[ACanthony]

Hello all. Thanks for your help in advance. I'm a psych student and I have a case to analyze. I have to role play as the therapist and give 'Jane' and 'Seth' therapy for half an hour in class. Does anyone have any good tips/advice/strategies in this particular case? I'm not used to dealing with children. Thank you!!!

Jane is a 10 year old Jewish girl who is brought to therapy by her father, Seth. Seth has been home schooling Jane for the last year, and has hopes of her returning, but her behaviors have become so out of hand that he can not send her back. She will yell, scream and curse at teachers and other children in the classroom, and does so at home as well. She does it the most at home when there is company around, or when given a task that she does not wish to complete. Seth also mentioned that she has this trouble in Hebrew school as well, although not as pronounced.
Jane has a lot of trouble making friends, and has some odd behaviors. Seth discloses that she has been diagnosed with Bipolar disorder, and that he understands that her imbalance is the conduit for a lot of her behaviors. Jane calls the shots in the family – she won’t stay in time out, and if she wants something that she can not have, she will tell her mother, sister or Seth that she hates them and that she wishes that they were dead. She has been mildly successful with behavior charts, but once she earns a reward will often regress.

[skiinglab26]

It is interesting because i was diagnosed with bipolar for 10 years and just last week it was changed to ADD. I am a social worker and had to do these case studies in college as well.

Also I work with children with autism. Honestly if the child is all over the place, i dont think you should try to "make" her sit still in therapy. Its torture and doesnt show you the true child. Use the childs strengths and interests to keep her interested and let dad know its ok