Why Play Therapy?

Developmentally, children don’t yet have the capacity to use the insight-based verbal therapy typically used by adults. The magic of play therapy is that it engages directly with the child as she/he is in the moment, bypassing the need for language-based communication while still allowing the therapist to assess and respond to the underlying needs of each child. Also, because the therapy is fun for the child, there is less resistance and often more rapid change than with talk therapy.

Intake and Assessment

In the first few sessions of a new therapeutic relationship, I gather as much information as I can about the issues and the people involved. When working with children, the intake process includes a lengthy developmental questionnaire, interviewing the parents, meeting with the child and family in various combinations. At the end of the intake and assessment process, I will meet with the parents again to present my understanding of the situation and recommend a course of treatment. If I believe a child, family, or individual would be served by seeking services I cannot provides, I will suggest appropriate referrals .