Support for Children and Teens at Every Stage

Growing up is hard. Children and teenagers face a constantly shifting landscape of academic pressure, social dynamics, family changes, and internal emotional experiences they are still learning how to process and name. When those challenges become too much to manage alone, the right support makes all the difference.

At Dr. Tamara L. Tencer & Associates, P.C., we create a warm, unconditionally supportive environment where children and adolescents feel safe to express themselves — and begin to grow in confidence, resilience, and self-understanding.

What We Help With

Child and adolescent therapy supports a wide range of social, emotional, behavioral, and developmental challenges, including:

•       Stress, anxiety, and persistent worry

•       OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder)

•       ADHD and attention or executive functioning challenges

•       Depression, low self-esteem, and emotional withdrawal

•       Life transitions — school changes, family shifts, moving, loss

•       Eating disorders and disordered eating patterns

•       Angry outbursts and emotional dysregulation

•       Grief, loss, and separation concerns

•       Peer relationship and social difficulties

•       Sleep challenges

•       Trauma and attachment disruptions

How We Work with Young Clients

Our clinicians use developmentally appropriate, evidence-informed modalities — including play therapy for younger children — that allow kids and teens to express their feelings in ways that feel natural and safe. Sessions focus on helping young clients identify and process emotions, build healthy coping strategies, and develop a stronger sense of their own agency and self-worth.

For adolescents in particular, therapy offers a rare space where they are heard without judgment — supporting them through the pressures of academic performance, social identity, body image, and the emotional weight of growing up.

Family Involvement & Collaborative Care

Children and teens thrive when the people around them are aligned in their support. When appropriate, family members are included in the therapeutic process to deepen understanding and reinforce progress at home. Our team also collaborates with teachers, school counselors, and medical providers — with consent — to ensure consistent, coordinated care across every environment.

Families throughout Westmont, Downers Grove, Hinsdale, and the broader western Chicago suburbs trust our team to be a genuine, long-term partner in their child's well-being.