Trauma Therapy & Counselling for Children
Trauma therapy and counselling At Footsteps, we provide assessment and support for children (and adults) who have experienced interpersonal traumas. This includes witnessing domestic violence, physical and sexual abuse, separation from a caregiver, and community violence. Our services include: What does trauma therapy involve? The initial assessment involves meetings with the primary caregiver and then […]
What is Toxic Stress and How Can It Affect Long-Term Health Without Support?
What is Toxic Stress? Imagine that you see a wild dangerous animal while walking through a forest. In response to this threat, your body switches into “fight or flight ” mode. To survive, your body releases emergency stress hormones, like adrenaline and cortisol, that cause your heartbeat to quicken, make your eyes dilate and focus […]
Supporting and Parenting Children with Learning Difficulties
There are unique circumstances associated with raising a child with a disability that families of typically developing children may not experience. However, families of children with a disability have hopes, dreams, and concerns for their children just like any other family. Whether the child experiences a physical disability, developmental disability, or a learning disability. The […]
Learning the Language of Autism
Autism spectrum disorder is the term used to describe a group of disorders that includes autism, Asperger’s syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder (also known as atypical autism). The symptoms associated with autism appear early in a child’s development and this is why it is considered to be a ‘developmental disorder’. The term ‘spectrum’ is used […]
Understanding and Accessing the NDIS
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), designed to support people with a disability, uses an insurance approach (a bit like Medicare) to share service and support costs across the wider community. All Australian tax payers contribute to the scheme and it’s administered by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), a commonwealth level government agency. The […]
Disability or Ability
We are frequently asked, “What is a disability?”. The Disability Services Act (1993) defines ‘disability’ as: However, imagine looking at a tree – the growth rings of the tree are the perfect analogy to the growth of societies understanding of disabilities. The outer rings of the tree are old and dead, but still provide support […]