San Diego Kids First

Happy Saturday! I wanted to share with everyone a recent post by one of our Therapists, Kim Brownell. Kim is our former Broadway star who has played many lead roles on the infamous stage. Her time on Broadway has led to her career as a therapist... Kim now has special expertise in providing therapy to people in recovery from eating disorders, Body Dysmorphic Disorder, mood disorders, self-esteem, and more. In this post she reflects on her past struggles as a teen/ adolescent ...and focuses on why her specialty is important to her. When I chose to become a therapist, I honestly didn’t know which population I was most passionate about. It quickly became evident that I felt deeply connected with adolescents/teens/young women in a profound way. I knew I’d found my niche and haven’t looked back since that time. I spent my teen years feeling perpetually insecure and mortified by the ugly girl I saw reflected back at me in the mirror. I’ve since looked back with great sadness at the realization that I wasted so much precious time comparing myself to others, assuming everyone saw the same hideous exterior that I did, beating myself up for the tiniest of infractions, and allowing myself to feel so much unnecessary shame (which consumed me into my 20s). This ultimately prevented me from taking part in so many amazing opportunities. I know I chose this demographic to try and prevent every teenage patient from allowing shame to shape their experience and hopefully teach them that beauty is actually multi factorial. That kindness, empathy, tolerance and caring for others is *more* beautiful than a pleasant face and thigh gaps. ***I found this unedited/unfiltered picture at my mom’s house over thanksgiving this year (a photo I once loathed) of me at 15. As I stared at it, I realized that the 15 y/o I saw in my head was maybe not as grotesque as I once thought. We are all *so* much harder on ourselves than we are with others in our lives. Let this grainy, makeupfree, pasty girl rockin’ some sensible barrel rolled bangs be a reminder of this. If you or anyone you know would like to make an appointment with Kim, please send an email to [email protected] or call (858) 692-4187. #therapy #kids #teens #adolescents #inspiration #broadway #unfiltere

Stuck at home for the Holidays? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! While everything has been looking a little different this year, I wanted to share an interview I did with PBS on how to manage our children's expectations this holiday season. Please head to our media page at the link in our bio for the whole piece! We cover: * How should parents plan for what will be different? * How should parents start a discussion with their kids about what will be different?... * Suggestions for how families can plan out different holiday activities this year * How parents can talk about the financial impacts this year has brought with their kids Have any other questions? Feel free to leave a comment or message me and i’ll be sure to get back to you! Have a great rest of the year and enjoy your holidays. We are here for you if you need us! #psychology #parenting #PBS #sandiego #holidays #expectations #children #mentalhealth #advice

I am happy to share with you and your family that San Diego Kids First has been filled with a lot of exciting and positive growth lately! In addition to our new Psychologist, Dr. Olague and office manager, Angie McCormmick, San Diego Kids First has a new, expanded satellite location. We are still located in the charming Hacienda building in Carmel Valley in Suite 111, but we have added a lovely new suite #304. We could not be more excited for this new chapter for our team.... Expanding to the newer, bigger and more modern suite 304, brings great joy for us as most of our team can be together in one place! We are able to utilize the spacious suite to our advantage as we move forward with our growing team. Stay tuned for new things coming in 2021! Please give us a call or send an email anytime. And, maybe in a few months you can pop by in person to see our new office in #304. #psychology #sandiego #therapy #growth #mentalhealth #newspace

Our family of clinicians continues to grow with the newest addition of Dr. Jesse Olague! Along with Dr. Olague, we now have ourselves a full-time office manager, Angie McCormick, whom I bet you have already communicated with by now! She is wonderful at helping with client requests and managing the schedules of our wonderful group. Please call 858-692-4187 or email [email protected] her to schedule an appointment and she will be happy to help! Dr. Jesse Olague is a Lice...nsed Clinical Psychologist specializing in developmental/ psychological assessment and psychotherapy for children, adolescents and their families. He is also one of San Diego Kids First’s experts in early childhood development and behavior. Dr. Olague specializes in ASD/ADHD/Learning Disorders, and other Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Anxiety/Mood Disorders, Emotional Dysregulation, Disruptive Behaviors/Behavior Management, Anger Management and Trauma. As for our office manager Angie, we are so thrilled to have such a sweet and dedicated team member to keep things running smoothly and orchestrate our day to day. For more information on Dr. Olague and Angie, head to our ‘Meet Our Staff’ page at the link in our bio. We could not be more excited about our newest additions and can’t wait for you all to meet! Welcome to the team Dr. Olague and Angie! #psychology #growth #new #excited #sandiego #therapy #team #specialties

We are very excited to announce our very first ever full-time in person office manager Angie McCormick! Angie began her professional career in an administrative role during high school when she worked as receptionist for her family’s nursing trade school and afterwards as office manager for a certified public accounting firm. Inspired to help others, she obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, with an emphasis on ESL, where she gained teaching ex...perience by interning in the field, student teaching, and substituting in elementary schools. Having a talent for maintaining organization of operations and working well with others, her path was permanently led on more of an administrative path. I absolutely love my role as office manager at San Diego Kids First and being the main point of contact and resource for information. Every staff member is so kind and wonderful to work with and I am extremely thankful for being part of such an amazing organization. They truly inspire me by the wealth of care, knowledge, and professionalism they each possess. It is comforting to know that we are in good hands when they are around. It is so exciting to have finally found my work family and I'm very pleased to call this place my home. I am here for you and happy to help! Welcome to the team Angie! #psychology #officemanager #sandiego #mentalhealth #teammember

Last Friday we had the wonderful opportunity to participate in Fusion Academy’s third annual EmpowerED conference! Our educational consultant Dr. James Rivet discussed motivation and virtual learning strategies in his Tackling The Challenges of Distance Learning: Practical Tips and Suggested Routines" presentation. A special thank you @fusion_academy for having us! This event was a great chance to learn from local experts on topics related to education, mental health, wellne...ss and life! If you are interested in having San Diego Kids First speak at your next event send us a message or contact us at [email protected]! #education #conference #fusionacademy #educationspecialist #virtuallearning #motivation #skills #psychology #event #sandiego

I am happy to announce that San Diego Kids First participated in the annual Family Wellness Event hosted by La Jolla Elementary School! We were asked to contribute our expert tips and strategies for protecting children’s social and emotional wellbeing during online learning, in the midst of a pandemic. A very special thank you to La Jolla Elementary School for inviting us to participate in this years event, we are always here to help provide suggestions for parents and child...ren to improve their physical health, mental health and overall wellbeing. Let us know if we can contribute to your school and leave us a message! #sandiegokidsfirst #lajolla #delmar #sandiego #solanabeach #pacificbeach #carmelvalley #school #mentalhealth #quarantine #wellbeing #parents #advice See more

Check it out! This past weekend San Diego Kids First’s Dr. Pontillo was invited to speak in the Parenting During the Pandemic Q&A panel at Ohr Shalom Synagogue! A very special thank you to Rabbi Scott Meltzer for having us! Interested in having us speak with your team or agency? Feel free to reach out! We’re always looking forward to our next event. Main Office: 858-692-4187 Office Email: [email protected] #childpsychology #kids #mentalhealth #parenting #quarentine #sdkidsfirst #event #wellness

I’m thrilled to announce another exceptional addition to our SDKF team! Dr. Emily Hennrich has joined our practice! Dr. Hennich is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist with extensive training and experience providing psychotherapy for older children, teens, families, and adults across a number of settings. She draws her expertise from her work in school settings, intensive outpatient and partial hospitalization programs, the VA hospital, and private practice. Dr. Hennrich will be... available through telehealth starting Monday, September 21st! Dr. Hennrich specializes in evidence-based treatments including CBT (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy), DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), and ACT (Acceptance Commitment Therapy), which are empirically-validated modalities for those who are experiencing challenges related to stress, trauma, anxiety, mood, emotional regulation, adjustment/life transitions, orinterpersonal /familial relationships. We are most proud to add Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to the list of specialized services we provide, as this has been a treatment modality in high demand here at SDKF. DBT incorporates four key modules to help children/teens 12 and up, and adults with a variety of emotional, behavioral, and interpersonal challenges: Module 1 : Mindfulness, Module 2 : Interpersonal Effectiveness, Module 3: Distress Tolerance, and Module 4: Emotion Regulation. For more information on how DBT can help you or your teen, please call the office to schedule an initial appointment with Dr. Hennrich. *Stay tuned as we also prepare to launch our virtual teen DBT groups to allow teens to learn and practice skills together!* Dr. Hennrich utilizes a client-centered, collaborative approach in her work. She provides a warm, supportive, nonjudgmental, and validating environment while encouraging clients to find their balance between acceptance and change in order to live healthier and happier lives. Dr. Hennrich strongly believes in empowering children, teens, and adults alike to celebrate their strengths and better recognize all that they are capable of achieving in life. We could not be happier to have her join our collaborative team of experts! #psychology

Helpful Tips to Reduce Sibling Rivalry! Let’s face it siblings fight! some fight more than others!!! There are important factors that contribute to rivalry: temperament, gender, age differences, interests, talents, social/emotional abilities and issues. Parents are instrumental in helping their children get along better and here are some tips to make things easier: (This and other articles and topics can be found by visiting the link in our bio) ... 1. Recognize that it is very difficult for children to share their parents’ attention.Every child wants to be loved ONLY. Since this is not possible when children have siblings, help them by acknowledging andunderstandingtheir feelings 2. Help your children learn to communicate and solve problems by serving as their coach(I see that you are having difficulty sharing the blocks. Let’s talk about how you can cooperate and each have some blocks to play with. What are your ideas?). 3. Notice when they are getting along and give lots of kudos for positive interactions with one another(You both did a great job taking turns with the legos. I heard you using words and listening to each other. Good for you.) 4. Have one-on-one time with each child, regularly. This Special Time helps children know that they get your undivided attention several times during the week. 5. Establish a Kid of the Day routine by keeping a calendar and having children take turns being kid of the day. They are kid of the day every other day or every third day depending on the number of children in the family. The kid of the day gets to decide things that children naturally fight about: who showers first, what movie they are going to watch, who gets the first brownie out of the pan, etc. #childpsychology #quarantine #siblings #siblingrivalry #tipsandtricks #advice #therapy #helpful #parents

6 Quick Strategies to Promote your Child’s Self-Esteem and Self-Confidence We all want our children to have a strong sense of self-confidence and self-esteem. But how do we teach them this? Believe it or not, it is easier than you think. The way we talk and interact with our children on a daily basis help shape how they think of themselves and their own capabilities. Check out these quick six strategies on how to teach our children to truly feel good about who they are, all f...rom the comfort of your own home. Click the link in our bio for a more detailed explanation! 1. Praise effort, regardless of the outcome! Pay attention to the effort your child makes, and watch how you dole out the praise. For example, if your child is struggling to write their name correctly say I’m really proud of you for trying to write your name!It’s tricky isn’t it? Validate their feelings of frustration and discouragement if they have any -Acknowledge that some things are easy and some are not! 2. Allow your child to experience challenges avoid the temptation to make things easy for your child by removing limits, challenges, or frustrations JUST to avoid negative feelings; Self-confidence comes from the ability of working through challenges and learning you can do it! 3. Model imperfection! talk about what YOU aren’t good at, or what YOU find difficult. When you are frustrated, SAY IT! Show your child by example that there is no such thing as perfect! 4. Normalize your child’s disappointment, frustration, by talking about how others experience the same frustrations as well. TEACH PERSPECTIVE TAKING. 5. Find things they are naturally good at, and emphasize those strengths in comparison with others. Find opportunities for them to TEACH OTHERS their special skill or ability. 6. When you need to correct behavior, label the behavior NOT your child.Be very clear about explaining to your child that while they may exhibit ‘bad’ or ‘naughty’ behavior sometimes (e.g. hitting), they themselves are NOT ‘bad kids’! Have any questions? Leave us a comment or send us a message and we will make sure to get back to you! #childpsychology #quarantine #selfesteem #selfconfidence

In case you missed it! We’ve reposted our talks in Spring from Quarantine Parent to our YouTube channel @SDKidsFirst. Whether you’re a new watcher or need a refresher, we’ve made the video’s accessible for you at any time. The Quarantine Parent series was created to help navigate, balance and provide resources for all the parents taking on extra roles during quarantine. Host by Conrad Macalalad Ed. M, this 2 part series addresses common questions and concerns in a Q& A sess...ion with our very own Dr. Pontillo! The first video Quarantine Parent is for all parents while the second Lunch and Learn is dedicated to parents of special needs children. - Some topics covered include: - Motivation - Anxiety with social interaction - New roles as a parent (teacher, therapist, coach etc.) - Conflict with siblings - Resources that are available to you Click the link in our bio to find our Youtube channel. Have any questions for us? Leave a comment below or message us and well make sure to get back to you. We are all in this together! . . . . . . . . . #quarentine #kids #specialneeds #videoseries #childpsychology #sdkidsfirst #homeschool

How to help your child on the autism spectrum from overpowering and controlling a younger sibling! This quick video by Dr. Pontillo lays out 3 pieces of advice for this common question. Listen to the video for a detailed explanation on these 3 steps: 1. Remember to structure the play for your child: Setting up rules, how to play, turn taking etc (Pick 2 or 3 behaviors you want to work on with your child and make that part of the playtime structure). ... 2. Keep things visual: Kids on the autism spectrum really need the visual prompting. Put the rules, instructions and schedules up on a board. If they are too young to read, use pictures! 3. Make it fun!: Earning stars for following rules at the end of the play time. Have any questions for us? Leave your comments below or message us and we’ll be sure to get back to you! #sdeducation #sdquarantine #advice #parenttraining #autism #parentingtips #sdkids #ASD #brightstars #playdates #parenting #psychology #sandiego #FAQ

Bright Stars Parenting Program For Parents of Bright Children with Mild Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) With this unprecedented school year quickly approaching, San Diego Kids First is here to help make sure you’re prepared! ... The one-of-a-kind 3-module online parent training program 'Bright Stars' has been created specifically for parents and caregivers of highly intelligent children on the mild end of the autism spectrum! In addition, I created a free introductory video to get you started on the program. We are passionate about helping parents and caregivers become experts themselves, so that crucial social, emotional, and behavioral skills can be acquired on a day-to-day basis at home. To impart the education and support you need to have the information and energy to be your best self and bring out the strengths of your child, I have condensed answers to hundreds of parent questions, problems, and challenges into concise, content-rich video modules. Module 1: Motivation and Behavior Challenges Module 2: Perspective Taking as a Second Language Module 3: Rigidity and Inflexibility For more information on the program please head to the link in our bio. If you have any questions about the program, or would like to order the program, please send our office manager, Cori, an email at [email protected] #sdeducation #sdquarantine #parenttraining #autism #parentingtips #sdkids #ASD #brightstars #sandiegoschools #homeschoolhelp #parenting #students #psychology #sandiego #distancelearning #zoom

Are play dates the best option for improving your child’s social skills during quarantine? Give a quick listen to San Diego Kids First’s Dr. Pontillo explain the structure required to help your child! Have any questions for Dr. Pontillo? Leave your comments below or message us and we’ll be sure to get back to you! ... #socialdistance #childdevelopment #playdate #childpsychology #socialskills #quarantine #sandiego #psychology #family See more

Worried about your child's transition to distance learning? We've got you covered! Meet Sheri Friedman, a San Diego Kids First's Educational Specialist. With more than 25 years of experience, Sheri is dedicated to meeting the academic needs and specific learning challenges of struggling students in grades K- 12. With all of the uncertainty surrounding this back -to-school season, Sheri can help parents navigate distance learning, homeschooling options, and specialized acad...emic support. More than ever before, students of all ages and abilities need structure and support to be successful learners in these challenging times. Offering 1:1 highly specialized, individualized instruction, Sheri integrates a variety of effective and creative methodologies along with evidence based therapeutic learning tools to accommodate each child's educational needs. For this unprecedented school year, a menu of service options are available for students in both general and special education. All services are being provided in one-to-one sessions via Zoom. Here are a few Highlights: Service 1: Educational Therapy for Learning Disabilities and Differences Service 2: Learning loss concerns for both regular and special education Service 3: Parent consultations, coaching and guidance for 504, IEP and advocacy concern For more information contact Sheri Friedman, M.A. to schedule your parent meeting today. Limited slots available. email: [email protected] phone: (858) 759-7473 #sdeducation #sdquarantine #parentingtips #sdkids #sandiegoschools #homeschoolhelp #parenting #students #delmar #lajolla #solanabeach #sandiego #distancelearning #zoom

Check out San Diego Kids First's very own Dr. Pontillo and Educational Consultant James Rivet on ABC 10News as they discuss the impacts on child development and potential learning loss as schools move towards distance learning amid the pandemic. Head to the link in our bio for more information on how we can help! https://www.10news.com//learning-loss-is-inevitable-when-s ... #sdeducation #sdquarantine #parentingtips #sdkids #sandiegoschools #homeschoolhelp #parenting #Abcnews #students

Our team is always here to help! Check out some of Dr. Pontillo’s media appearances as she offers her expert knowledge and advice on a plethora of topics! Head to the website in our bio for full interviews and details! ... #mentalhealth #psychology #children #love #pottytraining #socialmedia #socialdistancing #media #news See more

Meet the team! Our select professionals, from the highest-rated universities in the nation are committed to maximizing the developmental, social, emotional, behavioral, and academic potential of children, teens, and families. Click the link in our bio to learn more!