Portland Therapy Center
Eileen Devine

Eileen Devine (she/her)

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

LCSW

Hello! My name is Eileen and I support parents who are raising kids that have brain-based differences and challenging behaviors.

Client Status

accepting clients

Contact

Portland, 97203

Email Website

At a Glance

Me

Rate: $180

Provides telehealth services

Practicing Since: 2003

Languages: English

Services

  • Individual
  • Relationship

Insurances Accepted

  • Out of Pocket

My Ideal Client

Many of the parents I support say they never imagined parenting a child with such extreme and relentless behaviors. They entered parenthood feeling confident in their ability to manage the typical challenges, but now feel that confidence dwindle. The dreams they had for their family seem to be slipping away or impossible to realize. My clients have truly attempted everything to help their child and family, only to see the tension and chaos in their home escalate as the months and years wear on.

What I Specialize In

My unique practice with parents and caregivers, supported by more than 50 years of research on the brain, centers on understanding neurobehavioral conditions as brain-based physical disabilities with behavioral symptoms. Experience has shown me that with increased education and understanding, frustration and anxiety decrease and challenging behaviors begin to resolve. I help parents understand the brain/behavior connection: exactly how their child’s brain works differently than society expects, how this is directly tied to their child's challenging behaviors, and how to parent them with this in mind so that the challenging behaviors dissipate over time. Through our work together, I also help parents gain a deeper understanding of themselves, the emotional experience of parenting a child with intense needs, how to heal from burnout that is often present in their parenting experience and how to move from simply surviving to thriving as a parent.

More About the People I Treat

I was a clinical social worker long before I was a parent, but I had no concept of what it meant to parent a child who has a brain that works differently than what society (including parents!) expect. This life-changing journey of finding myself parenting a now-teenager with significant neurobehavioral challenges left me with a desire to change my area of focus and walk alongside and support other parents who have children with challenging behavioral symptoms, and who experience that sense of loss and isolation I once felt in my own parenting. The parents I have supported over the last decade have children with a variety of brain-based diagnosis and issues including: FASD and other prenatal drug exposure, PANS/PANDAS and other neuroimmune conditions, adoption and foster care related challenges, PDA Profile, ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Autism, Seizure disorders, Acquired brain injuries, Genetic Brain Abnormalities, and Other Neurobehavioral and Mental Health Conditions.

Techniques I Use

Specialties

  • Relational  External link

    We know that mutually satisfying relationships with others are necessary for one’s emotional well-being. I help parents makes sense of this understanding in the context of parenting a child who has intense needs and challenging behaviors, often making this relationship the source of tremendous stress and confusion for them parent.

  • Coaching External link

    I have over a decade of experience in providing parent coaching support to parents who have children, teens and young adults with intense, relentless, and sometimes scary behaviors. Through coaching, parents are better able to identify patterns and proactive address concerns they have related to their child's challenging behaviors.

Issues I Treat

Specialties

  • Parenting External link

    My unique practice with parents and caregivers, supported by more than 50 years of research on the brain, centers on helping parents understand their child's neurobehavioral condition as a brain-based physical disabilities with behavioral symptoms and also supporting them as they navigate an intense and complex parenting experience that is largely misunderstood by our larger society.

  • Child or Adolescent Issues External link

    I support parents and caregivers who have children, teens and young adults with complex needs and challenging, intense, and relentless behaviors. The support and education I provide these parents and caregivers helps them make sense of the chaos their living in each day and parent their child in ways that help calm down the challenging behaviors, leading to improved relationships and more calm in their home.

  • Adoption Issues External link

    Neurobehavioral conditions such as complex trauma, FASD, and ODD (to name a few) are often times a part of the adoption story for a family, leaving adoptive parents confused and feeling hopeless. I am not only an adoptive parent of a teen with FASD, but am also an internationally recognized expert in FASD, and an instructor for C.A.S.E.’s Training for Adoption Competency, where I train mental health professionals in becoming adoption competent.

  • ODD External link

    Parenting a child with ODD can feel like nothing works to help your child be less challenging. I've worked with thousands of parents who share how, with each new melt down, with its defiance, verbal aggression or even rage, their left feeling exhausted, hopeless, and ineffective as a parent. If this sounds like your parent experience, I want you to know there is more hope than you can imagine in this moment. With parent support and guidance, things can get better.

  • ADHD External link

    Parenting a child with ADHD can feel like navigating Chicago with a map of New York City. Nothing makes sense and you feel like "nothing works". The “tried and true” parenting approaches do not help your child "behave”, and the traditional parenting advice feels tone-deaf. In my work with parents, I help them understand why this is the case and how to parenting their child with ADHD in ways that actually lead to greater connection with their child and more calm in their home.

Contact Eileen

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