Child Psychology
The child psychologist at our hospital is dedicated to improving children’s lives. Our internationally trained and experienced psychologist works with children, parents and sometimes the whole family to treat their developmental, behavioral and emotional problems. Her work is characterized by:

• Normal Development: Knowledge of normal developmental processes as a prerequisite for distinguishing between normal and abnormal behavior and development.
• Problems: Attending to children with milder developmental concerns to significant Psychiatric disorders as reflected in behavioral, emotional, cognitive, and/or developmental problems in family, school or peer group contexts

The major list of disorders she treats include: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, phobias, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, conduct disorder, school refusal and somatoform disorders. The child psychologist also helps families cope with the upset of divorce, single-parenting, and custody arrangements, or adjusting to remarriage and step-parenting.

• Assessment: Children with signs of cognitive deficits or uneven development requiring an assessment of cognitive functioning and/or school readiness (IQ and Specific Learning Disability assessment). Assessments conducted at the hospital include open-ended and structured interview techniques (used with parents and children), behavioral observational methods, assessment of intelligence, achievement testing, assessment of adaptive behavior, use of objective & projective personality assessment methods and performing psychological evaluation in child protection matters.
• Intervention: The Child psychologist at our hospital is the first Indian to be certified as a play therapist from the world’s largest play therapy training center. Ours is one of the rare hospitals in India to be providing child-centered play therapy. Play therapy is a child-friendly treatment method. In this method special toys are used as words and children communicate using their natural medium of expression, Play. Please note that play therapy is not just playing. It is a developmentally based and research supported technique that helps children to address their problems systematically and explore lasting solutions with a trained play therapist. Besides, play therapy, depending on the nature of the problem, behavior management and cognitive behavior interventions are used. Both Individual and group therapy is provided. Parent psycho-education, family counseling and training in facilitative communication or parenting skills are also undertaken at the hospital.
• Consultation: The child psychologist, as and when required, consults with professionals representing a variety of disciplines, including psychiatrists, psychologists, pediatricians, neurologists, counselors, teachers, nurses, social workers, lawyers, and others concerned with the prevention and alleviation of children’s problems.

Pain Psychology

Some specialized methods, processes, procedures, or activities can help an individual to attain a state of increased calmness; or otherwise reduce levels of physical pain, or help manage or remove the very cause of pain such as stress, tension and anxiety.

Specialized therapeutic intervention can help reduce and manage acute pain. Acute pain often results from trauma, often has a reversible cause and may require only transient measures and correction of the underlying problem. Chronic pain is often disabling for an individual to cope with day to day activities and this in turn manifests uncomfortable emotions such as irritation and demotivation. Chronic pain may often result from physical conditions that are difficult to diagnose and treat, and that may take a long time to reverse. Some examples include cancer, neuropathy, and referred pain.

Pain experienced at the physical level needs to be treated at a physical level by means of surgical or medical intervention. Physical pain enhances stress hormones in the body, causing body muscles to tense and thereby increasing the intensity of pain. Prolonged duration of enduring pain or chronic pain becomes the disease itself and brings dysfunctional day to day living. Here is where psychological intervention is required and comes in. Pain can be reduced, managed or even relieved by facilitating the patient to understand his/her pain at the mental level and helping him to deal with it at the mental level.

Some of the physical symptoms we can help relieve include:

• Muscle tension
• Low back pain
• Pains in shoulders or neck
• Pains in chest
• Stomach/abdominal pain
• Muscle spasms or nervous tics
• Unexplained rashes or skin irritations
• 'Pounding' or 'racing' heart
• Sweaty palms
• Sweating when not physically active
• 'Butterflies' in stomach
• Indigestion and 'the gurgles'
• Diarrhea
• Unable to sleep or excessive sleep
• Shortness of breath
• Holding breath