Services

Treatment

The therapists at The Oak Centre are unique in that all clinicians are both highly skilled in their respective areas of expertise, extremely warm and compassionate, and demonstrate a dedicated passion for working with children, adolescents and their families.

What types of treatment does The Oak Centre provide?

Treatment may be indicated if you and/or your child/teen are experiencing symptoms or concerns that interfere with your daily living or relationships, and ability to enjoy life. This could be a change in behaviour, trouble sleeping, a change in appetite, trouble with family and peer relationships, a drop in academic performance, questions around sexuality, or difficulty managing emotions.

The Oak Centre’s comprehensive treatment options address a variety of concerns, some of which are associated with anxiety, low mood or depression, difficult behaviour, obsessive compulsive disorder, family problems, learning disabilities, ADHD, developmental disabilities, stress, trauma, social skills training, bullying, abuse, sexuality, and adjustment (e.g. divorce, change in schools).

While there are many approaches to therapy, the importance of a strong therapeutic alliance is at the forefront of the therapist-client relationship. It is important to us that you trust that you are in good hands, and that we will work hard together to reach goals. In doing so, we collect a thorough history, consider current symptoms, how symptoms are affecting day to day functioning, and we set goals to work on. We will often evaluate or ask you about the sessions, and the effectiveness of the treatment we provide, all to ensure a high level of commitment to supporting you and your family.

In working with children and teens, the various therapists at The Oak Centre utilize a range of treatment approaches, depending on the nature of the presenting concerns. Below are some of the major approaches that we incorporate:

Behaviour Therapy

Behaviour therapy is a specialized form of psychotherapy that seeks to identify and help change unhealthy behaviours. It is based on the idea that behaviours are learned, and that unhealthy behaviours can be changed or unlearned. The focus of treatment is typically on changing behaviours that are interfering with the child’s functioning, by reinforcing their positive behaviours and reducing the more difficult ones. Our behaviour therapists are warm, friendly, highly skilled, and work with you to determine which behaviours to work on.

Psychoeducation

Psychoeducation is a component in most individual and family therapy sessions, where we provide the client information about their condition or development, so that they may gain a deeper understanding of what is happening, and which may help to inform treatment direction.

Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)

DBT is a type of therapy that helps clients find ways to accept themselves, feel safe, live in the moment, manage their strong emotions, and regulate harmful behaviours. DBT uses techniques such as validation, mindfulness, a variety of distress tolerance techniques, and increasing interpersonal effectiveness. We would implement a DBT approach primarily in clients who have great difficulty with emotion regulation and engage in destructive behaviours (e.g., cutting, substance use).

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT is a widely used and evidence based form of psychotherapy that can be considered to treat a range of problems including anxiety, depression, and other mental illnesses. It is based on the idea that how we think (our “cognitions”) and how we act (our “behaviour”), affect how we feel, so making changes in our thought patterns and behaviours can affect how we feel. There are also very specific types of CBT that we utilize to treat certain conditions, for example exposure therapy to treat phobias, and exposure plus response prevention (EX/RP) to treat OCD. We would develop a plan that suits you and your specific needs.

EMDR

Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy is a type of psychotherapy that has been recognized as an effective therapy especially for reducing symptoms associated with stress and trauma. We would consider this option for clients coming to The Oak Centre with concerns around PTSD (e.g., resulting from motor vehicle accidents), trauma histories (e.g., abuse), and sometimes early attachment issues, amongst others.

Types of Therapy

Individual Psychotherapy

Individual psychotherapy is primarily a talk-based therapy, where we aim to improve and maintain good mental health and well-being; with children, we incorporate a great deal of play into the treatment. The clinicians at The Oak Centre work with each client to bring about positive change, in terms of how each person is thinking, feeling, behaving, learning, and interacting with others.

Family Therapy

When issues arise, regardless of whether they are viewed as ‘individual’ or ‘family’ problems, the solution often involves the family unit. By providing family therapy services, our goal is to help influence or facilitate conversations in ways that catalyze the strengths, wisdom, and support of your family as a whole. Family therapy can help with a wide range of concerns and issues that affect the family unit. Whether you consider the concerns or issues in your family unit as being big or small, individual or shared, family therapy can be a great way to work together for a healthier, happier home.

Areas we treat:

N

Abuse

N

Academic struggles

N

Anxiety disorders

N

Attachment issues

N

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

N

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

N

Behaviour problems

N

Depression

N

Developmental disabilities

N

Eating disorders

N

Gender identity/sexual orientation

N

Grief

N

Mental wellness

N

Mood issues

N

Obsessive Compulsive Disorders (OCD)

N

Parenting

N

Peer dynamics

N

Psychiatric illness

N

School problems

N

Separation and divorce

N

Social skills

N

Sleep issues

N

Stress

N

Trauma

Contact the Oak Centre

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THE OAK CENTRE

416 North Service Rd. East, Suite 100
Briarwood Business Park
Oakville, ON L6H 5R2
tel: 905.844.7117
email: admin@theoakcentre.ca
fax: 905.844.3396