Summer and Emotional Growth: Supporting Your Child’s Therapy Journey
Summer is a season of growth. The days are longer, school routines slow down, and families often find more space to reconnect. It’s also a time when many children and teens begin or deepen their therapy journey; a process that can bring both healing and uncertainty.
As a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist Intern, I’ve worked closely with families navigating this path. While therapy sessions offer a space for children and teenagers to process emotions, learn coping tools, and build resilience, the support they receive at home is just as crucial, if not more so.
Your child’s therapist holds space during sessions. You hold space the rest of the week.
What Does “Holding Space” at Home Look Like?
It doesn’t mean fixing everything. It doesn’t mean having all the answers. It means showing up with presence, patience, and empathy, even when progress feels slow or unclear.
Too often, parents worry that they need to "do more" or "say the right thing”. But supporting your child’s mental health isn’t about being perfect; it’s about being consistent. It’s about creating a home where it’s safe to feel, to talk, and to grow.
Here are a few ways you can support your child’s therapy journey this summer:
1. Respect the Process
Therapy isn’t a quick fix, and progress often looks different than expected. Some days your child may seem lighter and more open; other days they might be quieter, moodier, or more withdrawn. This can be confusing or even concerning, but it’s normal. Emotional growth takes time, and it often stirs up big feelings before things begin to settle.
As a parent, your role isn’t to speed things up or “get results.” Instead, it’s to trust the process and the professionals guiding it. Remind yourself, and your child, that it’s okay for healing to be messy. Offer gentle encouragement when things feel tough, and celebrate the small wins. Your belief in their growth builds their belief in themselves.
2. Create Emotional Safety at Home
Children and teens heal best in environments where emotions are met with compassion, not correction or judgment. . Emotional safety means your child feels secure enough to express themselves honestly—even when their feelings are big, uncomfortable, or hard to understand.
You can create this kind of space by:
Practicing active listening: Pause what you’re doing, make eye contact, and truly listen without interrupting or rushing to respond.
Validating their experience: Phrases like “That sounds really tough” or “I can see why you’d feel that way” go a long way.
Regulating your own reactions: If your child shares something surprising or upsetting, take a deep breath before reacting. Your calm helps them stay grounded.
Even when you don’t fully understand what your child is going through, your support helps them feel seen and safe.
3. Set Gentle Routines
Summer often brings a welcome break from the school-year grind, yet a bit of structure helps children and teens feel grounded. Gentle routines provide a sense of safety and predictability that supports emotional regulation, especially for those navigating therapy.
Rather than rigid schedules, focus on simple rhythms that anchor the day:
Consistent wake-up and bedtime to protect sleep (which directly affects mood).
Regular meals and snacks to stabilize energy and emotions.
Healthy boundaries around screen time to encourage real-world connection and rest.
These routines don’t need to be perfect or enforced with pressure. Think of them as gentle and flexible supports that help your child feel balanced while still enjoying the freedom of summer.
4. Encourage, but Don’t Push
If your child opens up after therapy, hold space for that. If they need quiet, honor that too. Let them set the pace. Being a safe, calm presence means more than knowing the “right” thing to say.
Therapy can bring up sensitive or vulnerable topics, and everyone processes these in their own time. Some may come home ready to talk, while others need quiet time or even act out as a way of coping.
Let your child lead when it comes to sharing. If they open up, listen with openness and gratitude. If they stay silent, respect that too. Avoid prying questions or trying to “get information out of them.” Instead, create calm, unstructured moments (car rides, walks, or shared activities) where conversations can arise naturally.
Sometimes, just knowing you’re available and nonjudgmental is enough to make your child feel safe. Your presence matters more than having the perfect response.
5. Care for Yourself, Too
Parental support is powerful, but it can also be emotionally taxing. You might question your parenting, feel overwhelmed by the intensity of their needs, or simply be exhausted by the emotional demands.
This is why your self-care isn’t optional; it’s essential.
Make space for your own feelings, whether that’s through journaling, talking with a trusted friend, or seeking therapy for yourself.
Set boundaries around your time and energy to avoid burnout.
Engage in activities that refill your cup, even in small ways, such as reading, walking, resting, or doing something just for you.
When you’re emotionally regulated, you’re more equipped to be a grounding presence for your child. Remember, taking care of yourself isn’t selfish, it’s one of the most loving things you can do for your family.
A Time for Reconnection
Summer is not just about travel and sunshine; it’s also an opportunity to deepen your connection with your child. Whether you're watching a movie together, sharing a quiet meal, or simply being nearby while they decompress, those small moments create the foundation for emotional safety.
Even when therapy feels like a mystery from the outside, your consistent, compassionate presence is a stabilizing force. You are not just the parent, you are part of the healing.
If your child is starting therapy this summer or continuing an existing journey, know that your role matters deeply. Healing isn’t linear. But with your steady support and a skilled therapist by their side, your child is not only held, they are empowered.
Let’s continue to build a culture where individuals feel safe to speak, grow, and be fully themselves.
