support for children and adolescents 8 - 18 years
When your child/adolescent is diagnosed with a disability, chronic illness, experiencing grief and loss or not coping socially, then life can suddenly feel uncertain and overwhelming. The emotional weight of these challenges/changes can be difficult to carry alone.
At Still Waters Counselling, we specilaise in working with children and adolescents, beginning from a shared understanding of complex needs, allowing us to address the emotional and relational impact of illness/disability/loss and adjusting to new ways of life.
Still Waters Counselling uses a strengths-based, compassionate approach offering a supportive space to explore these experiences gently. It can help you and your child process these challenges and find ways to navigate life with greater understanding, confidence, hope and resilience.
Together we can explore:
- Anxiety and worries – school anxiety, separation anxiety, social worries, perfectionism.
- Emotional regulation – understanding feelings, calming strategies, managing anger and frustration.
- Self-esteem and confidence – building resilience and a positive self-image.
- Friendships and social skills – making friends, resolving conflict, communication.
- Managing big life changes – grief, illness, moving schools, family changes.
- Neurodiversity support – helping children with ADHD, Autism, Specific Learning Disabilities, understand themselves and develop coping strategies.
- Stress and overwhelm – learning relaxation, mindfulness, and coping skills.
- Developing problem-solving skills – building independence and confidence in handling challenges.
- Identity and strengths – helping children/adolescents recognise their unique abilities and values.
Life Changes and challanges
Life doesn’t always unfold the way we expected. Changes in our health, relationships, family, work or circumstances can leave us feeling overwhelmed, uncertain or wondering what comes next.
Sometimes the challenge is something we have chosen; other times life changes suddenly and without our permission. Either way, adjusting to a different reality can take time.
Counselling can provide a safe and supportive space to process what has changed, acknowledge what has been lost, and begin finding a way forward that feels meaningful and manageable.
Still Waters Counselling can support you through:
- Major life transitions and unexpected change
- Changes in health or physical ability
- Changes and challenges in relationships
- Loss of career, role, identity or purpose
- Caring responsibilities and changes within the family
- Feeling burned out or exhausted
- Loneliness, isolation or changes in social connection
- Feeling stuck or uncertain about the future
- Adjusting to a “new normal”
- Rebuilding confidence, meaning and direction
You don’t have to have everything figured out before you begin. Sometimes the first step is simply having somewhere safe to talk about where you are now.
Stilll Waters Counselling offers a safe and confidential space to slow down and talk openly about what you are experiencing without judgement, where you can explore what is important to you, gain clarity, and begin to find steadiness again.
PARENTS/CARERS
At times, life can feel like it is simply too much to carry.
Being a carer can be deeply meaningful, but it can also be physically and emotionally demanding.
When so much of your time and energy is focused on the needs of another person, it can be easy to lose sight of your own needs. You may experience exhaustion, worry about the future, isolation, guilt, frustration, managing the NDIS, grief, or simply feel overwhelmed by the ongoing responsibility of caring.
Sometimes carers need a space that is just for them — somewhere they don’t have to be strong, have the answers, or put someone else’s needs first.
Many carers experience seasons where they feel:
- anxious or constantly on edge
- emotionally drained
- overwhelmed by responsibilities
- constantly attending therapy and medical appointments
- stuck, lost, or uncertain about the future
- feeling unseen, unheard and not understood
- frustrated with navigating everchanging health systems
- experiencing grief and loss
At Still Waters Counselling we support parents/carers to cope with stress, grief, burnout and unexpected challenges of caring for the ongoing needs of your loved one. We support you to go from surviving to living a fulfilling and strengths based life.
We offer you
- Emotional support – grief, anxiety, burnout, frustration, loneliness.
- Adjustment counselling – receiving a diagnosis, changing expectations, finding hope again.
- Carer burnout prevention – recognising warning signs, setting boundaries, practical self-care that actually fits a busy life.
- Identity after diagnosis – helping parents rediscover who they are beyond being a full-time carer.
- Building resilience – coping with setbacks, hospital admissions, school issues and uncertainty.
- Manage stress and build self care and self compassion.
- Supporting the whole family – helping siblings feel included and strengthening family communication.
- Life planning – balancing caring responsibilities with work, relationships, friendships and personal goals.
Stilll Waters Counselling offers a safe and confidential space to slow down and talk openly about what you are experiencing without judgement, where you can explore what is important to you, gain clarity, and begin to find steadiness again.
Even in difficult seasons, it is possible to rediscover a sense of calm and strength within yourself.