Signs of Abuse in Children
Children who have been abused can have a hard time sleeping,
Be unusually secretive
Sudden mood swings,
Bedwetting,
Fear of particular places or people,
Changes in eating habits,
Outburst of anger.
If your child exhibits symptoms of anxiety consider giving us a call. We are ready to help.
Quick Answers
The questions parents ask us most before they call. We’ve answered them the way we would on the phone.
Will you have to report this?
We are mandated reporters in Illinois. If we suspect a child is being abused or neglected, we are required to report it. We’d rather tell you that plainly now than have you find out later.
In practice, most families who come to us for abuse-related therapy have already been through a report. When abuse has already been reported and your child is safe now, starting therapy usually doesn’t trigger a new one.
And if a report ever does need to be made, you will hear it from us. We won’t do it behind your back.
Illinois DCFS explains who must report and how at Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect. Their hotline is 1-800-25-ABUSE.
Is what my child tells you confidential?
Yes, with limits, and we walk you through exactly what those limits are at the parent consultation before therapy begins.
What your child works through in session stays in session. The exceptions are narrow and they are about safety. Everything else — what they said, what they played out, what frightens them — is theirs.
What if DCFS is already involved?
That’s common, and it doesn’t stop us from working with your child.
We are not part of the investigation. We are your child’s therapist, and our job is helping them process what happened rather than gathering evidence. If there is an open case, mention it on the phone screening so we understand what your family is managing.
My child seems fine. Do they still need therapy?
Possibly not, and we will tell you if we think that.
Some children do come through it okay. But children cope with frightening experiences in ways that aren’t obvious, and some of those ways only surface months later as trouble sleeping, anger, clinginess, or problems at school. It is better to have a professional opinion than to assume.
One parent consultation is usually enough to tell which situation you are in.
Does my child have to talk about what happened?
No.
Most young children can’t put an experience like this into words, and pressing them to try can make things harder rather than easier. We work through play, which is how children process things that are too big to say out loud. If your child does want to talk, we follow their lead.
What if the abuse happened a long time ago?
It still matters, and it is still treatable.
Children don’t have a deadline for processing something. Sometimes a child seems fine for a year and then something brings it back up — a new school, a birthday, a scene in a film. Time passing doesn’t mean you have missed your window.
What if I’m the parent who didn’t know?
Nearly every parent we meet in this situation is carrying some version of that.
We start with your child. As part of their care we coach you on what to say and how to respond, because what happens at home between sessions matters as much as what happens in our office.
If it becomes clear that you need support of your own, we can arrange that separately once your child’s treatment plan is in place. You would have your own therapist for it.
What happens at the first appointment?
The first appointment is a parent consultation, and your child doesn’t attend.
It is you and the therapist, going through what happened, what is happening now, and what your child needs. By the end you will have a plan. Children do better when the adults have worked out the direction before the child walks in.
Do you take insurance, and what does it cost?
We don’t bill insurance directly. We are an out-of-network practice and can provide a superbill on request — an itemized receipt with the codes your insurer needs — which you submit yourself for out-of-network reimbursement.
The initial parent consultation is $200 to $275. Individual child or family therapy sessions run 45 to 55 minutes and cost $160 to $225. HSA and FSA cards are accepted, and a reduced fee is available to families who meet certain income criteria.
How soon can we get in?
Most families start within about a week. You fill out the appointment form, our intake coordinator calls you for a short phone screening, and then we schedule your parent consultation.
If we are not the right fit for your child, we will tell you on that call.
Find the right child therapist for your family
Susan Stutzman, LCPC, NCC, RPT-S
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Anxiety & Worry
- Medical Trauma
- Somatic Concerns
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Autism
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Behavioral Challenges
- Bipolar
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- Grief, Death & Loss
- OCD
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Sports Anxiety
- Tics
- Parent-Child Reunification
Faith-integrated
See therapist’s profile
Cheryl Welsh, LCPC, RPT-S, I/ECMH-C
- Adoption & Attachment
- Anxiety & Worry
- Autism
- ADHD / ADD
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Anger & Aggression
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Behavioral Challenges
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Tics
- Bipolar
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- Parent-Child Reunification
- Somatic Concerns
- Sports Anxiety
Jon Caes, LCSW
- Autism
- Behavioral Challenges
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- School Behavior
- ADHD / ADD
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Depression
- Medical Trauma
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Sports Anxiety
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- OCD
- Parent-Child Reunification
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Somatic Concerns
- Tics
Faith-integrated
See therapist’s profile
Erin Owens, LPC, NCC
- Anxiety & Worry
- Family Relationships
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- School Behavior
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Behavioral Challenges
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- Grief, Death & Loss
- OCD
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Autism
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Medical Trauma
- Somatic Concerns
- Sports Anxiety
- Tics
Faith-integrated
See therapist’s profile
Garimaa Gupta, LCPC, RYT
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Grief, Death & Loss
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Behavioral Challenges
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- School Behavior
- Adoption & Attachment
- Autism
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Medical Trauma
- Parent-Child Reunification
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Somatic Concerns
- Tics
Samantha de Souza, M.A., Counseling Intern
- Anxiety & Worry
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- ADHD / ADD
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Anger & Aggression
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Behavioral Challenges
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
- Parent-Child Reunification
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Somatic Concerns
Counseling intern
See therapist’s profile
Sophie Hill, ALMFT
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Family Relationships
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Autism
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Behavioral Challenges
- Depression
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Somatic Concerns
- Tics
Faith-integrated
See therapist’s profile
Courtney Johns, LCSW
- Anxiety & Worry
- OCD
- School Behavior
- ADHD / ADD
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Anger & Aggression
- Autism
- Behavioral Challenges
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Somatic Concerns
Lauren Clancy, LCSW, C-SSWS
- School Behavior
- ADHD / ADD
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Autism
- Behavioral Challenges
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Somatic Concerns
- Sports Anxiety
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- OCD
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Tics
Kristy Mahal, LPC, PEL
- School Behavior
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Autism
- Behavioral Challenges
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Family Relationships
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Somatic Concerns
Carrie Madden Choquette, MSW, NMT Certified, CCPT
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Behavioral Challenges
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Sports Anxiety
- Adoption & Attachment
- Autism
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Depression
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
Liz Blaha, LCPC
- Abuse & Trauma Recovery
- Adoption & Attachment
- Body Image & Self-Esteem
- Food, Feeding & Eating
- ADHD / ADD
- Anger & Aggression
- Anxiety & Worry
- Autism
- Behavioral Challenges
- Depression
- Divorce & Family Transitions
- Family Relationships
- Grief, Death & Loss
- Medical Trauma
- OCD
- Parent-Child Reunification
- Peer Concerns / Friendships
- School Behavior
- Self-Harm & Safety
- Sports Anxiety
- Bedwetting / Toileting
- Somatic Concerns
- Tics
We don’t have a strong match for that combination. That doesn’t mean we can’t help. Call us at (855) 586-1802 and we’ll talk it through and point you to the right person, here or elsewhere.
Serving Hinsdale and Surrounding Communities:
Clarendon Hills, Downers Grove, La Grange, Western Springs La Grange, Oak Brook, Burr Ridge, DuPage County
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