Child & Adolescent Therapy
Children and adolescents experience big feelings, growing brains, and ever-changing environments. For some, especially neurodivergent young people, traditional therapy can feel overwhelming, inaccessible, or simply not the right fit.
We offer compassionate, developmentally informed therapy for children and young people, with a focus on safety, engagement, and connection. Our approach is neuro-affirming, trauma-aware, and flexible, shaped around how each child or adolescent communicates and engages best.
Whether your child or teenager is navigating anxiety, emotional regulation, school pressures, identity questions, or has found it hard to engage in support before, we work with care, curiosity, and intention, alongside both young people and their families.
Who This Support is Especially Helpful For
Our child and adolescent therapy is designed for families who may not feel at home in traditional therapy settings.
This support is often a good fit for children and young people who:
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are neurodivergent, or exploring that possibility (including Autism, ADHD, PDA, intellectual disability, or specific learning differences);
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find traditional therapy overwhelming, demanding, or hard to engage with;
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struggle with transitions, new environments, or expectations;
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communicate best through play, creativity, humour, or shared interests;
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experience demand sensitivity or PDA-style profiles;
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are minimally verbal, selectively verbal, or express themselves in non-linear ways;
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have nervous systems shaped by stress, trauma, or overwhelming life experiences;
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are deeply sensitive to sensory input, emotional environments, or relational dynamics;
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have tried support before that did not feel right.
Many families come to us feeling unsure, tired, or worried about pushing their child into something that doesn’t feel safe. If this resonates, you’re not doing anything wrong. There are many ways for therapy to work, and finding the right fit matters.
How Our Approach Works in Practice
We work this way because how therapy is offered matters just as much as what happens in sessions.
For many children and adolescents, especially neurodivergent young people, feeling safe and regulated is the starting point. When a nervous system is overwhelmed, expected to perform, or pushed into unfamiliar environments, it becomes much harder to connect, reflect, or engage meaningfully.
Our approach is designed to reduce pressure and increase accessibility. We prioritise safety, autonomy, and connection, and we shape therapy around how each young person engages best, rather than expecting them to adapt to a set model.
Therapy with children and adolescents is gentle, collaborative, and centred on connection. We begin by taking time to understand what helps each young person feel safest and most able to engage. Some prefer structure and predictability, while others need flexibility and time to warm up. The pace and shape of therapy are guided by what supports regulation, trust, and autonomy.
Therapy does not need to involve constant talking. Many young people express themselves more easily through creativity, play, humour, imagination, or shared activities. These approaches are not distractions from therapy. They are therapeutic tools that support communication, emotional regulation, and connection.
Many people imagine therapy, especially telehealth therapy, as sitting still on a screen and answering questions. For some young people, that can feel demanding, overwhelming, or simply inaccessible.
Our sessions are not built around staying still, maintaining eye contact, or relying on verbal conversation alone. Engagement might look like drawing together, moving around off-camera, using chat or visuals, sharing screens, building stories or worlds, or quietly being present while doing something familiar. All of these are valid ways of participating in therapy.
Sessions may include drawing together, storytelling, shared visuals, playful or game-like activities, or gently working within a young person’s interests. Sometimes this involves imaginative or gamified elements, where therapy happens within shared digital spaces or worlds that feel engaging and familiar to the young person.
This way of working can be especially supportive for neurodivergent young people, those with demand sensitivity, or those who have found traditional therapy overwhelming or inaccessible. Engagement is never forced. We follow the young person’s lead and allow therapy to unfold in ways that feel meaningful and safe.
Over time, we work alongside children and adolescents to explore how their brain works, make sense of their experiences, and build skills in ways that align with who they are. Growth happens through connection, not pressure.
Therapy From Where You Feel Safest
We primarily offer child and adolescent therapy via Telehealth.
For many young people, especially those who are neurodivergent or sensitive to change, being supported from their own environment can significantly reduce pressure and nervous system load. It removes the stress of travel, waiting rooms, and unfamiliar spaces, and allows therapy to happen where they already feel safer and more regulated.
Telehealth also gives us flexibility in how sessions are shaped. Young people are not expected to sit still, maintain eye contact, or engage in constant conversation. They may move around, step on and off camera, use chat or visuals, share screens, or engage through creative or playful activities. All of these are valid ways of participating in therapy.
Rather than limiting connection, Telehealth often allows young people more control and autonomy over how they engage. This can support trust, reduce demand, and make it easier for therapy to begin and continue.
We offer Telehealth intentionally, as a way to support accessibility, safety, and meaningful engagement for the children and adolescents we work with.
In-person sessions may become available in Meanjin (Brisbane) or Naarm (Melbourne) on a case-by-case basis in the future, where clinically appropriate.
If you’d like more practical information about how Telehealth sessions work, including tips for setting things up in a way that feels supportive for children, you’re welcome to visit our How We Work Online page. This is entirely optional, and many families prefer to talk through these details together once support begins.
Working With Parents & Families
Supporting children and adolescents often means supporting the people around them too.
We understand that parents and caregivers are doing their best within complex systems, often while feeling worried, tired, or unsure what will help. Our work is grounded in collaboration, with a focus on building understanding, connection, and confidence over time.
Parent involvement looks different depending on a young person’s age, needs, and preferences. For younger children, this may include brief check-ins, shared reflections, or parent-only sessions to help make sense of what’s happening and explore ways to support regulation and connection at home.
For adolescents, therapy is a private and affirming space. We follow ethical guidelines around confidentiality and prioritise the young person’s safety and trust. Where it feels helpful, and with the adolescent’s consent, we may involve parents or caregivers in gentle, collaborative ways that support communication and the wider system around them.
We also offer dedicated parent and carer support sessions. These sessions provide space to reflect on your experience of parenting or caregiving, explore challenges without judgement, and strengthen your relationship with your child or teenager. This support can be helpful whether or not your child is actively engaged in therapy.
Many parents we work with are also navigating their own nervous systems, identities, and support needs alongside their child. We aim to hold parents with the same care, understanding, and flexibility that we offer young people.
We consider the wider context around each young person, including family relationships and daily life, and we support parents alongside their child so that therapy feels more sustainable and supportive over time.
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💫 Next Steps
If you’re curious about whether therapy is the right fit for your young person, we’re here to help guide you through it. You’re welcome to get in touch with any questions, or head to our New Clients page to fill out a short form and express your interest. You can also explore our FAQs or take a look at our Fees page if you’d like more clarity before reaching out, your questions are always welcome here.
Wondering who “we” are? Meet Lucinda & Marini - the psychologists behind Time & Space.