Child psychotherapy
I’m a playful person and so I love to engage children through play. Children are real and honest children, and they tell it like it is, without the layers of defense that adults build up over a lifetime. My greatest joy as a therapist is getting down on the floor to play with a child. I shrink down to become their size, entering a world full of imagination and wonder as I follow their lead to try and understand what they’re telling me though play.
Many adults assume that young children aren’t aware and don’t absorb what’s happening around them. When you play with a child and follow their lead, one can see that they have absorbed all experiences and are working them out through play.
Adolescent psychotherapy
In many ways, adolescents are like toddlers—they want to assert independence but at the same time they need their parents to be present, providing a secure base. Adolescents push and pull, connecting and individuating in a process that can drive even the most patient parents crazy. Artfully managing this process is a skill I’ve developed as a parent and a therapist.
Child-Parent psychotherapy
You can’t change a traumatic event that has already happened, but you can change the meaning you ascribe to that event. Children heal from trauma through a secure relationship with a caregiver. I serve as a conduit, helping the parent or caregiver become a healing agent for their own child. I assist parents and children in understanding, transforming and healing any traumatic events.