Tourette’s and Trichotillomania Program

The Child Mind Institute’s Intensive Tourette’s, Trichotillomania and related disorders program, led by William Benson, PsyD, is dedicated to offering children and their families a transformative treatment experience that can bring about significant improvements in a short time. This intensive treatment program might be the right choice if:  

• Your child’s symptoms are impacting their school performance, family life, and friendships  
• Previous treatments with multiple providers have not yet yielded the desired results  
• Accessible treatment options are limited in your area  

While traditional treatment typically involves weekly sessions spread out over time, our intensive program is customized to cater to your child’s specific needs. It condenses these sessions into multiple hours per day, multiple days a week. Our intensive can serve as an excellent way to kickstart treatment or provide additional support to children already in a treatment program. We understand the importance of minimizing disruptions to your child’s education and can work with you to schedule sessions during school breaks. If needed, we can assist you in finding tutors to ensure your child keeps up with their schoolwork while in the program.  

Our intensive approach is designed to empower children to make significant progress in a short period of time. The program is personalized and tailored to meet the unique needs of each child, and we actively encourage parental involvement to enhance the effectiveness of the treatment. This intensive program is highly effective for conditions such as Tourette’s, tics, trichotillomania, skin picking, nail biting, gum picking, and other body-focused repetitive behaviors. While the program is customized to meet your specific needs, it typically spans from 2 to 4 weeks. 

Dr. William Benson, Director of Tourette’s and Trichotillomania Service, plays a central role in each child’s treatment journey. He conducts initial diagnostic evaluations, provides individual exposure therapy and meets with parents routinely to discuss progress. To ensure ongoing support after completing the intensive program, Dr. Benson maintains communication with other professionals involved in your child’s treatment, such as psychologists, psychiatrists and teachers.  

Our program is exclusively focused on individual treatment sessions, where your child works one-on-one with a clinician using evidence-based therapeutic techniques. Research indicates that individualized treatment utilizing the CBIT and ComB models leads to significant improvements in a child’s condition, with lasting gains over time.  

The initial phase of the intensive program focuses on educating both parents and patients on Tourette’s tics, trichotillomania and related disorders, and establishing a personalized roadmap for success. We provide guidance on effective parenting strategies for children with these conditions, review the specific components planned for your child, and outline the expected progression over time. We collaborate closely with families to develop customized incentive and reward systems to drive treatment progress.  

Recognizing the critical role parents play in their children’s lives, we actively involve families in the treatment process. Parents are encouraged to assist their children in practicing new skills at home and to participate in sessions with Dr. Benson.  

Before beginning the intensive program, all patients undergo a diagnostic evaluation. This process begins with an initial consultation to assess your child’s suitability for the program. If you are located outside of the New York metropolitan area, we can conduct this interview via telehealth and complete the evaluation in-person when you arrive for the program. During the evaluation, the clinician determines the appropriate level of intervention for your child. If the clinician determines that our program is not suitable for your child, we will provide recommendations for next steps.  

Upon completing our intensive program, each family participates in a discharge and future planning session. During this session, families discuss treatment outcomes, and the clinician offers recommendations for moving forward. Families can choose to continue their treatment journey with the Child Mind Institute, or we can assist in referring them to local providers. We collaborate with other clinicians involved in your child’s treatment and develop a plan to facilitate your child’s transition back into school.  

For more information, please submit our interest form or call us at 212.308.3118.