Child and Adolescent Skills Groups at East Bay Center

At East Bay Center, we are fortunate to have caring and accomplished clinicians who focus their skills on understanding the challenges facing children and families. Our licensed clinicians assess, and provide treatment for, depression, anxiety, addictions, behavior management, response to trauma and violence recovery, and school difficulties.

Two of the Center’s clinicians, Bethany Handfield LICSW, and Victoria Hickey LMHC, provide therapy groups that help children with specific issues learn age-appropriate coping skills, and to learn how to recognize and respond to their own thoughts and feelings regarding a number of topics.

Once a child/adolescent is screened through the Intake Process, and placed with a clinician for individual therapy, a recommendation may be made for a child/adolescent to attend a group. Group therapy can provide a unique experience where children/adolescents see that “they are not alone” and that there are others, very much like themselves, who share the same issues that they do. Through the discussions and activities facilitated by a trained clinician, positive results can be achieved. Currently EBC is hosting the following groups:

 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) – for children/adolescents age seven (7) to twelve (12) who have been diagnosed with (or are suspected to have a diagnosis of) ASD. The group focuses on topics such as:

o Communicating

o Nonverbal communication

o Being a part of a group

o Expressing feelings

o Caring about self and others

o Problem solving

o Listening

o Standing up for him/herself

o Managing conflict

 Life Skills Group – for children/adolescents age eight (8) to thirteen (13). The group focuses on topics such as:

o Bullying

o Self esteem

o Impulse control

o Making and keeping friendships

o Healthy habits

o Decision making skills

 Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) – for “tweens and teens”. The group, which is patterned after a nationally accepted treatment model, teaches “mindfulness” and assists members to:

o Learn what triggers him/her to react in certain situations or engage in destructive behaviors

o Learn coping skills to apply to those situations, prevent negative behaviors, and change the outcomes to something positive

Last year alone, EBC assessed and treated over six hundred (600) children and provided the tools necessary for them to improve their behavior at home and focus at school to improve academic performance. If you or a family member have a child in need, please give us a call.

Access to Care When You Need It:

East Bay Center clinicians are always available by scheduled appointment or through the Center’s “Walk-in” model of care to assist adults, children, and their families through any number of complicated issues. Conveniently located in East Providence on the Wampanoag Trail – help is just around the corner. We encourage you to visit our website at www.eastbay.org for information regarding services, employment, locations, etc. To speak to someone regarding services or to schedule an appointment, please call 401-246-1195 and ask for “Intake”.