Children Archives - Real Life Counseling

Teaching and Modeling Resilience to Our Children in Tough Times

September 2

We are going through a monumentally strange time in our lives right now. This is maybe the only thing that is utterly true at all times because everything else is shifting. A global pandemic has put it’s thumb on daily life and changed things we have taken for granted – face-to-face time with friends, family and acquaintances, work, school and now school sports. It’s all changing, stopping, or both, and it is hard. Potentially losing a year of team sports is going to be a challenge that we never planned to face.

While this is a … Read more

Helping Children Harness Fear: Lightning in a Jar

August 27

By Seth Hock, LMFT

As a child, I was very anxious about many things. I would worry about how long my parents would be away when they left home, about going on campouts or to church camp for a week, and perhaps most of all, I would worry about storms. I can, when I choose to visit my inner child, still experience the anxiety he once felt about those Midwestern storms that would slowly roll though our part of the prairie. I remember listening closely when the weatherman came on the TV or radio; I would scan the skies looking … Read more

Tips for the Transition Back To School

August 14

We hope you’ve had a great summer. It hasn’t been as hot as past Kansas summers (fingers crossed!), so hopefully you and your kids have been able to enjoy the outdoors and the swimming pool or whatever you like to do! Now it’s time for kids to go back to school. This is one of the biggest transitions in the year for families with kids of all ages, and it is important to keep in mind stress is higher around this time. To help with the back to school stress, our Real Life Counseling clinicians have compiled a list of … Read more

“Because I Said So”: Instilling Confidence and Healthy Decision-Making in Our Children

June 12

By Seth Hock, LMFT

We have all been there, on both sides of the conversation – the ongoing negotiation between parents and children, when parents are asking children to do something they may not want to do. As parents, we can be exasperated from the arguments, power struggles, and the constant reminders to do something. The voice, oh so familiar, broadcasts the same tired message. It reverberates through our headspace like an ancient echo: “How many times do I have to ask or tell them to listen?”

Children, at times in innocent ignorance and at other times in stubborn defiance, … Read more

Mass Shootings: How to Talk to Our Children

February 7

By Krista Reed, LSCSW

On October 13, 2017, I was in Las Vegas for a training that was across the street from the Mandalay Bay. Approximately one week prior, a man opened fire on country festival, Route 91 Harvest, from a broken window at Mandalay Bay. 58 people were killed, 422 people suffered injuries from gunfire, and another 851 individuals had injuries as a result of the attack (Andone & Sidner, 2018) During my lunch break, I decided to walk over to the hotel and pay my respects. I briefly spoke with a police officer who appeared exhausted and was … Read more

Pediatric Oncology Support Groups Start January 18, 2017 at Wesley Children’s Hospital

January 5

Real Life Counseling has teamed up with Wesley Children’s Hospital to provide support groups for pediatric oncology patients and their families. These support groups have been generously funded by Wesley Children’s Foundation. The goal of these support groups is to provide a place where patients and their families can meet and support one another through the difficulties of diagnosis, treatment and life change associated with childhood cancer. Separate groups will be provided for oncology patients, for parents and for siblings of patients. Go here for dates.

Who Is Invited to These Support Groups?

All pediatric (under the age of … Read more

How To Tell If A Child Has ADHD

September 24

A lot of children have trouble paying attention and staying on task in school. ADHD is often the first explanation given for academic problems, whether the problems are listening to directions, organizing tasks or hyper or disruptive behavior. These are all characteristics of ADHD, but they are also signs of other problems at times. For example, if a child has stress in their school or home life, the trouble focusing may be better explained as a reaction to those problems than ADHD. Many times, the distractibility and disorganization go away if the stress is removed, or if the child learns … Read more