Dismiss Modal

Therapy Services


Call our office for more details regarding availability and fees.

About our Therapist:  For many years Heather Schuck, LICSW, PIP has worked in the field of adoption, assisting and counseling with families going through the adoption process and once home. She has experience working with children and adults facing crisis issues, attachment difficulties, trauma, anxiety, grief, depression, anger, and providing parenting and marriage support. Heather uses Theraplay® principles in her therapeutic work with children and families, is a TBRI practitioner, and has been educated in the principles of Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy.


Parent

Parent Skills Training:

Many families walk through an extensive education process during the pre-adoption phase of their journey. Families are typically educated by their adoption agency on what to expect once their child/ren are first in their care and once home. Even with extensive education that some families go through during the pre-adoption phase, the TAC has found that many families are struggling to recall the education they have gone through due to long wait times to be matched, delays with their process, etc… Education received from the agency might have been received up to 1 or 2 years before their child has come into their care. We have found that these families need some added support now that they are home.

The Parenting Skills Training is a refresher on some pre adoption education that families have received. Additionally, this education can be provided with a more tailored approach because post adoption families now have a better since of behaviors their child has. This is no longer training and education regarding a hypothetical child that is received pre-adoption, but training regarding the actual child in a family’s care focusing on that specific child’s behaviors.

Our Parenting Skills Training is held in the office or by phone consult. There is not a set number of sessions/phone consults with this service. It is fluid and depends largely on the parent and child’s needs.

Individual or Relational Therapy:

The adoption journey can bring out many emotions, thoughts, and triggers that can positively or negatively affect each parent and relationship within the home. Sometimes parents need a safe place to communicate their struggles, thoughts, and feelings in a non-judgmental environment. TAC would like to provide such a place to receive support, encouragement, and help in processing issues that arise. This service is for either the individual parent or on parent relationships.

Our Individual or Relational Therapy is held in the office. There is not a set number of session with this service. Each individual’s needs are assessed at the end of each session for future sessions.


Child

Theraplay:

“Theraplay is a short-term, attachment-based intervention utilizing non-symbolic, interactional play to re-create experiences of secure attachment formation between parent and child. The interactive sequences are carefully structured by the therapist to make possible the pleasure of being together and shared enjoyment in the child´s mastery. These elements of shared positive emotions may be crucial in restructuring the attachment relationship towards greater organization and security. Theraplay’s Core Concepts consist of interaction, here and now experience, adult guidance, attunement, right brain language, multisensory experience, and playfulness as well as the Theraplay Dimensions of Structure, Engagement, Nurture and Challenge.” – Taken from Theraplay.org 

Providing Theraplay has been shown to promote and improve healthy attachments and reduce behavioral issues among parents and their child/children by focusing on 4 core principles within sessions: structure, nurture, challenge, and engagement.

The focus of TAC Theraplay is a broad client base of therapy to not only internationally adopted children but also to their family members (including siblings) as well as domestically adopted families, foster care families, and other families who would meet criteria for this therapy modality.

Theraplay is used to foster healthy parent/child interactions through controlled, intentional play overseen by the therapist focusing on the core principles detailed above. At TAC we see many families struggling with a variety of behavioral and attachment issues seeking help. Many are overwhelmed and not knowing what to do. This form of therapy has been used to work through these issues that are present among many adopted children and their families to result in positive, reconnecting outcomes for both child and parent.