686,000 people sought help with Thriveworks in the last year

Discover how starting therapy with a child/teen can support your own journey toward a happier, more fulfilling life.

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All VA providers are fully booked, but check back tomorrow — sessions become available daily!

Hear from our clinicians

What is your go-to approach for teen counseling?

Sue: My go-to approach for helping teens in counseling is to connect with them based on what is important to them. I often use music and TV shows or movies to help me connect with the teens I work with in therapy to help them open up about their feelings.

Sarah: Teen counseling can be beneficial for those seeking to find additional support, compassion, and understanding in a nonjudgmental environment when they are seeking to learn ways to improve emotional regulation, relationships, communication, self-esteem, and other areas to increase success and functioning.

What tools do you teach in teen counseling?

Sue: I teach the following tools to teens in counseling: psychoeducation on topics relevant to them, coping skills, emotional regulation, DBT, CBT, grounding, and mindfulness.

Sarah: Tools that benefit teens in counseling:

  • Emotional identification/regulation
  • Conflict resolution
  • Anger management
  • Self esteem skills
  • Challenging/reframing negative thoughts/beliefs
  • Self-care
  • Organization of thoughts and behaviors
  • Communication skills
  • Boundary setting
  • Increase social skills
  • Managing relationships
  • Life transitions

How do you know when a client is making meaningful progress in teen counseling?

Sue: I know a client is making progress in teen therapy when there are noticeable changes in baseline functioning, self-report, and when assessing progress with evidence-based questionaries.

Sarah: Teen counseling progress could be found in the reports of improvement in areas of distress with skills and education being practiced outside of sessions.

What can clients do in their personal time to supplement teen counseling?

Sue: Clients can supplement therapy by journaling, completing homework assigned in session, practicing self-care techniques, and completing workbooks aligned with symptom management.

Sarah: Clients can use skills learned in sessions to help improve their chances of success when they are practicing outside of sessions and discussing results in sessions.

What should someone do to prepare for starting teen counseling?

Sue: To prepare for their first teen counseling session, a teen can write down their goals for therapy and what is bringing them to therapy.

Sarah: Clients can expect the initial intake session to include multiple questions related to client history and current presenting problems and symptoms to support identifying best practices for creating treatment goals for success.

Starting Child/teen therapy

What is child & teen counseling?

Thriveworks child & teen counseling in Norfolk helps young individuals better understand and manage the challenges that affect their mental health. Common challenges amongst kids include behavioral issues, trauma, bullying, depression, and anxiety. All ages of children and adolescents can attend and benefit from therapy.

How does child & teen counseling work?

Child & teen counseling works by using multiple techniques, tailored to fit the child or teen’s needs based on their age group, their challenges, and the severity of their challenges. It might involve play therapy for younger kids or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectic behavioral therapy, art therapy, and others for varying ages. In any case, child & teen counselors have the expertise and experience to help young individuals at their level.

Is child & teen counseling conducted in person or online?

Child & teen counseling at Thriveworks is conducted both in person and via Online therapy. We encourage you to choose the option that works best for you.

How long does child & teen counseling last?

The length of child & teen counseling at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA depends on your child’s needs as well as the goals that you and their therapist might have for them. Generally, child & teen counseling sessions will last for several months.

Need more help deciding?

Child Therapy and Adolescent Counseling in Norfolk, VA—Child Therapists

If your child has a learning or attention issue, or perhaps is going through an emotional turmoil that is causing them to have a hard time, the child therapists and counselors at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA can work with them to improve their social skills or any number of issues they may be dealing with. The child therapists and counselors at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA are professionally licensed and have years of experience in the field. Call or book online to get started with a Thriveworks child therapist in Norfolk today.

Learning and Attention Issues Have a Direct Impact on Social Skills

It is helpful to know that some learning and attention issues greatly impact a child’s social skills. Sometimes, a child’s communication skills or listening comprehension skills can make conversation difficult. Other learning and attention issues create numerous behaviors that can get in the way of making friends. The following are just a few of the issues.

  • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Children with ADHD may lack self-control, be overactive, talk too much, say things without thinking or do not pay attention to what other people are saying.
  • Executive Functioning Issues. Children with Executive Functioning Issues may have problems with sharing, taking turns, controlling emotions and accepting other people’s viewpoints.
  • Nonverbal Learning Disabilities (NVLD). Children with NVLD may miss social cues, such as body language, expression and tone of voice. They may not understand humor or sarcasm and take what others say to them too literally.
  • Auditory Processing Disorder (APD). Children with APD may miss the point of what others say, miss words in a conversation or have difficulty following the directions in games.
  • Language Disorders. Children with Language Disorders may not understand the rules of conversation or may have trouble finding the right words to use. This can lead them to avoid talking when other children are around.

Not all children with learning and attention issues have a hard time making friends. In fact, some kids find that social skills are their strength. If it is an issue for your child, he or she is not alone. Kids with learning and attention issues face social challenges often. Compared with their peers, studies have shown that kids with learning and attention issues are more likely to be:

  • Poorly accepted by their peers.
  • Socially alienated from teachers and classmates.
  • Seen by teachers as lacking social skills.
  • Not chosen to play or join in group activities.
  • Willing to conform to peer pressure.

Kids can feel they do not fit in at school, at extracurricular activities, and even with their siblings at home. They may require additional time and attention from teachers, parents, and others. Oftentimes, they may call negative attention to themselves by asking inappropriate questions, seem uninterested in other kids’ conversations, interrupt a lot, or move around constantly at the wrong times. Other children may react badly or turn away from the child.

If you think your child shows signs of a learning or attention issue, and you want to learn more to help them, it is wise to schedule a child therapy appointment.

Child Therapy Techniques for Learning and Attention Issues

One of the ways therapists work with children with issues, such as attention issues, is behavioral therapy—also known as behavior modification. Shown to be a successful treatment for children with ADHD, it involves reinforcing desired behaviors through rewards and praise and decreasing problem behaviors by setting limits and consequences. For example, one intervention may be that a teacher rewards a child with ADHD for taking steps toward raising a hand before speaking in class (even if the child still blurts out a comment). The theory is that rewarding the struggle toward these changes encourages the full new behavior. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there are three principles to any behavior therapy:

  • Set specific goals. Set clear goals for the child, such as focusing on homework for a certain time or sharing toys with friends.
  • Provide rewards and consequences. The child receives a reward for positive reinforcement when he shows the desired behavior. In addition, the child receives a consequence when he fails to meet a goal.
  • Continue using the rewards and consequences. Using the rewards and consequences consistently for a long time period will shape the child’s behavior in a positive way.

The professional therapists and counselors at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA are experienced in child and adolescent therapy and provide counseling to work with the child and the family in many situations. A child with a learning disability may struggle with low self-esteem, frustration and other problems. The therapists at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA can work with the child to understand feelings, develop coping tools and learn how to build healthy relationships.

Child Therapy in Norfolk, VA for Mental Health and Other Problems

The therapists and counselors at Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA have professional licenses and credentials. They are also knowledgeable of the many child and adolescent issues, including learning and attention disorders, major and chronic illness of somebody in the family, special needs and much more.

The therapists work with the child and parents to ensure that everybody is comfortable in making strides toward a happier and healthier life. Book online or simply give Thriveworks in Norfolk, VA a call at (757) 317-4315 for child and adolescent therapy and counseling.

Pricing & insurance

Our therapists accept most major insurances. We accept 585+ insurance plans, and offer self-pay options, too.
Learn more about pricing for therapy and counseling services at Thriveworks.

Our Norfolk therapists and counselors accept 27 insurance plans

  • Aetna

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia Medicare Advantage

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | BCBS HMO

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | BCBS PPO

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | Exchange

  • Blue Cross Blue Shield | Anthem (Blue Card)

  • Carelon

  • Cigna | Evernorth

  • Cigna | Evernorth EAP

  • Cigna | Evernorth Medicare Advantage

  • Compsych

  • First Health Network

Show more
Self-pay costs at Norfolk
Talk therapy

Talk therapy

Includes individual, couples, child/ teen, & family therapy

First session

$1

Ongoing sessions

$1

Talk therapy

Psychiatry

Includes reducing symptoms with medication & management

First session

$1

Ongoing sessions

$1

Hear from our clients

Thriveworks Norfolk has no reviews yet, but check out these reviews from locations in Virginia.

4.5 Thriveworks Norfolk reviews are collected through Thriveworks.com.
★★★★★
Thriveworks helped me realize that I do believe people can change. I’m not the person I was three months ago, broken and fearful. I’m healthy and happy and for the first time being kind to myself. Thank you for giving me my life back.
Read more Thriveworks helped me realize that I do believe people can change. I’m not the person I was three months ago, broken and fearful. I’m healthy and happy and for the first time being kind to myself. Thank you for giving me my life back.
Anonymous Thriveworks Client
Review left on Thriveworks.com

Where to find us

Getting here

Thriveworks Counseling & Psychiatry Norfolk is located on Hampton Blvd, near the intersection with Redgate Avenue and the Midtown Tunnel. The building is nestled between the Elizabeth River and the historic Ghent residential district, just down the street from Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.

Phone number

(757) 280-4736

Languages spoken by VA providers

  • English
Thursday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Friday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Saturday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Sunday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Monday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Tuesday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Wednesday 8:00am - 9:00pm

Shown in ET

Thursday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Friday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Saturday 7:00am - 6:00pm
Sunday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Monday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Tuesday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Wednesday 7:00am - 9:30pm

Shown in ET

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