McKinney Play Therapy & Teen Counseling
If you have discovered this website you probably have many uncomfortable and confusing questions you need answered and concerns regarding changes you have noticed in your child’s behavior or emotional affect. If that is the case, then I am here to help you, your child, and family by answering your questions and hopefully easing your concerns.
You probably remember that old saying "Children don’t come with handbooks." Indeed that saying holds true in that there is not one perfect way to rear, guide, or support a child, especially in the case of a child who may be experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of a recent trauma or event. Maybe your child or family are victims of a violent crime and you are struggling with how you can best help your child through this ordeal and help yourself as well. Children are unique individuals who have different needs and requirements; as are the parents or adults who are invested in and responsible for that child are unique as well.
- If your child or teen is experiencing emotional distress related to a trauma or event, I can help.
- If your child, teen, or family has recently experienced the death of a loved one and seems angry, depressed, or confused, I can help.
- If your child or teen is struggling with feelings of anger, resentment, or confusion as a result of recent divorce or separation and is displaying his/her emotions negatively at school or towards one parent or both, I can help.
- If your child or teen has suddenly displayed behavioral changes which have caused upset or conflict within the family or social system and you are unsure as to what caused this change, I can help.
How can I help? As a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), I offer counseling services to children, adolescents, and their families who are struggling with emotional, behavioral, or relational difficulty. I come from the school of thought that one size does not fit all. In other words not every child will benefit from only one brand of therapy; sometimes it is necessary to explore different modes of therapy to find the right "fit" for that individual child.
To better serve my younger clients and their families, I provide an Eclectic style of mental health counseling which allows me to borrow techniques from many different schools of therapy. One school of therapy that I use quite often, especially with younger children is a Child-Centered approach using Play Therapy. Play Therapy is a mode of therapy where treatment is introduced from the perspective of the child in a carefully designed, comfortable, and playful environment or playroom. Since play is the natural language of a child, I use play therapy to communicate or help the child express his/her feelings through the natural act of play. Along with and in addition to Play Therapy, I have a strong therapeutic training background in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Solution-Oriented Brief Therapy, and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).