TREATMENT

Martha S. Urbaniak
Clinic for Children & Families

Located in Durham, the Urbaniak Clinic is an outpatient mental health clinic serving children in North Carolina from infancy to age 21 and their families.

Our therapists use evidence-based treatments proven to be effective and healing for children and adolescents who’ve experienced trauma and young children with significant oppositional behaviors.

Symptoms & Behaviors

Many children and teens have been through adverse, traumatizing, or stressful experiences such as:

  • Violence at home, in school, or in the community
  • Intensive medical treatment/illness
  • Natural disasters
  • Neglect or physical abuse
  • Sexual abuse or assault
  • Separation from a parent or caregiver
  • Loss of a loved one

Everyone reacts to these experiences in different ways. Some children lash out while others are overwhelmed and withdrawn. These reactions may be child traumatic stress.

Other reactions can be:

  • Feelings of sadness, guilt, or loneliness
  • Social or emotional withdrawal
  • Acting younger than expected for age (bedwetting, thumb sucking, clinginess)
  • Changes in eating or sleep patterns
  • Nightmares
  • Flashbacks or being more worried and fearful
  • Difficulty getting along with family and friends
  • Trouble concentrating or paying attention in school
  • Verbal or physical aggression
  • Increased irritability or angry outbursts
  • Complaints of aches and pains
  • Problematic sexual behaviors

Treatment & Services

Licensed therapists work with a child’s family system to promote hope for their future through a reduction in symptoms and return to a healthy developmental path.

We use treatment models grounded in clinical research and proven to reduce the symptoms of child traumatic stress. Many services are offered in English and Spanish. There is no additional charge for services provided in Spanish.

All clinical services begin with a comprehensive assessment. Treatment is delivered in weekly outpatient sessions. Medication management by an onsite psychiatrist may be available.

Attachment, Regulation and Competency (ARC)

The ARC Framework is an intervention used to treat youth from birth to early adulthood with a variety of trauma-related diagnoses including PTSD, behavioral disorders, depression, and anxiety. The participation of the child or adolescent’s caregiver(s) is crucial to the success of this intervention.

Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP)

CPP is therapy for young children from birth through age 5 and their caregivers.  It aims to help children who have experienced stressful events that impact negatively their mental health, attachment and behavior. CPP helps caregiver and their children to understand each other, talk and play about difficult experiences, respond appropriately to strong feelings and behaviors, while changing the negative perception that children and caregivers have of themselves and each other. CPP creates a sense of hope in the family where the child feels protected and safe.

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)

CPT is a short-term and evidence-based type of cognitive-behavioral therapy specifically designed to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adolescents ages 14-21. It focuses on helping individuals ages 14 and up to process and reframe negative beliefs and thoughts related to traumatic events. In the 10-12 sessions of CPT treatment, patients work to change their thinking patterns, leading to healthier emotional responses and coping strategies.

 

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT)

PCIT is designed for children ages 2 to 7 who display oppositional or aggressive behavior that may or may not be due to trauma. It places an emphasis on changing interaction patterns through play. Treatment sessions focus on parenting skills, using the parent-child relationship to increase the child’s pro-social behavior and decrease problem behaviors.

Problematic Sexual Behavior Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (PSB-CBT)

PSB-CBT is designed for children and adolescents ages 3-18 who display problematic sexual behaviors. PSB-CBT treatment focuses on rules and laws about sexual behavior, privacy and boundary rules, coping skills and impulse control skills, and social skills. Caregivers are involved in treatment and learn to distinguish normal from problematic sexual behaviors in children and youth, appropriate responses to youth’s sexual behaviors, ways to prevent problematic sexual behavior, effective responses to other behavioral problems, effective caregiver/youth communication strategies.

Online Referral Form

Preschool Referral Flyer

School Age Referral Flyer

Adolescent Referral Flyer

 

Structured Psychotherapy for Adolescents Responding to Chronic Stress (SPARCS)

SPARCS is for adolescents ages 12 to 21 who have experienced or witnessed traumatic events, or who are suffering from chronic stress. It builds on their strengths to identify purpose and create meaning in their lives. Adolescents learn how to solve problems, cope, and communicate so that they are better equipped to cultivate healthy relationships and a more positive self-concept.

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)

TF-CBT is design to address the needs of children ages 3 to 21 with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, behavior problems, and other difficulties related to traumatic experiences. TF-CBT improves a child’s or teen’s functioning following stress or trauma, enabling them to manage worries and fears, sleep problems, and harmful behaviors. Parents or caregivers are involved in treatment to support their child and reduce their own stress.

The Center for Child & Family Health does not provide the following services:

  • Psycho-educational testing or therapies for learning difficulties
  • Parental custody evaluations
  • Forensic investigation to determine abuse and neglect

Our services are not designed to assist families in making determinations about custody or visitation, or to assist families in resolving relational issues that stem from parental conflict, discord, divorce, or separation.

No person on the grounds of race, color, religion, national origin, indigenous heritage, sex, gender, or sexual orientation shall be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any services or activities of the Urbaniak Clinic.

Referrals

To inquire about treatment for clients, families or their professional care providers may complete the online referral form below or call the Clinic Administrator at (919) 385-0701.

Please note that we are only able to serve clients that are currently living in the state of North Carolina.

Please allow 1 business day for a response from the Clinic Administrator. All referrals require phone screening between the referral source, legal guardian, and an Intake Coordinator.

Following the phone screening, a telehealth appointment may be scheduled for a comprehensive evaluation of symptoms to determine the appropriate course of treatment or an alternative referral.

Families may contact the Clinic Business Manager at (919) 385-0722 to discuss insurance and other financial concerns prior to your first telehealth appointment. For specific information on coverage and benefits, please contact your insurance provider.

Staff

Curtis Brownlee, LCMHC* Mental Health Clinician
Nikki Croteau-Johnson, MA, LPA Clinical Director PSB Program
Elisa Ford, LCSW* Mental Health Clinician
Abe Hickey, LCMHC-S* Mental Health Clinician
Ebonie Holmes, MA, LCMHC Mental Health Clinician
Rachel Maid, LCSW Mental Health Clinician
Sofia Moyano-Kleckner, LCMHC, LPCC Bilingual Mental Health Clinician
Ella Rose, MSW, LCSWA Mental Health Clinician
Judith Rose, LCSW Mental Health Clinician

*Independent contractor providing services on CCFH’s behalf

Resources

Resources

Supporting Mental Health in Latinx Families

Childhood Trauma

View All

 

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