek further support if necessary.

We also provide a service giving access to one-to-one counselling by qualified, experienced adolescent counsellors. There are three main referral routes – the adolescent can self-refer, may be referred by someone from the school or by the parent. The student can be seen in LAPCC rooms or on the school premises, if appropriate.

The Samaritans

Teenline

Barnardos

Ombudsman for Children

Department of Health and Family Services

Aware

BodyWhys

IAHIP

ICP

Cyber Bullying

Social Media Bullying

Childline

Belongto

Cari

ISPCC

Parentline

• What is worrying you?

• Why do I feel this way – Sad, Depressed, Lonely, Anxious, Self-Conscious?

• Nobody gets me!

• I can’t speak to my family or friends…

Adolescents come to counselling for a wide variety of reasons. Maybe the transition through adolescence is becoming challenging with the many changes taking place within ourselves, our family, our friends, school etc. Also, unexpected life events can happen that are hard to cope with. Adolescents who come to see us normally want counselling because they are feeling unhappy about something in their lives and cannot find a way to sort things out on their own.

Whatever you are facing in your life, it is probably a good idea to share it with someone. Most of the time we can talk to our family, or our friends about our problems. Sometimes it feels it is not possible and this is when we might need to talk to a counsellor. A counsellor can help because they are independent from home life and school. Many of us come to counselling to talk about a specific problem, to learn more about ourselves, or simply for someone to talk to about what’s going on in our lives in a safe and supportive environment.

The counsellors at LAPCC understand the difficulties that adolescents like yourself face today and value and care about how you are feeling. They are there to help you. They are not there to judge but to provide a safe place to help you understand how you feel and help you to find ways to feel better.

If you are aged between 11 and 24 years, and you would like to make an appointment, then you can either email or call us. Alternatively a parent or someone else can contact us on your behalf. Need to contact us? Use our quick contact form.

How do you know if your adolescent needs help?

Sometimes it is clear when you need help, such as when there has been a significant life event, such as a death, a divorce, trauma, abuse, etc. Sometimes it is not as clear. As a parent you may experience your child as withdrawing, being anxious, sad or angry. It can be hard to distinguish between developmentally appropriate adolescent behaviour and the signs of deeper, psychological problems.

Parenting an adolescent can be challenging and puzzling at times as every adolescent develops in their own unique way. Adolescents push boundaries in their search for independence and parents can feel rejected, confused and criticised. You may find that the way you parented in the past is not as effective in the present.

We recognise that parenting adolescents can sometimes leave a parent feeling de-skilled. We work to help restore a sense of confidence in your ability to parent and to get the relationship with your adolescent back on track.

Many everyday stresses such as school, friendships and family life can trigger changes in behaviour. If these behaviours are causing you concern, are persistent and are negatively impacting on the adolescent and the family, then working with a trained adolescent counsellor/psychotherapist can help your adolescent’s development.

If your adolescent is showing some of these typical signs, then counselling could help:

• Self-destructive behaviour /self-harming/drug or alcohol use
• Withdrawing from friends and family
• Changes in habits – sleeping or eating
• Aggressive behaviour
• School refusal
• Depression
• Anxiety, stress or excessive worry
• Among other behaviours

Early intervention is key. At LAPCC we work to identify what the issues are and help your adolescent find their way through their problems in a non-judgmental and private environment. Adolescent counselling is a specialised area and all our therapists have extensive advanced training and experience. Making an appointment with a therapist can create the support that an adolescent needs.

Why would I need to see a Counsellor?

People see a counsellor for many reasons. You may be able to identify a specific problem that keeps you awake at night, or makes you anxious. You may not know what exactly is bothering you only that you are finding it hard to cope. You may feel like you can’t go to school, can’t meet your friends, or find it hard to understand your feelings or relationships. You might be sad, lonely, anxious, depressed. So, you see there are many reasons why you might need to talk to someone and try to work out just what is happening for you.

How might it help?

When it feels like parents or friends can’t be there for you, a counsellor can be that objective person standing back and helping you to look at the situation you are in without judging, blaming or telling you what to do.

How do I choose a Counsellor?

You could get a recommendation from someone who has been in therapy themselves. Or you could go to the website of a recognised organisation such as Irish Association of Humanistic & Integrative Psychotherapists, (IAHIP) and select someone in your area. Alternatively, your GP may recommend someone to you. Whichever method you choose you remain in charge of whether you go to that person or not. When you do meet someone you should be comfortable working with them.

What is the difference between a Counsellor and a Psychotherapist?

Many people use the terms interchangeably but there is a difference in the service that the counsellor and the psychotherapist provides. Many of us encounter problems throughout our lives that cause us anguish or distress and could interfere with the how we live our lives. For example, an event like a death, relationship breakdown, being bullied etc., can have a huge impact on our lives and we may struggle to come to terms with the impact and how we respond to it. We may need the help of an objective professional to work through specific issues and a counsellor is invaluable at these times.

A Psychotherapist can also help you with these issues and can work at a much deeper level where the issue may not be in your conscious awareness. The Psychotherapist works with the unconscious, helping you to understand why you may feel a certain way, or why you respond to a situation in a particular way. Sometimes much of our distress is buried in our past history and we need help to untangle the threads. The psychotherapist will help you to reflect and work through issues which may stem from our early life so that you get a better understanding of who you are in the world and make choices as you go through your life.

How long does each session last?

In general the sessions are between 50 minutes to one hour.

How often will I need to attend?

It could be weekly or fortnightly, whatever is appropriate at a particular time or situation.

Will I be better at the end?

Your counsellor will not promise to ‘fix’ you. What the counsellor will do is help you to understand what is going on for you and work towards finding a resolution that suits you.

What about confidentiality?

Your counsellor will discuss confidentiality with you at the first session. In general you may discuss whatever is on your mind without fear of this being disclosed to anyone without your approval. However, if the counsellor feels that you or any other person, particularly a child, is in danger they have an obligation to put your safety and the safety of others first and are required to break confidentiality.

Will my parents/guardians be there?

It is necessary, particularly in the early sessions and at times throughout your attendance, for your parents to be included in at least some of your sessions. Your parents have a lot of information about your early life that would be useful for your counsellor to be aware of so to have them at the early sessions would be important. They are most likely a big part of the solution to your issues and if this emerges in the work then it is important that they are present. Sometimes parents come to all sessions. We do ask parents to be available to join us in the sessions if we think it would be useful.

Does my school need to be involved?

In general this is a private relationship between your counsellor and yourself. However, if you feel that an intervention with the school would help, then our counsellors are happy to engage with your school.

How much does it cost?

Each individual session costs €70.00. This includes individual, parent and family sessions.

What if I cancel?

If you make an appointment and cancel, then the full fee is chargeable if we cannot rearrange a time that suits us both. This may not always be possible.

How do I make an appointment?

Our email address is:- info@lapcc.ie

You can contact Anne on 087-2380879

or Jennifer on 086-8599328

What are your qualifications?

All of our therapists hold a Post Graduate Diploma in Humanistic & Integrative Psychotherapy and are accredited with IAHIP and hold a European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP). We have also undertaken further advanced training in Adolescent Psychotherapy.