Starting PCIT (Parent Child Interaction Therapy)

What is PCIT?

PCIT stands for Parent-Child Interaction Therapy. It is an effective and evidence-based treatment approach designed to improve the relationship between parents and their young children (typically ages 2-7) who are experiencing behavioral difficulties. 

3 Steps to get started

Step 1: Please read through this page and fill out this Intake Form. Our scheduling team will then reach out to you with available appointments.

Step 2: Meet the therapist. In this virtual meeting (without your child), you get to know the therapist, and the therapist learns about you and your child. The therapist will explain how PCIT works and ask you about your goals for you and your child. PCIT requires that you, the parent, follow a structured program. The therapist reviews with you what commitment is required.

Step 3: You and your child meet the therapist. In this second meeting, the therapist will also talk with your child to deeply understand your family’s situation. After the meeting, the therapist will recommend whether PCIT is the most effective way to address the challenges you are facing. If not, the therapist will recommend and explain what other interventions (for example, Parent Guidance sessions) would be more effective in your case.

After these three steps, our scheduling team will schedule you as quickly as possible.

Treatment is short-term and delivered via telehealth/virtual visits.  Weekly, 45 minute to one-hour therapy sessions generally occur for 12-20 weeks.  

Yes! PCIT starts with building the parent-child relationship through positive parenting techniques and play. This initial phase of treatment involves brief, daily child-led play sessions with your child. In these play sessions, your child receives a lot of praise and positive affect from you. It is designed to be fun for both of you, and you will see many improvements in your child’s behavior through this first phase. You can think of it as “putting deposits in the relationship bank account”.

The second phase of PCIT involves parents using appropriate use of discipline. While this phase can be challenging for kids, you will be starting with a high bank account balance, and children tolerate this short-term discomfort well because of that. They will also be seeing how PCIT leads to more peaceful interactions overall, with parents feeling empowered to use parenting strategies effectively and kids being well-equipped with self-regulation skills.

You will meet weekly with your PCIT therapist for 12-20 weeks. Some sessions will be “teach” sessions when only parents meet to learn and practice new parenting skills. In other sessions, you will be engaging in therapeutic play with your child while wearing earbuds. Your therapist can overhear the conversation and give you in-the-moment parent coaching. Parents find this to be a great way to learn because their therapist can observe the child’s behavior and guide parents to use the specialized skills while playing with their child.

In between sessions, you will set aside 5 minutes per day to play with your child using the specialized approach you will have learned. Your therapist will guide you on how to set up this play for success. This will be enjoyable for you and your child.

PCIT is a mental health outpatient therapy, which is typically covered by your insurance. 

Our goal is to find the treatment that best fits your needs. We understand it is challenging to navigate the mental health system and to know the difference between treatment options. That is why we start with meetings with you and then with your child, to get to know you, your needs, and your goals. We will explain different treatment options, explore the advantages of each, and make a collaborative decision with you about the best path forward. In addition to PCIT, we offer individual therapy for children that has a strong parenting component, parent guidance sessions that are conducted without children present, and family therapy. We will work together to decide which option, or combination of options, is the best fit for you and your family.

Both the parent and child benefit from PCIT. The child learns better self-regulation, the parent learns skills to manage child behaviors effectively, and the whole family experiences more peaceful interactions. PCIT has been shown to be helpful for children exhibiting disruptive, externalizing behaviors (such as tantrums, refusing to listen to rules or instructions, hitting, biting), and parents seeking to minimize harsh parenting reactions. PCIT is also very helpful when parents do not agree on how to best respond to their child’s behavior, because this program helps to be get parents on the same page with one another and work as a team.