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Frequently Asked Questions

Have questions? I'm here to help.

Many of the families I work with are starting play therapy for the first time. Below you'll find answers to the most common questions parents ask about how the process works and what to expect.

In the play therapy world, it is often said that play is the language of children. Due to their age and stage of brain development, most children do not have access to the mental processes and language needed to fully engage in talk therapy. Rather, they are naturally inclined to explore their world and express themselves through play. As a Certified Synergetic Play therapist, I’m able to harness your child’s innate capacity for play to guide them through processing and integrating their challenges (often expressed through big emotions and behaviors at home, school, etc.)

What sets Synergetic Play Therapy apart from other play therapy modalities is its focus on understanding and supporting your child’s nervous system; the driving force behind their emotions, beliefs, and behaviors. Synergetic Play Therapy addresses the root cause of your child's emotional challenges rather than focusing on surface-level behaviors. This "bottom-up" approach serves to repattern your child's nervous system, creating meaningful, lasting transformation.

Through the Synergetic Play Therapy process, your child will learn skills critical for self-regulation, such as recognizing and identifying emotional states, breathing/moving through intense emotions and body sensations, and shifting unhelpful perceptions about themselves, others, and their world. In addition, Synergetic Play Therapy’s incorporation of attachment theory and interpersonal neurobiology offers parents a fresh lens with which to view and respond to their child’s emotions and behavior, leading to more regulated households and more connected parent-child relationships.

I provide support for the following childhood issues:

Anxiety

Aggression

Frequent meltdowns/tantrums

Low self-esteem

Depression

Trauma (abuse, neglect, exposure to violence, chronic stress, etc.)

Challenges related to neurodiversity (ADHD, autism, giftedness, learning differences, etc.)

Relational difficulties with parents, siblings, and peers

Divorce/blended families

Stressful life events and transitions

Suicidal ideation
It is difficult to determine exactly how long your child will be in therapy, because this is dependent on many factors occurring outside the therapy room. Generally speaking, issues that have recently emerged or exposure to a single distressing event are able to be resolved more quickly than concerns that have been present since early childhood or stressors that are ongoing. That being said, the average course of therapy is approximately 20-25 sessions. As your child begins to make progress towards their therapy goal, we will start to scale back how often we meet and will eventually make plans to ‘graduate’ from therapy.
Therapy for children is most effective when parents are in regular communication with their child’s therapist. I meet with parents of younger children and teens for ten minutes immediately after their child has had their individual session. During this time, we review what your child explored in the session, how this is connected to the specific challenges you want to address, and strategies for supporting your child at home. In my experience,older teens are often seeking more autonomy in therapy, so we may decide upon a more flexible arrangement for parent involvement.

If you are in need of additional time outside of your child’s session to address parenting challenges, I offer parent coaching sessions where we can spend more time learning about your child’s emotions and behaviors from a nervous system lens, identifying strategies for you to offer co-regulation to your child, exploring how your childhood impacts your parenting, and more.
The majority of children benefit from having their own individual time with a therapist where their play is uninhibited by parent monitoring and expectations. This allows them to work through their challenges on a deeper level. If your child needs you to be in the play room (more common with very young children and those with separation anxiety), I will teach you how to fully enter the play therapy process as a participant rather than an observer.
Children of divorced parents are at higher risk of experiencing mental health struggles, and may especially benefit from having their own therapeutic space to process the unique challenges that often accompany divorce. In most instances, I require that both parents consent to therapy before I meet with their child, and offer ongoing opportunities for both parents to be involved in their child’s therapy. The exception to this is if one parent has sole mental health decision-making authority as stated in the court-ordered parenting plan. We will establish a co-parenting agreement as it relates to therapy with clear boundaries and guidelines so both parties understand their role and what to expect throughout treatment.

Before deciding to work with me, it is important to be aware that I will not voluntarily testify in court or make recommendations in regards to custody or parenting time. If you intend to use your child’s therapy in this way, it is best to work with a therapist willing to be involved in the family court system.
I do not accept insurance, which offers the benefits of increased privacy and confidentiality for your child, as well as not having your insurance company dictate your child's therapy process. That being said, I also recognize that therapy is a significant financial investment and want my services to be as accessible as possible.

The following are options for reducing financial barriers to therapy:

I can provide you with monthly documentation for you to submit to your insurance company for potential reimbursement.

I have a limited number of reduced fee slots available, particularly for children who can attend sessions during “non-peak” hours, i.e. before 3pm.

You can request for your child to work with me through Second Wind Fund, an organization dedicated to reducing the youth suicide rate in Colorado by providing 12 free therapy sessions to struggling children and teens experiencing financial barriers to accessing care. To refer your child, visit thesecondwindfund.org.

I accept Victim’s Compensation in Jefferson, Arapahoe, and Adams Counties in order to provide free therapy to children and teens who have been victims of a crime.

*Please be aware I am not a Medicaid provider and am unable to accept clients who have Medicaid.
My office is located at 8 W Dry Creek Circle, Suite #220, Littleton, CO 80120. It’s conveniently situated near C-470 and Broadway, making it easy to reach from anywhere in the southern Denver metro area, including Highlands Ranch, Centennial, and Englewood.