Child & Teen Therapy in Albury Wodonga
Supporting children and teens to navigate big feelings, grow in confidence, and understand their unique world.
Childhood and adolescence can be challenging. Ellie provides a safe, nurturing environment where children and young people can express themselves freely, build confidence, and develop essential coping skills. She works alongside parents and carers, supporting and upskilling them to strengthen connection, foster a sense of belonging, and better understand their child's needs. By considering the whole family, Ellie aims to create meaningful and lasting positive change both within and beyond the therapy space.
Whether they are experiencing anxiety, behavioural changes, or going through a difficult transition, Ellie uses a tailored approach to help children and young people build resilience and emotional intelligence. Using play-based approaches where appropriate, along with creative activities such as craft, she creates engaging and developmentally appropriate opportunities for children to explore emotions, develop skills, and express themselves in ways that feel safe, natural, and meaningful.
When to Consider Child or Teen Therapy
Young people express emotional pain in many different ways. Here are common changes that might suggest they could benefit from extra support. (Hover a card to explore)
Anxiety & Emotional Meltdowns
Persistent worries, difficulty sleeping, separation distress, or frequent emotional outbursts that feel difficult to calm. Ellie supports children to develop self-regulation skills and gentle grounding strategies, while also working alongside parents and carers to better understand their child's emotional needs, respond effectively during challenging moments, and build confidence in supporting their child through big feelings.
Social & School Challenges
School refusal, conflict with peers, difficulty navigating friendships, or feeling like they don't fit in. Ellie supports children and young people to build social confidence, emotional regulation, communication skills, and effective conflict resolution strategies, helping them navigate moments of anxiety, stress, and interpersonal challenges with greater confidence and resilience.
Behavioral & Mood Shifts
Sudden withdrawal from friends or favorite hobbies, increased irritability, mood swings, or regression in basic developmental stages (e.g., bedwetting). We explore what these behavioral cues are communicating.
Family & Life Changes
Going through parent separation, moving home, transitioning to high school, experiencing grief and loss, or adapting to a neurodivergent diagnosis (e.g., ADHD or Autism). Ellie supports children and young people to process and navigate these changes with greater clarity, acceptance, resilience, and ease, helping them make sense of their experiences and build confidence in moving forward.
Anxiety & Emotional Meltdowns
Persistent worries, difficulty sleeping, separation distress, or frequent emotional outbursts that feel difficult to calm. Ellie supports children to develop self-regulation skills and gentle grounding strategies, while also working alongside parents and carers to better understand their child's emotional needs, respond effectively during challenging moments, and build confidence in supporting their child through big feelings.
Social & School Challenges
School refusal, conflict with peers, difficulty navigating friendships, or feeling like they don't fit in. Ellie supports children and young people to build social confidence, emotional regulation, communication skills, and effective conflict resolution strategies, helping them navigate moments of anxiety, stress, and interpersonal challenges with greater confidence and resilience.
Behavioral & Mood Shifts
Sudden withdrawal from friends or favorite hobbies, increased irritability, mood swings, or regression in basic developmental stages (e.g., bedwetting). We explore what these behavioral cues are communicating.
Family & Life Changes
Going through parent separation, moving home, transitioning to high school, experiencing grief and loss, or adapting to a neurodivergent diagnosis (e.g., ADHD or Autism). Ellie supports children and young people to process and navigate these changes with greater clarity, acceptance, resilience, and ease, helping them make sense of their experiences and build confidence in moving forward.
Tailored Methods for Young Minds
Children and teenagers communicate differently than adults. We meet them at their developmental level with creative, research-backed therapies.
Play-Based & Creative Therapy
Young children don't always have the vocabulary to explain why they feel sad or anxious. Since play is a child's natural language, we use sand trays, emotional drawing, interactive stories, and creative games. This allows them to express, process, and release complex feelings in a safe, stress-free way.
- Sand tray
- Emotional drawing
- Story-led play
- Craft & games
Private Teen Counselling
Adolescents need to feel safe, valued, accepted and supported. Ellie establishes a secure, non-judgemental space where they have true agency. By exploring themes like identity, self-worth, stress, and friendship, she works alongside them to build practical coping strategies and a kinder relationship with themselves and others.
- Identity & self-worth
- CBT-informed tools
- Strengths-based
- Mindful regulation
The Parental Partnership
Parents are the ultimate anchor in their child's journey. Ellie works closely with parents and carers, with the child or teen's consent, to support open collaboration. This includes regular check-ins, sharing relevant insights and progress, providing psychoeducation, and offering guidance for home-based practice to strengthen connection, emotional safety, and the systems and supports around the child.
- Parent check-ins
- Psychoeducation
- Home strategies
- Consent-led sharing
Is group therapy a better fit?
Alongside individual sessions, Ellie runs structured therapeutic group programs in Albury-Wodonga designed specifically for pre-teen and teen girls.
While individual therapy is wonderful for deep, personalized processing, group therapy offers something unique: the healing power of shared experience. In a small, supportive space, girls quickly realize they aren't alone in their worries, friendship struggles, or big feelings.
For many young people, groups are also a gentler, less intense entry point. Instead of the spotlight being solely on them, they learn through creative collaboration, craft, and group discussions—practicing real-time social confidence and boundaries in a space where they feel a true sense of belonging.
Child & Teen Therapy FAQs
Here are answers to some of the most common questions regarding child and adolescent support. Feel free to reach out with any specific questions.
Meet Ellie – your counsellor in Albury Wodonga
Ellie is a warm, down-to-earth Mental Health Accredited Social Worker supporting little humans, big humans, and the families who love them. Her work is trauma-informed, neuro-affirming, and strengths-based, with Medicare rebates available for eligible clients.
- Master of Social Work
- EMDR Trained
- Trauma-Informed
- NDIS Provider
