Play Therapy is an approach to counseling utilized for children. Children learn to understand the world through play. Play Therapy embraces play to facilitate therapeutic interventions. Play can include games, dolls, art activities, sports, make-believe, or any other activity that fits a child developmentally and emotionally.
Play Therapy can be beneficial for children with behavioral issues. Because these children might not have the words to communicate their feelings or might not want to, this allows them a space to express themselves and share their feelings through play.
Play therapists get to know the child’s specific interests and can tailor their counseling space to make it unique for each child. As the counselor observes and interacts with the child, they can understand the emotions that lead to their behaviors. Over time, therapists can encourage children to use play to express feelings instead of expressing them through inappropriate or harmful behaviors.
Play Therapy can also be used for adults to help them connect with their inner creativity and facilitate child-like joy.
Are you facing overwhelming stress and anxiety? Are you or a child/family member experiencing social, emotional, or behavioral challenges? Is there too much conflict in your relationship with your significant other? These can create barriers to successful functioning at home, school, work, or in the community. It can be scary when you don’t know where to go for help. Together, you and I will...
You're probably wondering how I can best meet your therapeutic needs. With so many options out there, I wouldn't blame you. The truth is that we'll both work together to identity what those needs are, starting exactly where you're comfortable, and working together to ignite clarity, bring about healing, and restore hope within you or family, one therapeutic session at a time. With over seven ye...
I work with adolescents who suffer from depression, and anxiety. I also work with children who are school avoidant. I work with young people who need help with coping skills as well as adults. I do family work as well as individual therapy. I can help you connect to the you, that you always wanted to be, you can learn to think differently, you can be the best version of yourself. The only thing...
Now more than ever people are feeling increased stress & pressure to feel happy. With countless social media posts & images overwhelming you with ideas of what happiness should look like, it can feel isolating when you don’t feel or look as happy as those around you. I am honored to do this work & it is a privilege to work/walk alongside clients as you learn to find your own path in life, while...
Do you find it difficult to change? Do you have patterns ingrained that are holding you back from the life you deserve? Have you ever experienced a challenging time in your life that you felt alone, scared, or misunderstood? I'm here to help you navigate those unresolved issues that are holding you back in life. I provide a safe haven for those who are feeling displaced and want to be accepted ...
I believe that if we can give children and their families tools to cope with challenges early in life, we are setting them up for successful healthy futures. Because of this, I have focused on providing support to children, adolescents, and their families dealing with behavior issues, struggles with self-esteem, anxiety, depression, grief and loss, histories of trauma, and difficulties with sch...
I began my professional journey as a young adult working in various settings with people struggling to make better choices. As I worked with individuals from widely diverse backgrounds and walks of life, I began to appreciate the power of one hand reaching out. I became profoundly aware that most people are able to build a more fulfilling life, not because of good advice, but because another...
I provide services for ages as young as 4 and through early adulthood. I believe in a client-centered process which focuses on your goals and wishes for treatment. Understanding each person's individual strengths, needs, and interests is a key part of the therapeutic process. My goal is to support and enhance communication around any difficulties and develop skills to address these problems. I...
( English | español ) My life journey and experience created in me a passion for working with children, teens and young adults, who have anxiety, depression, life challenges and self-esteem issues. I love a good challenge and new experiences, and have really found a niche in working with college-aged young adults that are navigating through a phase in their life with many changes. I have also...
I use an integrative approach informed by relational, psychodynamic, existential, and mindfulness traditions along with my decades of artistic practice as a poet, culture-maker, and teacher. I collaborate with my clients in creating a safe and accepting space for emotional pain to be explored, shame dismantled, somatic connections tracked with more consciousness, internal frameworks revised and...
I know that the first step of getting help for your child can be very scary. However, at some point you realized you needed some extra help. Maybe it was when you no longer recognized your own child. When you realized they were no longer their old self after that bad thing happened to them. Or when you felt like you had to walk on eggshells around your sensitive, moody, misunderstood pre-teen j...
( English | español ) My ideal clients are children who are struggling to behave, teens who seem out of control or just totally distant, young adults who feel life is meaningless, couples who have terrible communication and seem to fight all the time, and families who are stuck in a rut of continual dysfunction. They want a better life. I have experience and success working specifically with...
**Daytime Availability Only!** Hello and welcome! My name is Courtney and I am a compassionate and open-minded mental health therapist located in Des Moines. I enjoy working with individuals of all ages and concerns, with particular interest in trauma/PTSD, women's issues, anxiety disorders, medical stressors and sexual strain/dysfunction. My approach is trauma-informed and empirically supporte...
Are you feeling stuck? Overwhelmed? Unsure of how to move forward due to past pain, current challenges, or future worries? Although seeking therapy can be scary and daunting, I also believe it can be a catalyst for personal growth and change. I want to walk with you on your journey through these experiences that evoke difficult emotions, such as sadness, anger, hurt, and confusion, to help you...
