Kids show you what's wrong before they can explain it. Our therapists work with children as young as three, using play, art, and other approaches that don't require a child to sit still and describe their feelings.
Therapy works from around age three. Parents of preschoolers assume it doesn't and never call, which is the most common reason a kid who needed help at four starts at eight instead.
Almost entirely play. A child this age can't hold a conversation about their feelings, so the therapist works through what shows up in the toys, the drawings, and the stories they build. You'll be in and out of the room depending on the week.
A mix. Kids this age can name some of what's going on and still need play and art to reach the rest. Sessions start including more direct conversation, and they start having opinions about what they want to work on.
Closer to talking, with play as a way in on hard days. Some kids this age do better on our teen therapy page, and we'll tell you which fits after the first session.
A parent watching through the door sees their kid stacking blocks and wonders what they're paying for. Fair question.
A seven-year-old can't tell you they're anxious about a move. They can put two figures in separate rooms and make one leave. Your therapist works with it there, in the story.
Your therapist picks what's on the shelf and watches what your child does with it. Each session builds on what the last one surfaced. The toys are the equipment.
A four-year-old works almost entirely through play. A ten-year-old moves between playing and talking in the same session. Your therapist follows the child, not a schedule.
Nobody here is a registered play therapist. That's a credential through the Association for Play Therapy, and none of our clinicians hold it. Sheri McCue is certified in art therapy.
Eight of the most common reasons people book a first session. Yours might not be on this list, and that's fine — bring it to the first call.
Stomachaches before school, a kid who won't sleep alone, or one who needs to know the plan for every hour.
Meltdowns that outlast the trigger, hitting, or a child who's fine at school and comes apart at home.
Homework that takes three hours, lost everything, and a kid who's already decided they're the bad one.
Doors, hands, words that don't sound like them. Underneath there's usually something they can't say yet.
No invitations, a friendship that keeps collapsing, or a kid who plays alongside other children instead of with them.
Someone's targeting them, or they've started doing it. Both need looking at.
A death in the family, or a pet. Young kids grieve in pieces and then go back to playing, which throws parents.
A move, a divorce, a new sibling, a parent deployed. The behavior often shows up months after the event.
Yours might be something else. Bring it to the first call.
Some kids won't talk, and some can't. Both are common, and neither means therapy is off the table.
Sheri McCue is certified in it. A child draws what they can't narrate, and the drawing gives your therapist something to work from. Useful for trauma and for kids who freeze when asked direct questions.
A listening-based intervention that works on the nervous system rather than through conversation. Amanda Eannarino and Sheri McCue are both certified. Used with children who are anxious, easily overwhelmed, or sensitive to noise and touch.
For children carrying something specific: an accident, a loss, something that happened to them. Amanda and Dr. Caruso are both trained in it, adapted for how young clients process.
Amanda Eannarino works with autistic children and their families. Sessions get built around how your child processes rather than around a standard format, which often means sensory-aware pacing and no pressure to make eye contact.
Child therapy runs partly through you. That's not a workload warning, it's how the results hold once sessions end.
With younger children you'll sit in for parts of a session and step out for others. Your therapist tells you which and why. That balance shifts as your child gets older.
Some appointments are yours without your child there. You'll cover what's working at home, what isn't, and what to try next. These aren't therapy for you, they're strategy for the situation.
What your therapist is working on and why. What's changing. What to do differently at home. With young children there's little kept from you, which is the opposite of how this works with teenagers.
We match on the child, not on who has an opening.
Art Therapy · Safe & Sound
Certified in art therapy and in the Safe and Sound Protocol. Works with children as young as three, across grief, trauma, anxiety, and DCFS-involved families.
EMDR · Brainspotting
Doctoral training in child, adolescent, and family psychology. Trained in EMDR and Brainspotting. Doctoral research on stepparent relationships.
EMDR · Safe & Sound
Doctorate in clinical psychology, eleven certifications including EMDR and the Safe and Sound Protocol. Works with autistic children and their families.
A four-year-old at five in the afternoon is a different child than at ten in the morning. Tell us when yours is at their best and we'll work around it.
4209 W Shamrock Lane, Suite E. Easy from Crystal Lake, Woodstock, Cary, and across McHenry County. Free parking.
Works better than parents expect for school-age kids, less well for the youngest ones. Your therapist will tell you which your child is after meeting them.
We bill under your child's own diagnosis, on your plan. Straightforward for anxiety, depression, ADHD, and behavioral concerns. We check your specific plan before you book, so you know your copay going in.
Sessions without your child present usually bill under their diagnosis too, since the work is part of their treatment. Ask how yours will be handled, because plans vary on this one.
Sessions run [$X to $X], with a sliding scale available. Safe and Sound Protocol and art therapy are billed as regular sessions, not as add-ons.
Straight answers before you decide whether to call.
Keep it plain. Someone whose job is helping kids with worries, or with feeling angry, and there'll be toys. Skip the word therapy if it worries them. Most kids stop asking after the first visit.
Expected, and not a problem. Play and art are the way in for exactly this. Your therapist has spent whole first sessions with a child who said nothing and still learned plenty.
Depends what you're dealing with. Anxiety or a behavior issue often runs 12 to 20 sessions. Trauma takes longer. Your therapist tells you where things stand rather than keeping you booked with no end in sight.
Sometimes both. If the trouble sits between people in the house, family sessions may do more. Your therapist will say which after meeting your child. Family therapy in McHenry.
Your therapist can identify what they're seeing and put a diagnosis on the chart when one applies. Formal testing for learning disabilities or autism is a separate service. Ask on the first call.
Yes, in person in McHenry and online across Illinois.
You don't need a diagnosis, a clear explanation, or your child's agreement. Tell us what you're seeing at home and we'll tell you whether therapy makes sense, which therapist fits, and whether your child is old enough.