Services Offered
Couples Counselling
Many couples struggle because of difficulty regulating their emotions. I help partners better understand one another by teaching them how to recognize what they want/need and then express themselves accurately while also really listening, accepting and understanding what their partner is saying to them. Our work also looks at ways to become more mindful of the relationship itself; how to balance one’s own needs with those of your partner and the relationship overall. Once a couple has learned a new cycle of improved communication and understanding, then we move onto collaborative problem solving. This kind of couples work often leads to a reduction in stress and conflict and an increase in loving care and connection.
Family Therapy and Parent Coaching
Some clients prefer to work as parents separate from their adolescent or adult child and in other cases it makes more sense to have both the parent(s) and the child(ren) together in family therapy sessions. Either way, the aim is to help parents and their children understand how they are impacting each other and then learn Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) skills that empower everyone to have more effective interactions. This includes learning how to express oneself accurately, as well as how to listen, accept, and understand each other. Once people can do this, conflict is reduced, collaborative problem solving becomes possible and people feel more connected.
Examples of issues that I help clients with using either parent coaching and/or family therapy include:
Families where one (or more) people are struggling with mental health challenges.
When an adolescent or young adult child is struggling to “launch” into adulthood.
Families seeking to mend a rupture or estrangement.
Reducing conflict and increasing understanding within a family, especially when one family member feels different and/or misunderstood.
Resolving conflicts between different generations within the same family.
Improving family communication around major milestone events such as weddings, cottage summers, holiday celebrations.
Helping families navigate interpersonal issues that can come up in the context of working together in a family business.
Parent Skills Group
This 8-week group (virtual) is intended for parents whose teen or adult children struggle with emotional dysregulation and related problems such as self harm, substance use, angry outbursts or suicidal ideation. Groups are 1.5 hours long and include both skills development and an opportunity to apply new skills with help and support in dealing with participants’ real-life challenges in a group setting. We aim to help parents better manage their stress and burden, and to help them build, or rebuild, loving and effective relationships with their children. These groups will be limited to 15 participants to enhance learning and practice.
Dates for next Parent Skills Group (Weekly):
Wednesday, October 29, 2025 - Wednesday, December 17, 2025.
8:30 am to 10 am Eastern Standard Time. Virtual only.
$150 - per 1.5 hour session
Interested participants will need to complete a 30 minute intake call to ensure suitability for the group.
Group Facilitators:
Amanda Young, MSW & Dr. Alan Fruzzetti, Ph.D.
Parent Skills Group Co-Facilitator
Dr. Alan Fruzzetti
Dr. Alan Fruzzetti is an internationally recognized DBT researcher, teacher, and supervisor. His faculty appointments have included Harvard Medical School and the University of Nevada and he is currently Lead for DBT Supervision and Implementation for the national DBT Program in Ireland and Research Fellow at University College Cork. He has authored more than 125 research and clinical papers and has lectured and trained professionals and the public in more than twenty-five countries on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy and DBT with parents, couples and families.
Skills Group Curriculum:
1. Learn how emotionally dysregulated communication and invalidating responses can create a cycle of parent-child interactions that strain relationships and make conflict/disconnection more likely.
2. Understand how chronic emotion dysregulation in children (including suicidality, self-harm, substance use etc.) can create stress- and trauma-related reactions (conditioned fear and/or anger) in parents.
3. Learn self-care & skills to reduce your vulnerability to emotion dysregulation and reduce your suffering as a parent.
4. Learn how to put together DBT skills to inhibit invalidating responses to your child and learn how to recondition and repair your relationship.
5. Learn relationship mindfulness skills: how to start to bring curiosity and love to our relationships (rather than negative reactions and judgments).
6. Understand the role of validation and how to do it, even under duress.
7. Learn when, and how, to observe limits (e.g., to say “no”), and when to be flexible while also weaving in self-validation.
8. How to accept reality, especially when we don’t like it. Wrap up with a commitment to deliberate practice of skills.
Consultation and Supervision for DBT Therapists
I have specialized training in using DBT in the context of couples and families and am passionate about empowering more therapists to help parents, couples and families. The clinical research shows that when parents and families are involved in treatment, the outcomes for the struggling loved one are improved.
If you would like to consult on a particular case and/or receive regular supervision in working with couples and families, I would be happy to connect with you. I can be reached at amandayoungmsw@gmail.com.
Free Initial Phone Consultation
I offer a 15 minute phone call for prospective clients to determine if I am the best fit for them. You are also welcome to ask any questions you may have.