Here is an an example of the fantastic work STARS provides in Jayden’s story:

Experiencing outbursts of anger and an inability to express his emotions, 13-year-old Jayden was struggling to cope after his dad’s death from a battle with cancer a year and a half earlier. His mum came to us to give him the support he needed.

Initially, Jayden was very guarded. He became overwhelmed when his dad was mentioned and didn’t want to talk about him, or his feelings, at all. Instead, Jayden’s STARS counsellor focused on emotions in general, especially feelings related to grief, and how they are linked.

Gradually, Jayden opened up to consider his own feelings. He drew an ‘emotion body map’ to identify how anger feels in the body and talked about the things that make him angry. His counsellor introduced clay therapy and an exercise to help him channel his anger safely.

In their third session, Jayden’s counsellor asked if he felt ready to talk about dad. Jayden had full control of what they talked about and, if at any time he felt overwhelmed, they could stop. Jayden talked about some of his happiest memories of his dad, which he wrote down and used to make a memory jar and a memory candle. He started to speak very openly about his dad’s death, including his feelings during his dad’s illness, death, and funeral.

Jayden is now able to express himself and has strategies to better manage his anger. He will be able to keep his memory jar and candle to continue remembering his dad throughout his life.

‘It was good to have someone to talk to. I liked making the memory jar and candle to remember my dad.’ – Jayden

‘He’s able to talk about his dad more now and doesn’t get so upset when he does. This is a real positive change for Jayden. Thank you.’ – Jayden’s mum