DU Alumni

Alum’s book aims to help children face psychotherapy

Jonathan Jenkins is author of a book that follows a young boy’s first encounter with therapy and looks to shed light on the experience. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Jenkins

Jonathan Jenkins is author of a book that follows a young boy’s first encounter with therapy and looks to shed light on the experience. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Jenkins

For many people, the idea of psychotherapy seems relatively benign, especially as mental health awareness continues to grow in the public eye. But for a child who has never experienced anything like it, therapy can be a terrifying prospect. Meeting a strange person in a strange place, being asked to open up and not being sure if something is wrong are all enormous sources of anxiety. However, Jonathan Jenkins (PsyD ’13) is working to introduce kids to therapy in a creative way.

One of Jenkins’ biggest goals is to help children better understand and be better prepared for their first experiences with psychotherapy. His recent book, “Wednesday Afternoons with Dr. J.,” follows a young boy’s first encounter with therapy and looks to shed light on the experience.

“I imagined this book as a way to begin to introduce both psychotherapy and the exploration of emotions to kids in a fun and creative manner,” says Jenkins, a psychologist who primarily works with kids. “For many of the children who have read the book, this illustrated narrative serves as a nonthreatening way for children to gain information by observing a child [in] therapy, so that they themselves may feel less anxious about meeting with a psychologist if they eventually become in need of mental health services.”

To write the book, Jenkins researched common misconceptions that children harbor about psychotherapy, psychologists and their own emotions.

“After finding common threads regarding each area, I then worked diligently to weave that information into my story so as to expose the children to appropriate information regarding those areas,” Jenkins says. “Additionally, research was also undertaken regarding how to craft therapeutic narratives in general, and how to use the incredible medium of books to education and inform children.”

Published in August, the book already has managed to find its way into schools, private practices, hospitals and private homes.

“Before the book came out, there was a true gap in the literature available to discuss psychotherapy and emotions with children, and this book helps to meet that need,” Jenkins says. “Whenever I am able to give my ‘elevator pitch’ to clinicians, teachers and parents, they all seem to appreciate the goal of the story and how it is a useful tool to empower young children.”

Jenkins received his doctor of psychology from the University of Denver in 2013 before making his way to Massachusetts. For the past year, Jenkins has been working at a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical psychology with a focus on autism spectrum disorders. In December, he begins work in the adolescent outpatient department of Massachusetts General Hospital. He also will serve as an instructor in the Harvard Medical School teaching community at the hospital.

 

 

 

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