Yes We Can: Collaborating with Parents

By the time parents walk into our clinic, they are often feeling confused and uncertain, helpless and exhausted, and sometimes, quite desperate.

It's my job not only to help their child but to help them too. I do this by listening to them. I acknowledge that though they may not have all (or even some) of the answers, they know their child better than I ever probably could or will.

After all, they have been there from the beginning. Each day, they are the ones who spend time with their child, dropping her off at school, making her dinner, tucking her into bed and reading to her at night.

I inform parents that I need their help to get to know their child's history and issues and to understand their family's problems. I also explain that while I may not always have the answers, I will do my very best to support them and be present to what they are going through.

Along the way, through the treatment process, I constantly seek out their input and feedback. How did the past week go? Tell me about the ups and downs and how that made you feel. What happened to make your daughter cry almost every day? What did you do to help her feel better?

Really, this is the best way to do it. By working together hand-in-hand, through collaboration, we slowly begin to see improvements in a child -- and in the family.

Yes, together, we can make change happen.