Individual Counseling

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   ● Alcohol tobacco and other drug addiction prevention and education

   ● Cognitive restructuring

   ● Trauma (related to abuse, abandonment, neglect, trauma)

   ● Adolescent Adjustment -transition to adulthood

   ● Anger/Assertiveness

   ● Grief and loss

   ● Mood Disorders

 

Family Counseling

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At Lion Services, we understand that humans are gregarious and benefit from interdependent relationships. Our family counseling focuses on assisting families in transitioning the current dynamics to a place of acceptance and forgiveness. Our approach to “family counseling” is unique. We do not adhere to the standard approach of isolating the “problem child” administering the “cure” then return the child/youth to the same old family dynamic. Youth who are in intense conflictual relationships with caregivers are not solely at fault, it takes two to tango. At Lion we counsel the child/youth in looking at their roles in the relationships. In addition we meet with the parent(s) for individual sessions in order to assess the dynamics from all perspectives. Adolescence is a normal human development stage, approximately 20% of youth and families may need additional help making the transition to adulthood. At lion our unique approach works to maintain love in the family.

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Child/Adolescent Services

Adolescence is a time of transition when youth experience many physical, mental and emotional changes.  Adolescents receive many confusing and conflicting messages about who they are and what’s expected of them.  If youth are given enough support and room to struggle through this period, most can emerge with a new self-confidence, optimism, and understanding of their strengths.  Some, however, become vulnerable to mental health problems such as depression, suicidal thoughts, and anxiety disorders, especially if the adolescent has a family history of mental illness.

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SPECIALTY SERVICES
 

African American Adolescent Services

 

Adolescence is a Challenging Time for African American Males

For most African American males, this transition to young adulthood is especially complicated and challenging.  Racism presents an additional set of stressors for them and their families, which can affect their mental health.

All of these stressors can lead African American boys to unconsciously accept the negative stereotypes they are hearing, causing negative self-evaluations that damage their psychological well-being.  They can act out with disruptive or inappropriate behavior, which sometimes brings them in contact with the criminal justice system.  Contact with the juvenile justice system is known to interrupt positive social connections for youth. Detention and out-of-home placements specifically can disrupt family connections, schooling and involvement in positive activities.

 

Raising Biracial Children and Multiracial Children to Feel Good About Themselves

 

Interracial marriages in the U.S. have climbed to 4.8 million – a record 1 in 12. Blacks are now substantially more likely than before to marry whites.  Blacks who married outside their race increased in share from 15.5 percent to 17.1 percent. Due to increasing interracial marriages, multiracial Americans are a small but fast-growing demographic group, making up about 9 million, or 8 percent of the minority population.

 

Lion provides a safe space for children and families to explore the most common questions:

   ● Racist family members and friends

   ● Divorce-  parents remarry same race person-meaning of family

   ● Siblings of different ethnicity

   ● Filling out demographic information: Black__ White__ Other___

   ● Questions and feelings about parents they don’t/ do identify with

   ● Where should the family live

   ● Exposure to their cultures: African American registers; "double consciousness."

   ● Questions about racism and prejudice

   ● Raising Young Black Males: public enemy # 1

   ● When to advocate. Are they being discriminated against or not?

   ● Black kids say “ I act White”

   ● White kids say “you’re not like the “Black Kids”

   ● Can a Bi-Racial person be racist?

 

For each mixed-race person, the journey to forming an identity is a personal and ongoing reflective process shaped by interactions with people and institutions that either validate or reject a chosen identity.