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Behaviour Therapy
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Therapy & support
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Therapy & support
What happens during parent-mediated therapy sessions?
In parent-mediated therapy, a trained therapist coaches the parent to use everyday play and routines to support a child's communication, social and developmental skills, with live in-the-moment guidance, practice, reflection and simple home goals. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Happens During Play Therapy Sessions?
Play therapy uses guided, child-led play as the main way a child learns, expresses feelings and builds skills. In a typical session a trained therapist follows the child's interests while gently weaving in goals for communication, emotions, behaviour and social skills, with simple ideas to continue at home. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat happens during social skills training sessions?
Social skills training sessions are guided, playful practice where a therapist breaks everyday social moments — greeting, sharing, turn-taking, reading feelings, joining a group — into small learnable steps rehearsed through games, role-play and real peer interaction, with parent coaching to carry it home. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerBest Age to Start Therapy for ADHD
There is no single best age — support should begin whenever ADHD-type challenges start affecting a child's day. Parent-training and behaviour therapy can begin powerfully in the preschool and early-primary years (around 4–6), while a formal diagnosis is usually made from about age 6. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerParenting and guiding a child with ADHD
Children with ADHD thrive on structure with warmth — predictable routines, short clear instructions, specific praise, and calm consistent consequences rather than punishment. Evidence-backed parent training and coaching help most. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerADHD vs Childhood Anxiety in Children
ADHD and childhood anxiety can both cause restlessness and distraction, but the cause differs: ADHD is a brain-based difference in attention, impulse and activity that shows across most settings, while anxiety is driven by worry and fear that spikes with specific triggers and eases when a child feels safe. The two often overlap. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat is the difference between ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder in children?
ADHD and ODD are different: ADHD is an involuntary difference in attention, impulse control and activity, while ODD is a persistent pattern of anger, arguing and defiance. They often co-occur, and untreated ADHD frustration can fuel oppositional behaviour. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerADHD vs Sensory Processing Differences in Children
ADHD is about regulating attention, impulses and activity across settings, while sensory processing differences are about how a child receives and responds to sensory input like sound, texture and movement. The two often overlap and can look alike, so a careful assessment matters. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat is the long-term outlook for a child with ADHD?
The long-term outlook for a child with ADHD is positive. ADHD changes shape with age — visible hyperactivity often settles while attention and organisation may need ongoing support — and most children grow into capable, thriving adults. Early understanding, a structured supportive environment and steady learning support are the strongest predictors of a good outcome. Diagnosis and a clinical AbilityScore® are formed only at a Pinnacle centre under clinician care.
Read the answer AnswerWhat job or career options exist for an adult with ADHD?
Adults with ADHD succeed in virtually any field — there is no off-limits career. Fit matters more than the job title: roles with variety, movement, novelty, clear deadlines and genuine interest play to ADHD strengths such as hyperfocus, creativity and crisis-calm, while the right structures and supports help any role work.
Read the answer AnswerWhat kind of school is best for a child with ADHD?
There is no single best school type for a child with ADHD; what matters most is the fit between a school's flexibility and the child's needs. Many children thrive in mainstream schools offering structure, movement breaks, patient teachers and small-group support. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes biting worse in a child?
Biting in young children tends to worsen when a child is tired, hungry, teething, overwhelmed by sensory input, stressed by change, or lacks the words to express big feelings — and when strong adult reactions accidentally reward it. Calm, consistent responses and addressing triggers usually help it settle. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes breath-holding spells worse in a child?
Breath-holding spells are involuntary and usually triggered by sudden pain, fright, frustration or anger. They tend to get worse when a child is tired, hungry, over-stimulated, frightened, or low in iron — iron-deficiency anaemia is a well-known factor. Steady sleep and meal routines, calm adult responses, and checking iron levels all help. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Clinginess Worse in a Child?
Clinginess in a child worsens with tiredness, hunger, overstimulation, illness, big changes like a new sibling or daycare, rushed or sudden separations, parental stress, and unpredictable routines — almost all of which reflect a dip in the child's sense of safety. Steadying routines, warm brief goodbyes and naming feelings usually ease it. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes defiance and saying no worse in a child?
Defiance and saying "no" tend to worsen when a child is tired, hungry, overwhelmed or unable to communicate, and when the surrounding responses add fuel — shouting, long lectures, inconsistent rules, stacked demands, abrupt transitions or power struggles. These triggers are also the most changeable. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Difficulty Sharing Worse in a Child?
Difficulty sharing is a normal early-childhood stage that worsens when a child is tired, hungry, overstimulated, anxious, rushed or forced, or asked too young — most of which families can gently soften with calm routines, rest and warm modelling. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Extreme Shyness Worse in a Child?
Extreme shyness in a child tends to worsen with pressure to perform, labelling as "the shy one", comparison or teasing, rushed unpredictable transitions, overprotection, sensory overload and negative social experiences. Removing these pressures and offering warm, predictable, small-step support usually helps a child grow more confident. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes head-banging worse in a child?
Head-banging in a child often worsens when they are overtired, frustrated, in pain, overwhelmed by sensory input, unable to communicate a need, facing changes in routine, or when the behaviour brings a strong adult reaction. In most young children it is self-soothing rather than harmful, and easing these triggers helps. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes hitting others worse in a child?
Hitting tends to get worse when a child is tired, hungry, overstimulated or lacks the words to express needs, and when adult responses are inconsistent or intense. Spotting these everyday triggers and responding calmly and predictably helps far more than punishment. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes intense or unusual fears worse in a child?
Intense or unusual fears in a child tend to worsen when the feared thing is repeatedly avoided, when adults respond with their own alarm, and when the child is overtired, stressed or facing big changes. Avoidance and over-accommodation feel kind but quietly strengthen fear, while gradual supported steps and a calm adult presence help it settle. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Limited Eye Contact Worse in a Child?
Limited eye contact in a child tends to worsen with sensory overload, tiredness, illness, anxiety, unfamiliar settings, and pressure to look or do too much at once; calm, low-pressure surroundings usually help. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Low Frustration Tolerance Worse in a Child?
Low frustration tolerance worsens when a child is tired, hungry, overstimulated or anxious, when tasks are pitched too high, when transitions are sudden, and when adult responses are loud or inconsistent. Underlying communication, attention or sensory needs can also drive it. Protecting sleep and food, warning before transitions, breaking tasks into small wins and staying calm all help. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat Makes Meltdowns Worse in a Child?
Meltdowns worsen when a child is already overwhelmed — tired, hungry, over-stimulated or unable to communicate — and faces more demands, noise, questions or big adult emotions. Lowering the sensory and emotional load and staying calm helps a child recover faster. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerWhat makes nightmares and night terrors worse in a child?
Nightmares and night terrors in children tend to worsen with overtiredness, irregular bedtimes, stress, illness, fever, caffeine, and scary or screen-based stimulation before bed. A calm, predictable, screen-free wind-down and consistent earlier bedtime help most. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
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