Posts by Kanchi

The Comfort Ability® Program in Southern California: Evidence-Based Support for Kids and Teens Living With Chronic Pain Living with chronic pain can be incredibly confusing and isolating for kids and teens, and equally overwhelming for the families who love them. When symptoms persist without clear answers, it’s easy to feel stuck between endless medical appointments…

Navigating The One Year Anniversary: Supporting Yourself and Your Children After the Palisades and Eaton Fires As the one-year anniversary of the Palisades and Eaton Fires approaches, it’s common for emotions, memories, or stress responses to resurface—for both adults and children. For many families, these fires were traumatic experiences involving fear, disruption, and loss. Anniversaries…

Signs of Anxiety in Teen Boys (That Parents Often Miss) Key takeaway: Anxiety in teen boys often hides behind irritability, perfectionism, or withdrawal—not just worry or fear. By noticing the subtle signs early and creating space for open, compassionate support, parents can help their sons build lasting emotional resilience. Therapy at the Milika Center provides…

What Is Play Therapy and How Can It Help Your Child Key Takeaways:  Play is a child’s natural language, and therapy that uses it can help kids express emotions, build resilience, and process life experiences in a safe, developmentally appropriate way. Play therapy can help with a wide range of challenges—including anxiety, grief, behavioral issues,…

7 Therapist-Approved Tips to Help Anxious and Sensory-Sensitive Kids This Halloween Takeaway: Halloween can be overwhelming for children who experience anxiety or sensory sensitivities, making loud noises, costumes, and crowds feel more stressful than fun. At Milika Center for Therapy and Resilience, we support families with tools that reduce stress and build resilience, so kids…

How Social Media Impacts Teen Mental Health—and What Parents Can Do Key Takeaways: Social media can both support and strain teen mental health. While it offers connection and self-expression, it also increases the risk of anxiety, depression, comparison, and poor sleep—especially when usage is excessive or emotionally driven. Therapy empowers teens to build healthier digital…

Understanding Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs): A Guide for New Parents Welcoming a baby into the world is often described as one of life’s most joyful experiences, but for many new mothers, it can also be a time of unexpected emotional distress. Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs) are a group of mental health…

Find Your Love Style This Valentine’s Day—Let MILIKA Help You Decode It! February 14, 2025 Valentine’s Day is here again—the holiday of love, romance, and…attachment triggers? Whether you’re swooning over candlelit dinners or side-eyeing happy couples on Instagram, your experience of love is often shaped by something deeper than chocolate hearts: your attachment style. Attachment…

Road to Resilience: Overcoming Trauma & Finding Strength after LA Wildfires Road to Resilience: Overcoming Trauma & Finding Strength After LA Wildfires  Highlights from the webinar by Kanchi Wijesekera, Ph.D. [January 25, 2025]   Impact of Wildfire Disasters and Mental Health Research has consistently shown that wildfires and natural disasters can have a profound impact…