Children & Adolescents

Dr. Wise works with children and teenagers who have behavioral and emotional issues. He uses a variety of approaches including individual therapy, play therapy, parent consultation, and behavior modification to help them overcome and improve their problems and difficulties. 

Dr. Wise values regular parent consultation and feedback and will collaboratively develop a treatment plan for your child or teen.  Parent consultation also helps you gain a clearer understanding of your child’s problems and reinforces the strategies they are working on in therapy.

Dr. Wise has been actively working with children and teenagers for over 30 years.  He is a past mental health consultant to Head Start programs in Dallas, Navarro and Ellis counties. Dr. Wise’s early clinical training included working on the child and adolescent unit at Terrell State Hospital and at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Clinic at U.T. Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas where he has been a clinical assistant Professor of Psychology for many years.

Dr. Wise has extensive experience helping children and teenagers with:

• Anxiety 

• Depression

• Social problems

• ADHD and attention problems

• Adjustment Problems

• Chronic and acute medical illnesses

• Adjustment to divorce and life changes

• Grief and loss

• High Functioning Autism (Asperger’s syndrome)

• Substance abuse problems

• School problems

For Teens:

Adolescence is a challenging time for all young people.  Teenagers are dealing with identity development, increasing their independence and autonomy, and developing life-long problem-solving and coping skills.  Add in social media, multiple extracurricular activities, academic demands, distractions like video gaming, and the peer pressure that today’s teens face and you can understand why many of them develop mental health or substance abuse problems.   

Dr. Wise has a gift for connecting with troubled teens and young adults in a way that they feel understood and not judged. He works hard to form a therapeutic relationship with them so they can take a look at their lives and behavior and become open to making healthier choices.  Dr. Wise utilizes a “team approach” with parents and he partners with teachers, schools, physicians and other allied professionals when needed.  Dr. Wise consults with parents regularly and whenever necessary.  

Some specific issues that may arise with teenagers are:

• Low self-esteem  

• Social issues

• Peer relationship difficulties

• Social anxiety

• Experimentation with, or abuse of, alcohol and drugs

• Legal problems

• Gender dysphoria or confusion

• Bipolar disorder or psychosis

• Exploration of sexual orientation (LGBTQ)

• Difficulty adjusting to college (i.e., failure to launch)

“Dr. Wise is an excellent play therapist.  He does very well-informed, successful work with kids and their families.  He is also an excellent collaborator with psychiatry and therefore helps build a stronger treatment team.”

Callie Emery, M.D.
Child Psychiatrist Dallas, Texas