My name is Simon Beal. I’m a Clinical Child Psychologist and I’ve worked with children, teenagers and families for over 20 years. That amounts to over 20,000 sessions, specialising in child psychology and children’s challenging behaviours. My blog aims to help parents decide whether I’m the right Psychologist for your family. Child Psychologists can have…
I’m a Clinical Child Psychologist specialising in Child and Adolescent Psychology. I see children, teenagers and parents, usually referred by GP’s, Paediatricians and schools, and a lot by word of mouth. In 20 years, I’ve had over 20,000 appointments, focusing on children’s emotional and behavioural problems – that amounts to a lot of experience. Problems…
My understanding of children’s behaviour has changed a lot over the years. Here are ten important points I have learnt along the way. Children need to DO AS THEY’RE TOLD! Children are not “their own Boss”! It’s the parent who is in charge. Children’s misbehaviour is usually just that, children misbehaving. Children misbehave for two…
Time Out as a parenting strategy has been around for decades, however in recent times it’s been strongly criticised by some. They claim that Time-Out is harmful to children; that using Time-Out can traumatise children and cause them short and long-term harm. It’s been argued that Time-Out sends the message that the child is not…
Since COVID, all appointments are now via TeleHealth. While this can seem daunting initially, it’s surprisingly easy, it’s just as effective as face-to-face appointments, and with so many other advantages. For example; many families living in rural locations have been able to access support without driving for hours to the city. Parents don’t have to…
We live in a time where if your child has behavioural issues, you will likely be told that your child has underlying issues, or even worse, an underlying condition. It’s also a fact that Attachment Disorders, ADD/ADHD, and Oppositional Defiance Disorder are all hugely over-diagnosed. Misdiagnosing can easily lead to the wrong treatment being given,…
Does your household descend into a war zone at mealtimes? Is your child becoming increasingly fussy with food? Will your child eat a certain food one night, then refuse to eat it next time? Are you having to cook three meals every night to keep everyone happy? I have seen it all. One of the…
Children Not Listening, Arguing, and Backchat. It’s a major issue in families and it causes major meltdowns and tantrums in children. It turns a home into a battle zone and it’s exhausting for parents. Its really toxic on siblings; it causes resentment from parents – it’s even caused relationships to break-up. How have we…
School Refusal, School Phobia, both are terms relating to a child or teenager who finds it impossible to get to school. This can quickly result in them missing days and weeks off school, and if not addressed quickly, will often lead into missing whole terms off school. And of course, the longer it goes on…
Children’s sleeping & bedtime battles can be very varied, hugely frustrating, and extremely exhausting – for everyone. Here’s a list of some of the more common issues I see: Children refusing to sleep in their own bed. Parents needing to lie with their child Parents needing to go to sleep at the same time as…
Before life as a Child Psychologist, I didn’t even know this problem existed. When I first started practicing, I promised myself I’d never work in this area! Twenty years on, I’ve helped hundreds of families deal with this embarrassing, uncomfortable, smelly and confusing issue. Yes, I’m now an expert on children pooing their pants! After…
Is my child ok? Is what they’re doing normal? Should I be worried, do I need to do anything about it? These are all very common questions I hear from concerned parents. And it’s not surprising – more than ever we are bombarded with advice and opinions about child mental health, and alarmingly, we’re actually…