Compassionate Mental Health Services for Children, Teens, and Families
At Tides Mental Health, we specialize in providing comprehensive child and adolescent therapy services to families throughout Chicago. Our team of experienced mental health professionals understands that young people face unique challenges that require specialized care, cultural sensitivity, and evidence-based approaches tailored to their developmental needs.
We offer both in-person and telehealth counseling services, making it convenient for families to access the adolescent mental health support they need. Our diverse team includes licensed therapists with expertise in clinical child psychology, counseling psychology, and specialized training in working with children and adolescents from all backgrounds.
Choosing the Right Format for Your Child: While we offer flexible service options, we want to be transparent about which format may work best for your child. Telehealth can be an excellent option for high school-age teens (ages 14-18) who are comfortable with talk therapy and technology. However, younger children and middle schoolers often benefit most from in-person sessions, particularly when therapeutic approaches include play-based interventions or hands-on techniques that support their developmental stage.
We also prioritize your child’s safety above all else. During your initial consultation, we’ll discuss your child’s specific needs and any safety considerations to determine whether in-person or telehealth services are most appropriate. Our mental health professionals will work with you to choose the format that best supports your child’s therapeutic goals and ensures the highest quality care.
Comprehensive Mental Health Services for Young People
Individual Child and Adolescent Therapy
Our individual counseling services provide a safe space where children and teens can explore their feelings, develop coping skills, and work through challenges with a dedicated mental health professional. We utilize evidence-based approaches from professional psychology, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and mindfulness-based interventions.
Our adolescent counselors are trained to address the basic psychological needs of young people while considering their child’s age, developmental processes, and individual circumstances. Whether your child is EXPERIENCING vulnerability with mood, behavior, adjustment, trauma, or neurodevelopmental differences, we provide personalized psychological services that promote growth and resilience.
Individual Child and Adolescent Therapy
Our individual counseling services provide a safe space where children and teens can explore their feelings, develop coping skills, and work through challenges with a dedicated mental health professional. We utilize evidence-based approaches from professional psychology, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and mindfulness-based interventions.
Our adolescent counselors are trained to address the basic psychological needs of young people while considering their child’s age, developmental processes, and individual circumstances. Whether your child is experiencing vulnerability with mood, behavior, adjustment, or trauma—or navigating neurodevelopmental differences—we provide personalized psychological services that promote growth and resilience.
Parent Collaboration and Support: Even when therapy is primarily individual, we recognize that parents and caregivers are essential partners in your child’s therapeutic journey. Our mental health professionals schedule regular one-on-one sessions with parents to provide updates on progress, offer guidance on supporting your child at home, and address any questions or concerns. These collaborative check-ins ensure that everyone is working together toward your child’s goals while respecting the confidential therapeutic relationship between your child and their counselor.
Family Therapy Services
Family therapy is a cornerstone of our approach to adolescent mental health. We understand that lasting change often happens within the context of supportive family relationships. Our family therapy sessions help improve communication, resolve conflicts, and strengthen family bonds through evidence-based counseling approaches.
Our mental health professionals provide emotional support and guidance to all family members while helping the entire family navigate challenges together. We work collaboratively to create supportive home environments that promote ongoing growth and resilience for children and adolescents.
Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT)
For families with younger children experiencing behavioral challenges, we offer parent child interaction therapy techniques—a specialized, evidence-based approach that strengthens the parent-child relationship while addressing behavior management needs. PCIT focuses on coaching parents in real-time to develop effective communication and behavior management strategies that create positive changes at home.
This approach is particularly beneficial for families navigating challenging behaviors, family conflicts, or attachment concerns. Our trained mental health professionals work directly with parents to build confidence in their parenting skills while fostering stronger emotional connections with their children.
Group Therapy Programs
Our group therapy options provide young people with opportunities to connect with peers facing similar challenges. Understanding group dynamics and how social contexts influence behavior, our adolescent counselors facilitate groups that focus on social skills development, emotional regulation, and peer support.
Group therapy can be particularly beneficial for teens working on self esteem issues, social anxiety, or relationship skills. We maintain small group sizes to ensure personalized attention while fostering meaningful connections among participants.
Specialized Treatment Programs
We provide specialized psychological services for various mental health conditions affecting children and adolescents:
Trauma and PTSD Recovery: Our trauma-informed mental health professionals use somatic approaches and evidence-based psychotherapy to help young people process difficult experiences safely.
Anxiety and Depression Treatment: We address these common mental health issues through comprehensive counseling that includes cognitive-behavioral techniques, mindfulness training, and family involvement.
ADHD Support: Our team provides behavior management strategies, executive functioning support, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal skills building to foster healthy identity development. We collaborate with other professionals including school personnel to ensure comprehensive support across all areas of your child’s life.
Eating Disorders Recovery: We offer specialized treatment that addresses both the behavioral and psychological aspects of eating disorders through compassionate, evidence-based care.
LGBTQIA+ Affirming Care: Our child/adolescent counselors provide culturally responsive support for young people exploring their identity, ensuring they feel seen and understood.
Who We Help
Children and Adolescents Across the Lifespan
We work with young people from elementary age through young adults, adapting our approach to meet their developmental needs. Our individual child therapy addresses the unique challenges faced by younger children, while our adolescent therapy focuses on the complex issues teens navigate during this crucial developmental period.
Diverse and Inclusive Care
Our team is committed to providing affirming counseling for young people from all backgrounds. We understand how social contexts influence mental health and ensure that BIPOC youth, LGBTQIA+ teens, neurodivergent children, and multilingual families receive culturally responsive psychological services.
Common Challenges We Address
Our mental health services support young people facing:
- Anxiety and Depression: Including school anxiety, social fears, and persistent sadness
- Behavioral Management: Behaviors that may be interfering with the child’s success across home and school settings, requiring tailored support strategies
- Trauma and PTSD: Supporting youth in reclaiming safety, fostering resilience and connection, and creating space for healing through skills building and gradual processing at their own pace
- ADHD: Executive functioning support and Strengthening executive functioning, emotional regulation, self-awareness, shame resilience, and confidence, as well as, affirming individualized strategies or Working together to co-create strategies that build confidence, enhance connection, and honor the child’s unique rhythm and needs
- Eating Disorders: Comprehensive treatment addressing underlying emotional factors
- Self Esteem Issues: Building confidence and positive self-image
- Family Conflicts: Improving communication and relationships through family therapy
- Life Transitions: Support during divorce, moves, school changes, or loss
- Identity Exploration: Affirming support for teens exploring their identity
- Grief and Loss: Processing significant losses with age-appropriate support
Our Evidence-Based Approach
Clinical Expertise in Child Development
Our mental health professionals bring extensive training in clinical child psychology and counseling psychology. We understand the developmental processes that influence how children and adolescents experience and express mental health challenges, ensuring our interventions are developmentally appropriate and effective.
We stay current with the latest research in adolescent mental health and collaborate with other professionals to provide comprehensive care that addresses all aspects of a young person’s life.
Therapeutic Modalities We Use
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Helping young people identify and change unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors through age-appropriate techniques.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT): A comprehensive, skills-based approach that supports teens in managing emotions, improving relationships, navigating stress, and cultivating mindful awareness.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): Supporting psychological flexibility and values-based living during identity formation years.
Emotionally Focused Therapy: Improving emotional connections within families and helping young people express their feelings safely.
Mindfulness-Based Therapy: Teaching present-moment awareness and emotional regulation skills.
Art Therapy and Creative Approaches: Utilizing creative expression when traditional talk therapy isn’t the best fit for a young person.
Trauma-Informed Care: Therapy that centers safety, attunement, and client choice. Recognizing trauma’s impact on body, mind, and relationships without retraumatizing. We approach all care with an understanding of how trauma shapes a person’s mind, body, and relationships. Our work is grounded in connection, context, and choice. This means prioritizing emotional safety, collaborative pacing, and attunement. We avoid re-traumatization by starting with stabilization and supporting healing without rushing into trauma processing
Family-Centered Treatment
We believe families are essential partners in healing. Our family therapy approach recognizes that family members play crucial roles in supporting adolescent mental health. We provide emotional support to parents while helping families develop effective communication patterns and behavior management strategies.
Research shows that family involvement significantly improves treatment outcomes for young people struggling with mental health issues. We work collaboratively with families to create supportive home environments that promote ongoing growth and resilience.
What to Expect
Getting Started
Your journey begins with a free 15-minute consultation where we learn about your family’s needs and help determine if our mental health services are the right fit. We’ll discuss your concerns and explain how our adolescent counseling approach can support your child or teen.
Our intake process is designed to be welcoming and supportive, recognizing that reaching out for psychological services can feel overwhelming. We guide families through our secure client portal and help match you with the mental health professional who best fits your child’s personality and needs.
First Session and Beyond
In the initial session, our adolescent counselor focuses on building rapport and creating safety. We explore what brought your family to therapy and begin understanding your child’s unique strengths and vulnerabilities, considering their basic psychological needs and developmental stage.
Once counseling is established, we typically meet weekly or bi-weekly depending on your child’s needs. Our approach is collaborative—we work with young people to set goals and regularly assess progress. We may suggest between-session activities tailored to your child’s interests and learning style.
Ongoing Support
We maintain regular communication with families while respecting confidentiality. For younger children, parents are more involved in sessions and treatment planning. For teenagers, we balance privacy needs with appropriate family involvement.
We provide progress updates, offer suggestions for supporting your child at home, and are available for consultation when challenges arise between sessions.
Why Choose Tides Mental Health
Specialized Expertise
Our team brings extensive experience in child and adolescent therapy, with training in clinical child psychology and counseling psychology. We understand the unique developmental needs of young people and adapt our therapeutic approaches accordingly.
We stay current with research in adolescent mental health and regularly collaborate with other professionals to ensure comprehensive and INTEGRATED evidence based care.
Integrated care is LACKING hard in the US and it makes people’s lives so much harder than they need to be. Having access to all of your providers in the same spot could be game changing down the line depending where things with medicine in this country go.
But even with therapy and med management, that is still integrated care and something a lot of big clinics have (like Clarity Clinic)
Culturally Responsive Care
We provide affirming counseling for young people from all backgrounds. Our diverse team understands the specific challenges faced by marginalized youth and creates therapeutic environments where young people don’t have to minimize their identity or translate their experiences.
Flexible and Accessible Services
We offer both in-person therapy at our Chicago location and telehealth options to accommodate busy family schedules. Evening and weekend appointments are available to ensure accessing mental health services doesn’t create additional stress.
Comprehensive Team Approach
As a group practice, we offer multiple mental health professionals with different specialties. If your child’s needs evolve, we can transition to a different therapist within our practice who might be a better fit for their changing goals.
Our team collaborates regularly, sharing knowledge and consulting with each other to ensure the best possible psychological services for every young person we serve.
Insurance and Accessibility
We are in-network with major commercial plans in our area, making our mental health services accessible to more families. Our intake team can help navigate benefits and answer questions about coverage.
Take the First Step
If you’re considering child and adolescent therapy for your young person, we encourage you to reach out. Mental health support isn’t just for crisis situations—many families find counseling helpful for building resilience, improving communication, and supporting healthy development.
Our mental health professionals are here to answer questions, address concerns, and help determine if our adolescent counseling services might benefit your child. We understand every family’s situation is unique and are committed to finding the right approach for your specific needs.
Ready to get started? Contact us today to schedule your free 15-minute consultation. During this conversation, we’ll learn about your family’s needs and help you understand what therapy might look like for your child or teen.
Call our office or visit our website to take the first step toward supporting your child’s mental health and well-being. Remember, seeking support for your young person is a sign of strength and love—you’re providing them with valuable tools that will serve them throughout their lives.
Our compassionate team is ready to walk alongside your family on this journey toward healing, growth, and resilience.