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A comprehensive, mental health practice in Northern Virginia specializing in Social Skills Group Therapy, as well as Individual, Couples, Family Counseling, and Psycho-Educational testing services.

Therapy Groups > More Therapy Groups and Unique Services

Group Therapy for Adolescents

Social Skills Groups for Adolescents and Young Adults
These groups are geared towards teenagers and young adults who need to both enlarge and refine their emotional and social well-being. Group work is a powerful tool for enhancing self-esteem, solving problems more effectively, and improving social skills. Group goals are:

increasing self-awareness and impact of self on others
improving self-esteem and strengthening identity
developing an ability to express anger effectively
coping effectively with conflicts
improving communication and listening skills
adapting successfully to changing expectations

Anger Management

This group is designed to assist children who have difficulty expressing anger in an appropriate manner. The children will:

learn about the emotion of anger and the importance of managing it
recognize their own physical reactions early
identify anger-producing situations
develop problem solving strategies and conflict resolution skills
learn a repertoire of techniques for coping with angry feelings

Parents will:

create an atmosphere at home where less anger will take place
learn methods for coping effectively with their child's anger

Intensive Social Skills Groups for Asperger's children

This group is designed for children and adolescents with significant social and emotional needs, i.e. Asperger's, high functioning autism, PDD, NVLD, bipolar disorder. These groups are small and self-paced. Parent involvement is required, and coordination with other professionals is maintained. The group goals will be:

to improve eye contact
to communicate more effectively with others
to recognize the feelings and actions of others
to develop empathy for others
to learn an emotional vocabulary
to enhance ability to cope with teasing

Group Therapy for Young Adults

This group is for 18-23 year-olds who are dealing with transitions from adolescence into adulthood. Group members will learn communications skills and will explore relationship issues.

Women's Group Therapy

This group focuses on developing effective communication skills that will enable group members to form, maintain and deepen healthy relationships with peers, colleagues and loved ones. This is an insight oriented group that encourages self reflection and support.

In Step Unique Services

Psychological and Educational Testing, and Workshops and Seminars for Parents and Professionals

In Step clinician have delivered hundreds of presentations and workshops to local and national associations, organizations, and private and public schools. Our customized workshops are informal, interactive, and energetic. Most importantly, the presentations contain solid "how to" information that can be used immediately by parents and professionals alike. Topics include:

Raise Your Child's Social IQ
Anger Management AD/HD
Asperger's Syndrome and Related Disorders
Building Self-Esteem
Stress Management
Anxiety Issues
Positive Parenting
Kindergarten Readiness

Stepping Stones Summer Programs:
Kindergarten Readiness and Adjustment Groups

The Kindergarten Readiness and Adjustment Group is designed to help children who may have difficulty with the big step into Kindergarten.

Focus is on the following kindergarten readiness skills:

handling transitions
working co-operatively in a structured group
following directions
handling consequences
listening skills
eye contact
sharing and turn taking
observing body space boundaries
stress management

The child will:

share and give feedback regarding feelings, thoughts, and behavior
learn effective and ineffective ways of relating
learn how they are perceived by others
learn how they are similar and different from each other
learn the importance of cooperation
celebrate their uniqueness, originality and creativity

Parents meet concurrently with a therapist to discuss parenting issues and concerns.

Stepping Stones Summer Programs :
Stepping Stones Summer Outdoor Social Skills Groups

Our summer program is a unique outdoor social skills training program for elementary school-age children. With its major focus on team building and cooperation training, Outdoor Social Skills Group can benefit already existing Stepping Stones group members or children who have never been involved in a social skills training group before. The games and exercises we play foster working together to achieve common goals. The competitive nature of sports is minimized in favor of activities that encourage collaboration and compromise.

We are fortunate that we are able to meet with our children outdoors. This allows us to use a specialized form of therapy called kinetic psychotherapy (KPT). With KPT, we play what may appear to be ordinary children’s games such as Freeze Tag or Capture the Flag. These games allow us to observe and work with the children in a natural social environment where typical interactions occur.

The therapist acts as a social “coach” who may stop action at any given point during the play to look more closely at the group dynamic. The children are warned at the onset that the coach may call for a “group huddle” at any time, to focus more attention on peer conflicts and relations.

The group, rather than the therapist, is used to effect change by creating group norms that are constructive. For instance, consider this actual occurrence: While playing kickball in an elementary school-age boys group, two boys began fighting over who would play first base. The action was stopped while the two boys learned negotiation skills. Group members were able to contribute by offering alternative solutions to the problem. Group members were empowered by helping the two get “unstuck” and move forward in a positive manner. Although the two boys were initially reluctant to accepting suggestions from their peer group, they were given support from the group to move away from their initial stances to achieve compromise.

Group huddles take some getting used to by the children who, at the beginning, resent the interruption. But once the children catch on, they seem to find it extremely useful in helping them take a look at themselves, both as a group and individually.

This “here and now” approach views interaction through a magnifying glass rather than looking at behavior after-the-fact when interventions lose their immediacy. This phenomenon of working “in the moment” is one of the great benefits of group work in general. In KPT, the addition of movement, structure, and game rules offer a rich environment for social learning and exploration to take place.

KPT is effective in helping children:

Verbalize feelings rather that act them out
Find alternative coping strategies to deal with stressful situations
Take responsibility for actions
Walk in another person’s shoes
Improve self-esteem
Encourage self-awareness in group members

To enroll your child in one or more of the Stepping Stones Summer Sessions, please call (703) 876-8480, ext. 10 to set up your initial intake evaluation.