Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa are surprisingly common problems for young people. Dr Westgarth and the Child Psychiatry UK team have considerable experience of managing these serious and distressing conditions. Our services follow National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines and are strongly focused on Family Therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).

Excessive weight gain in children is an increasingly common problem. At Child Psychiatry UK, we pride ourselves in being one of very few services regionally who actively manages these problems with family interventions, motivation enhancement therapy, counselling, CBT and the latest developments in dietetics and exercise. Dr Westgarth was a professional member of the national NICE guideline development panel for managing overweight children (PH47) published in October 2013.

Child Psychiatry UK has had considerable success in helping young people with Selective Mutism. Selective Mutism is a symptom which can have many causes. Our approach is to develop understanding and from that a unique management plan. This has been of great benefit to many patients.

OCD is a common disorder which may present with unwelcome repetitive thoughts or behaviours. These may be kept secret by the young person due to a sense of shame. Dr Westgarth has a special interest in the treatment of OCD. Our services include possible Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or medication, but as always, we adopt an individually tailored approach.

Social Phobia/Anxiety may lead to isolation, withdrawal and loneliness. Many young people with this diagnosis feel hopeless. Some turn to unhelpful coping strategies. Social Phobia is often treated very effectively using a combination of approaches, but Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and sometimes medication.

Tic Disorders take many forms but can occasionally be severe and distressing. Dr Westgarth and the Child Psychiatry UK team have considerable experience managing this complex range of problems. We undertake a detailed medical history and investigations and ensure both medical and psychological services are available as appropriate. We have much experience in delivering Habit Reversal Training and Exposure and Response Prevention work with young people.

Many young people’s difficulties do not fit neatly into a diagnosis. All of our work is individually tailored to suit the young person, their difficulties, choices and resources. This means that when a young person has a unique difficulty we are ideally placed to develop a rich understanding and deliver a highly effective management plan and service to solve that problem.