I work with children with a wide range of struggles. Some children feel overwhelmed by stressful experiences (i.e., divorce, birth of a sibling, death of a family member) or have problems at school with learning or with social relationships with peers. Other children may feel themselves simply to be different, such as when girls or boys may not conform to expectations associated with their gender. Such differences may create emotional pain and social difficulties. Some children may have been exposed to traumatic events or experiences.
Whatever the struggle an individual child might have, it is my hope to create a safe and supportive environment in which the child may express his or her concerns. This self-expression may occur through talking, artwork, or play. Indeed, particularly for younger children, play is the preferred medium through which a child may richly represent his or her experience or salient emotional concerns. Play may also offer a child the opportunity to make contact with and express feelings or parts of themselves that are less accessible. Through play, a child not only may find words for his or her experience, but also meaningfully share it with a trusted other.
Behind each struggling child is a parent or parents with concerns of their own. I work closely and collaboratively with parents to help them improve their sense of efficacy as well as their understanding of their child’s particular developmental needs. I help parents not only to understand their children with what I hope will become greater depth, empathy, and complexity, but also to enhance their own self-understanding. Sometimes the very struggles a child contends with may be linked to a challenging or painful aspect of a parent’s own history or family experience. Deepening a parent’s understanding of where he or she come from, emotionally and experientially, often aids in their relationship with their children.
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