I have worked with children, tweens, and teens in various capacities for the past 20 years. I see elementary school age children, tweens, and teens struggling with behavioral issues, anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide, or self-harm behaviors. I also have experience providing supportive counseling to children and families dealing with childhood cancer and other health concerns; bereaved children and families; and those who have experienced abuse, neglect, and other types of trauma. A particular interest of mine is working with families with neurodiversity - particularly ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, and Anxiety Disorders.
Adolescents, in particular, are known for wanting to be treated like, and at times acting like, adults... and at other times being just as child-like as ever. This can be confusing to navigate for both the adolescent and the parent. I enjoy walking through this time with both parties and assisting to facilitate better communication between tweens, teens, and their parents.
Utilizing techniques from Play Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and other proven therapeutic strategies, I work together with children, teens, and their parents to determine their goals for therapy and assist them in working toward meaningful change in their lives. With school aged children, I integrate child-only sessions with parent-child sessions and parent-only sessions to review progress and address any additional concerns that may have come up. With tweens and teens, I find engaging adolescents more in their treatment process, rather than prescribing therapeutic goals for the teen, produces more lasting change. I believe in the team approach to helping children, so I am happy to consult with school professionals when appropriate.