THE BEST BEGINNING
WELCOME TO THE BEST BEGINNING
Building those all important first relationships
The Best Beginning is a suite of services for parents and families brought to you by Ailish Lydon Accredited Play Therapist & Professionally Qualified Social Worker. Ailish provides Play & Creative Therapy, Infant/Child and Parent sessions supporting Positive Infant, Child and Parent Mental Health. Ailish holds Professional Registration with CORU as a Social Worker and is Registered with Play Therapy Ireland and IPTCA as an Accredited Play Therapist.
https://playtherapyregister.org.uk/search-listings/
OPENING HOURS
Mon - Fri 9am - 12pm
ETHOS
The Best Beginning is brought to you by Ailish Lydon dual qualified mental health professional working with Children and Families for over 20 years. Ailish brings a wide experience of working with individuals across all stages of the life cycle from birth to end of life. Childhood is a precious and wonderful time from its very start. Research in child mental health indicates there is so much we can do to support our children in building good mental health just as with physical health.The Best Beginning both supports parent and children acheive this in practical ways for the times live in.
WHAT WE DO
Is tús maith leath na hoibre. Ailish is guided by attachment research, the nurturing activities we need starting life ( and ending life) with, and how important these are throughout life at times of challenge. This is why her suite of services begins in infancy and goes through to teen years. In times of trauma or difficulty we need to be soothed, comforted and need to be "held" just as we hold an infant with care. Children (and adults) benefit from nurturing, sensitive touch and playtime throughout their development in order to develop a core of adaptability.The Best Beginning follows that journey of tender loving care from infancy to young adulthood.
BABY BONDING SESSIONS
"Baby Bonding" is an evidence based program informed by attachment research infant and child mental health. Baby Bonding offers parents a very simple guide to really tuning in to your baby. Parents learn skills to help provide Baby with the containment and security they need to grow. Baby Bonding is suited to all parents and babies and it will be especially of interest to parents and babies that may have had a challenging journey. Baby Bonding takes a Positive Infant and Maternal Mental Health Perspective and is facilitated by Ailish as one to one sessions.
PARENT CHILD ATTACHMENT PLAY
When the parent-child relationship is working, helpful child behaviour generally follows and family life becomes more manageable. This 10 step programme is based on the attachment research which shows that supporting the parent-child attachment relationship sets the scene for the best outcomes for children right into adulthood.
Sessions available to parents as one to one/ both parents to therapist and can be tailored to suit the needs of the family.
TODDLER BONDING
Toddler Bonding is a beautiful series of sessions for parents and toddlers.
Toddler Bonding sessions are especially helpful in understanding and enjoying your toddlers independence as well as the challenges that accompany this.
Many Toddlers across the pandemic have had their experience of learning to negotiate the world slowed down in many ways. Research informs that our first 1000 days are critical in our brain development and social and emotional development.
Grounded in attachment, child mental health research, and Play Therapy, Toddler Bonding is a parenting tool for life.
Toddler Bonding sessions are currently offered as one to one.
PLAY AND CREATIVE THERAPY
Play and creative therapy offers a variety of means from Art to Music, Puppets, Drama or Sand Play to Messy, Sensory or Story Play. Ailish works with children from 0 (and their parents) up to 17 year olds adapting the modality of Play Therapy to the developmental stage of the child/ young person. Children are part of a family and therefore Ailish also works closely with parents and carers to provide a systemic family therapy approach bringing her broad experience as a professional Social Worker also. Play is the child's language and the child's work. Sometimes we even use play instead of words. Play therapy provides the opportunity to express and also to make new connections in the brain, promoting healing and finding new ways to cope.
Creative therapy is also available to adults.
PARENT AND FAMILY THERAPY AND SESSIONS
A family is a system with many working parts. The child parent relationship is the most significant relationship we can have. When this is working well, interactions will be happy, cooperative and healthy. When there are challenges, the relationships may be ruptured with negative interactions or increased stress, anxiety and behavioural issues for the child. Ailish works closely with parents in resetting relationships when there are fractures and when it is difficult to manage big emotions. At times this may be more suitable to a child and their family than individual sessions. Children can be best supported within their own families through supporting parents in the relationship with their child and enhancing the working system of the family through creativity, communication and connection.
Ailish@TheBestBeginning offers sessions in a number of locations:
@Willow Tree Child and Family Centre, Malahide Road, Dublin 3.
@The Lighthouse Clinic, Swords and on request Malahide.
0864061200
BACKGROUND
Ailish has immersed in the human sciences since leaving school taking a Bachelor of Social Science from University College Dublin and Professional Qualification in Social Work from Queens University Belfast. She combines years of knowledge and skills working systemically with families alongside her technique as Play and Creative therapist. All this comes together to support the best beginning for children. Professional Social Workers are trained to work systemically with families during times of change, crisis and challenge. This means looking at all the parts in the family as well as the child. Ailish has worked for many years with families in hospital social work experiencing loss and crisis due to sudden illness or disability. This has included maternity services to end of life care at the hospice. Throughout her career Ailish has worked in the lead organisations on the island Focus Ireland, Our Ladys hospice and care services and Barnardos Northern Ireland, CAMHS and NHS Northern Ireland. She continues to work with families coping with grief and traumatic loss including suicide and murder. Ailish works systemically with families, always with the child at the centre. Ailish has specialism and additional training in Infant Mental Health and Grief / Traumatic Loss. Ailish continues her learning of Human Science, currently training in clinical supervision at the Dublin Gestalt Centre.
https://vsof.org/i-dont-fix-kids/