We provide both in-office and home-based support services to help parents with the challenges of raising children in toddlerhood through high school.
Parenting is a continual process in which the needs of family members evolve and change over time.
As children pass through important milestones in their growth and maturity, parenting strategies that once worked may no longer seem effective.
We have over twelve years of professional experience in parenting best-practices — giving parents the support, education and concrete tools to strengthen their natural parenting abilities, adapt to changes in family dynamics, and create a home life that balances structure and consistency with maintaining a healthy and positive relationship with their children.
Parenting Support — Older Children & Adolescents
For parents, navigating the period of pre-adolescence and the teen years can be very difficult. Parenting strategies that once worked may no longer seem effective, and attempts to openly communicate and understand your child can feel like they only create more distance in the relationship.
Working with parents in-office we can help bridge this sudden parent-child divide, providing increased awareness of adolescent development, a more keen understanding of the pressures and expectations of being a teen in today’s society, and concrete tools for reconnecting with your child without having to abandon rules and structure.
Some of the common issues we help parents of a teenager or older child address include:
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Parenting Support — Young Children — Ages 2-10
In working with parents of young children, the first step is
an in-office consultation to discuss family history and understand parenting
styles, the temperament of children, and areas of success and challenge within the
family.
A family observation is then scheduled for the therapist to directly observe parent-child and sibling interactions. This may be done either in-office or in the home.
Using these two meetings as a starting point, specific goals are set for the family and a plan of action is created for ongoing parenting support. Parents can then meet weekly for in-office consultations, reporting back on successes and getting help on continuing issues.
Joint parent-child sessions — including Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) — are often also added for this age group to offer direct observation, in-the-moment coaching and practical help implementing parenting tools.
Our expertise in helping parents with young children includes addressing:
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Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) — Ages 2-8
Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is a particularly effective methodology used by Marimba to teach positive-parenting skills using joint parent-child sessions.
The techniques of PCIT help reduce parental stress, enhance positive-parenting skills, improve children's ability to listen and follow directions, and foster childhood development of attention, social skills and self-esteem.
About PCIT
PCIT is a short-term therapy program — appropriate for parents with children
aged 2-8 — that teaches a proven, research-backed methodology
and set of parenting skills for improving the overall quality of the
parent-child relationship.
What makes PCIT unique as a therapy is the use of live, in-the-moment training, modeling and coaching, providing parents with immediate feedback when interacting with their children in various challenging situations.
PCIT was originally developed by Dr. Sheila Eyberg at the University of Florida for children with ADD and ADHD. However, since its creation over a decade ago, PCIT has been tailored to work with children and families experiencing a wide variety of issues.
Marimba's PCIT Expertise
Marimba's Dr. Anne E. Walter has been a certified provider of PCIT services for over four years — having trained at and under certification of the Univ. of California Davis Medical Center's PCIT Training Center.
While PCIT is traditionally done within a clinic setting using a one-way mirror for observation of parent-child interaction, Marimba uses mobile wireless audio & video technology to offer PCIT services not only in-office, but also in the home — working in a family's natural environment to best help the family achieve growth and effect long-term change.
Deciding if PCIT is Right for Your Family
PCIT may be right for your family if your child is between the ages of 2-8 and you are concerned by any of the following behaviors:
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Additionally, PCIT may be right for you if you experience the following challenges in relating to your child:
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Even for new parents or parents of children not experiencing significant behavioral difficulties, PCIT can provide important and effective tools for managing typical stages of child development.
Marimba's PCIT program is always adapted to meet the unique needs and challenges within your family.
Learning More about PCIT
For more information on PCIT, please visit the Univ. of California Davis Medical Center's PCIT Training Center website.