Children and Adolescents
Children and adolescents do not always have the words to explain what they are feeling.
Sometimes their inner world shows itself through anxiety, irritability, sadness, withdrawal, sleep difficulties, school struggles, friendship problems, perfectionism, anger, or changes in behavior. These symptoms can be painful and concerning, but they can also be meaningful signals that something in the child’s emotional life needs attention.
In therapy, I offer a warm and steady space where children and teens can begin to express what may be difficult to say directly. Depending on the child’s age and temperament, our work may include play, art, storytelling, conversation, symbolic exploration, and attention to the relationships and environments shaping their experience.
My approach is thoughtful, relational, and developmentally attuned. I am interested not only in reducing distress, but in understanding what the child is trying to communicate — about their fears, needs, conflicts, strengths, and emerging sense of self.
I also work collaboratively with parents, offering reflection and guidance while respecting the child’s need for privacy, trust, and a space that feels truly their own.
Puff sometimes is in the office, he’d love to meet you!
Adolescence
Adolescence is a time of becoming. It can bring intensity, sensitivity, confusion, distance from parents, questions about identity, and a growing need for privacy and independence.
Therapy can offer adolescents a place where they do not have to perform, explain themselves perfectly, or have everything figured out. It becomes a space to explore feelings, relationships, family dynamics, anxiety, depression, school stress, identity, loneliness, and the pressure to become someone in the eyes of others.
For young people navigating questions of cultural identity, belonging, or feeling outside the norm, therapy can also be a place to explore what it means to be fully themselves on their own terms.
My work with teens is respectful and collaborative. I aim to meet them as whole people, not simply as a problem to be fixed, but as individuals trying to understand themselves and find their own way.
Working with Parents
Parents are an important part of the therapeutic process, especially with younger children.
I meet with parents as needed to better understand what is happening at home, school, and in the child’s relationships. Together, we can think about patterns, emotional needs, boundaries, communication, and ways to support the child without overwhelming them.
My goal is not to blame parents or reduce the child to a set of behaviors. It is to help the family understand what may be happening underneath the surface so that the child can feel more secure, understood, and supported.