Session 4: Introducing Parent Tips
Chapter 8 of Family-based Interpersonal Psychotherapy (FB-IPT) for Depressed Preadolescents presents the fourth session of family-based interpersonal therapy (FB-IPT), in which the therapist completes the interpersonal inventory with the preadolescent. This information, along with the background information obtained in previous sessions from both the preadolescent and the parent, helps formulate the problem area (grief, role transitions, role disputes, or interpersonal deficits) and set the focus for the next phase of treatment. Working with the parents, the therapist introduces the Parent Tips, a set of strategies for helping parents interact and support their depressed preadolescent and explains how some of these tips may decrease the specific challenges the parent has identified in their interactions with their depressed preteen. With the information accumulated to date, the therapist then prepares the problem area formulation to present to the preadolescent and parent in the next session.