Making Friends Feel Possible.

For Solano County parents whose child or teen struggles to make friends, handle conflict, or feel comfortable around peers.

Some kids make friends easily. Others find social situations confusing, exhausting, or frightening. Parents in Vallejo, Fairfield, Vacaville, Benicia, Dixon, and across Solano County often notice their child eating lunch alone, avoiding group activities, getting into frequent conflicts, or coming home upset after school.

Children and young adults under 21 who have Medi-Cal through Partnership HealthPlan are covered under the EPSDT benefit for medically necessary mental health care. When social difficulties are tied to anxiety, ADHD, autism, or other conditions that affect daily life, therapy is typically available at no cost to the family.

Sessions with PMHS take place over secure video or by phone, so families do not have to drive across the county after school. Your clinician will adapt sessions to your child’s age and attention span.

Social difficulties usually have a reason underneath them.

Social difficulties usually have a reason underneath them. For some children, it is anxiety, a strong fear of saying the wrong thing or being judged. For others, it is trouble reading social cues, managing impulses, or handling frustration. Understanding the reason is the first step toward helping.

Therapy for social skills is practical. Depending on the child, it may include practicing how to join a conversation, read facial expressions and tone, take turns, handle teasing, or repair a friendship after a conflict. Role-play and real-life practice between sessions help skills stick.

When anxiety is the main barrier, therapy focuses on gradually facing feared situations rather than avoiding them. Cognitive behavioral strategies help children and teens notice anxious thoughts and test them against what actually happens.

Children with ADHD may know the social rules but struggle to follow them in the moment, interrupting, acting impulsively, or losing track of a conversation. Therapy can include strategies for slowing down and working with parents on support at home.

Autistic children and teens may experience social situations differently, and the goal is not to change who they are. Therapy can focus on what the young person wants, such as making a friend who shares their interests, reducing stress in noisy settings, or handling conflict with fewer meltdowns.

Teens face higher stakes socially, along with social media, group chats, and dating. Isolation in the teen years can contribute to depression, so social struggles deserve attention, not just the hope that they will outgrow it.

Parents play an important role. Your clinician can coach you on how to support practice at home, set up low-pressure social opportunities, and respond when your child has a hard day. With your permission, your clinician can also coordinate with school staff.

Bullying, whether in person or online, can make social struggles much worse. If your child is being bullied, therapy can help them cope and build confidence, and your clinician can help you think through how to work with the school.

Progress often looks like small steps, such as saying hello to a classmate, joining one activity, or handling a disagreement without a meltdown. Those small steps build confidence over time.

Social skills groups at school or in the community can complement individual therapy. Your clinician can help you think about which supports make sense for your child.

You do not need a formal diagnosis to reach out. If social struggles are affecting your child’s mood, school, or daily life, a first session is a good place to start.

To begin, submit our intake form at www.pacmhs.com/connect. We will verify your PHP coverage and reach out within one hour between 8am and 8pm, or by 9am the next morning to get your first session scheduled. You can also press the Get Started button below, which takes you to the same form.