A Dose of Wellbeing with Steve Doe, A Neurodivergent Child and Adolescent Mental Health Coach
The three steps
Connect
When working with children, especially those that are needing support, I am a firm believer in that children need to feel safe before they are able to talk. That is why making that connection is the first step and somewhat the most important. This can be achieved through games, arts and crafts and physical activities, this is different for each child. However, these times also offer a safe space to talk absent of any pressure.
Understand
Understanding the 'why' is always so important in a child understanding their own mind, body and why they feel a certain way. During these sessions I offer opportunities to understand themselves through psychoeducation. We learn about how the brain works, how this impacts our bodies physical reactions and what we can do to positively support them going forward.
Flourish
My aim. through working with any child is to help them Flourish the best they can in that moment in time. Through consistent, achievable goal setting and working on tools and strategies in sessions, they can use these to help support themselves and grow.
"I feel strongly that young people and parents need to know that they can ask for help. Just as with physical health, we need to act early to provide support when a child is faced with emotional difficulties"
Catherine – Duchess of Cambridge
All about me - Steve Doe
Hiya, my name is Steve and here is a little background on how I got here. I've worked with children of varying ages and needs almost my whole working life, most notably as a children's entertainer where I specialised in working with children with lots of different needs including social and emotional mental health needs. During Covid I qualified as an Early Years Practitioner and then as an Early Years SENCo. I followed this by moving into mainstream infant school where I helped support the new reception children who had needs and the staff supporting them. I then quickly moved into my role as a SEND TA Advisor across a Trust of Infant and Junior schools, overseeing the support and training of staff working with children with needs such as ADHD, ASC, PMLD, Anxiety and Trauma. It was here that I began to realise that the Mental Health needs of so many children far outweighed the knowledge and training schools currently receive and the impact that is having on the children.
That's when I decided to pursue a career in Child and Adolescent mental Health Coaching and try to positive impact as many people as I could. Knowing how long waiting lists are and how difficult it is for parents and carers to access support, please consider reaching out and lets work together to give a young person the best opportunities to thrive. As someone who was diagnosed as Neurodiverse later in life, I really feel that the lived experience I've had can only add to the level of support and understanding I offer.
