A boy and a woman playing with a dollhouse in a room filled with toys and shelves.

Play Therapy

Play Therapy Room with lots of colors and toys organized on shelves

Kids need help. Parents need help with learning to help their children. Play therapy allows children to express themselves naturally in order to truly heal. Having a therapist with advanced training in play therapy ensures that your child will be able to appropriately have their needs met in therapy. I most often practice child-centered play therapy. This means that your child will take charge of the session in the same way that adults are allowed to be in charge of their sessions. I have a play room stocked with play equipment carefully selected to allow your child to fully express themselves. I focus on working with children aged ten and under.

Learn more about play therapy by visiting the Association for Play Therapy.

Areas of Focus for Children

Autism

Autistic children can experience difficulties with anxiety, depression, and sensory difficulties. Neurodiversity-affirming play therapy can help them with their unique needs.

ADHD

ADHD can come with difficulties with anxiety, executive functioning, and a range of other struggles that may impact school and home.

PDA

Pathological demand avoidance or persistent drive for autonomy can be challenging for everyone involved. As a nervous system disorder, there are many strategies to help reduce the nervous system response.

Anxiety

Children with anxiety may have a hard time concentrating, irritability, sleep difficulties, or constant worry.

Depression

While everyone gets sad sometimes, some children may be struggling more. Some signs of depression in children can also be seen at times through stomachaches, sleep changes, negative self-talk, or lack of interest in activities.

Divorce

Divorce and blended families can be difficult adjustments that require additional support.

Adjustment

Kids are constantly going through changes in their life. Kids and families benefit from additional support when adjusting to these changes.

Difficulties in School

School comes with lots of stressors. When grades, friendships, and home are affected by challenges at school, it may be time to seek additional support.

Aggression

Kids often express a variety of emotions through aggressive behaviors. These are probably wearing you out. Maybe your child’s teacher is unwilling to work with these challenging behaviors. I will help you and your child identify the root of the concern and improve symptoms from the bottom up.

Adoption

I have obtained advanced training as an adoption competent provider. I have training to understand the unique challenges and differences for families joined through adoption.

Trauma

Play therapy allows for your child to fully express their emotions and feelings surrounding trauma. I worked for six years providing therapy to children and families that experienced significant traumas through foster care.

Parenting

Sometimes the best way to help your child is to help you through the process. Throughout therapy with your child, I will incorporate you in a variety of ways to ensure your family has what they need to fully improve your concerns.

A smiling woman with shoulder-length brown hair, wearing a blue blouse and black pants, sitting cross-legged on a multicolored rug inside a play room decorated with clouds on the wall holding a clear sign that reads "Association for Play Therapy.'

I have used play therapy since 2015. In 2025, I officially earned the credential to become a Registered Play Therapist™ through the Association of Play Therapy. A Registered Play Therapist™ has obtained rigorous training, supervision, and experience to demonstrate skills as a play therapist.

play therapist using dollhouse and dolls with client
child bouncing on ball with therapist kneeling on ground with hands up to support
child playing with dollhouse while therapist smiles at him in a purple shirt
therapist smiling at child during play therapy while child plays with toy kitchen
dress up items with puppets and masks for play therapy
shelf of play therapy toys including ball, shield, cash register, weapons, blocks, vehicles, and doctor's kit
Sand tray with a variety of sand tray miniatures
children's art table with a variety of colors and buckets with paint supplies and markers
play therapy kitchen play with tools and stuffed animals and fidgets
“Enter into children’s play, and you will find the place where their minds, hearts, and souls meet.”
— Virginia Axline

A peek inside

〰️

Play Heals

〰️

A peek inside 〰️ Play Heals 〰️

Woman smiling and engaging with a young boy during a sand tray activity in a room with beige walls, a black shelf filled with small miniature items, and turquoise curtains.
People playing for play therapy with small doll figures at a play area with wooden shelves and toys scattered on the floor.
Therapist and a child are playing with LEGO bricks and a toy car on a multicolored carpet, with a white storage container filled with assorted LEGO pieces nearby.
A woman dressed as a princess with a pink and floral hat and a purple t-shirt interacting with a young boy wearing a yellow construction helmet in a playroom. They are playing a game with colored pegs and a wand as a hammer.
A pink felt mat with embroidered patches of colorful eyes, lips, buttons, and band-aids, with a child's hand touching one of the patches. The mat is on a speckled white and orange carpet. Part of a purple stuffed animal called Meebie is also visible.
A smiling woman in a purple shirt stands while a young boy in a striped shirt holds a large pool noodle as a sword and a shield in a playroom decorated with clouds and honeycomb shapes on the wall.
A woman in a purple shirt using a stethoscope on a purple plush monster toy called Meebie while a child looks on, in a colorful playroom with toys, stuffed animals, and play therapy materials.
A woman with shoulder-length brown hair is sitting on the floor, smiling, while interacting with a child coming out of a tunnel. The room is decorated with colorful toys, a stuffed toy, a yellow hat, and children's furniture with blue curtains.
A therapist sitting on a gray rug wearing a purple shirt and black pants. A child in a gray sweatshirt with orange and red stripes on the sleeve is holding a fidget, and the therapist's hands are holding a fidget that looks like a gaming controller.
A therapist's hand holding a small yellow dragon toy above other toy dragons on a table, with a child in a striped shirt sitting behind, in a room with shelves in the background.
A sand tray featuring miniature toy figurines, trees, a house, a butterfly, and a person holding a yellow shovel, with a wooden frame and a white surface, set against a beige wall and a dark shelf with miniature figures in the background.
A child and therapist playing a step-over obstacle course with foam stepping stones on a patterned rug in a playroom.