Alecia Ruiz, MSW, LSW
Parenting a school-aged child shouldn’t feel like a constant uphill battle — yet for many families, it does. If your child is struggling with big emotions, frequent outbursts, shutdowns, anxiety, or social challenges, you may feel exhausted, worried, and unsure of what to try next. You are loving, involved, and doing your best — and still, life feels harder than it should.
I help school-aged children and their families build emotional intelligence, social skills, and confidence without overwhelm, blame, or guesswork. Therapy is not about fixing your child or pointing fingers. It’s about understanding what’s really going on beneath the behavior and giving both you and your child practical tools that actually work — at home, at school, and in everyday life.
When Everything Feels Harder Than It Should
Many parents come to me feeling stuck. Despite being supportive and deeply committed to their child’s well-being, they find themselves facing daily power struggles around mornings, routines, homework, and transitions. Emotional outbursts may feel unpredictable and intense, or your child may shut down completely when things get hard. By the end of the day, everyone is left dysregulated, frustrated, and exhausted.
You may constantly worry about how your child is doing at school — especially socially. When the phone rings, there’s a knot in your stomach, hoping it’s not another call about behavior, grades, or peer issues. You’ve tried consequences, rewards, and strategies that seemed promising but didn’t stick. You want to help your child — you’re just not sure what the next right step is.
At the same time, many parents feel caught between advocating fiercely for their child and wondering if they’re missing something important. Late at night, you scroll through social media or parent forums searching for answers, only to feel more overwhelmed and confused than before. Questions linger: Am I doing enough? Am I doing this right?
If this sounds familiar, you are not alone — and there is a clearer, more supportive path forward.
My Approach: Building an “Emotions Matter” Mindset
My primary goal is to help children develop strong emotional intelligence by learning that their feelings matter — and that they can handle them.
In therapy, your child and I work together to:
- Understand emotions and where they show up in the body
- Build practical emotion-regulation strategies
- Strengthen confidence, self-esteem, and self-talk
- Develop social awareness and peer relationship skills
- Learn problem-solving tools that work in real life
Sessions are creative, engaging, and tailored to your child’s strengths, interests, and learning style. Tools are designed to be functional and transferable — meaning your child can use them at home, at school, and in social settings, not just in the therapy room.
Above all, therapy is a safe and supportive space where your child can practice skills, make mistakes, and learn how to navigate uncomfortable emotions, challenges, and conflict with growing confidence.
Experience You Can Trust
I bring over 13 years of experience as a school social worker, specializing in the social and emotional development of children. My background includes extensive work in:
- Emotion regulation and coping skills
- Anxiety and school refusal
- Self-esteem and confidence building
- Social awareness and social skills development
- Peer relationships and problem-solving
Working in school settings taught me the importance of collaboration — among parents, teachers, administrators, and support staff — and the value of interventions that are practical, realistic, and sustainable across environments.
I have designed and implemented functional supports used across home and school settings, ensuring that the strategies taught are not just theoretically sound, but truly usable in everyday life.
Parents Are Part of the Team
Supporting a child’s emotional growth doesn’t stop at the therapy door — and parents should never feel left out or unsure of how to help.
I work collaboratively with parents and caregivers so you feel confident supporting your child’s social and emotional development. This includes:
- Learning practical tools and strategies you can use right away
- Developing shared language around emotions and problem-solving
- Understanding what’s driving your child’s behavior
- Creating consistency across home, school, and social environments
Rather than handing you a list of generic strategies, we build a framework together — one that fits your family, your child, and your real-life routines. The goal is for you to feel empowered, informed, and capable of supporting your child through both calm moments and hard ones.
If you’re ready to move from overwhelm and uncertainty toward clarity, confidence, and connection, I would be honored to support your family.
Alecia’s Experience
MSW in Social Work
IL Licensed Social Worker