Counseling at the Beginning
Interventions and Issues in Infancy and Early Childhood

Counseling at the Beginning is a thorough, practice-based guide for counselors who serve the mental health needs of very young children and their families. Chapters based on current developmental psychology research prepare mental health, school, and addictions counselors to work with pregnant women and children under the age of 5. Discussion of topics such as brain development, self-regulation, trauma, prenatal alcohol and drug exposure, and toxic stress prepares providers to meet the needs of this growing area of practice. Concrete information about how and when to intervene, written by experts working in the field, is accompanied by lists of resources for further learning at the end of each chapter.

Introduction to Early Childhood Mental Health, Catherine Tucker 1. Attachment: The Foundation of Mental Health, Catherine Tucker 2. Prenatal Brain Development: A Foundation for All Brain Development, Franc Hudspeth and Kimberly M. Matthews 3. Beginning at the Beginning, Evette Horton and Kim Andringa 4. Counseling Infants and Families, Evette Horton 5. Counseling Toddlers (13-47 Months) and Their Families, Kelley Munger, Brijin Gardner, and Kelly Davis 6. Preschool to School-Aged (48-72 Months) Children, Catherine Tucker 7. Getting Creative: Using Play and Expressive Arts, Sondra Smith and Jenn Pereira 8. Working Across Systems of Care, Catherine Tucker, Kay Schieffer, Nina Medyk, and Ceymone Dyce

Catherine Tucker, PhD, LMHC, RPTS, is the research director at The Theraplay Institute and a counselor in private practice. She has more than 15 years of direct counseling experience working primarily with young children and their families and was president of the Association for Child and Adolescent Counseling from 2017 to 2019.