Child Psychologists and Child Therapists in Westwood Los Angeles, CA.

I utilize developmentally appropriate, play therapy to gain knowledge and understanding of how young children perceive themselves and their world. Older children, tweens and adolescents benefit from therapeutic activities and talk therapy, as vehicles for gaining insight and self-understanding. I have provided therapy, on campus at a K-8th grade school and previously worked as a Certified Child Life (Development) Specialist at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. As a mother, I deeply empathize with parents whose children are experiencing difficulties and welcome your questions and concerns regarding the therapeutic process for your child.

We offer a range of services for young children including those who are going through their parents divorce to being at risk for developmental delays, children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders, and individuals with adaptive functioning needs and behavioral challenges. Our approach integrates meeting the child where they are at with a mixture of play therapy and evidence-based practices from the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) depeing on the needs of each client and family.

In working with young children I integrate the arts with evidence-based interventions to provide effective ways to deal with anger, depression, anxiety or other stressors. I help identify and build on current strengths while learning new skills. I work collaboratively with parents and other professionals to provide the highest level of care and service. I am always learning from current clinical research to improve outcomes for my clients.

Best said by Garry Landreth, a renowned child therapist, "Toys are children's words and play is their language". Play therapy is a way of working with kids using their language of play as a means to express or communicate feelings to work through childhood wounds (trauma, anxiety, depression, divorce, grief/loss, etc). Child centered play therapy believes that in a therapeutic setting, children allowed to play freely will resolve their own problems and reach their own solutions. Because this can be a long process, I practice a prescriptive approach, meaning the play is child driven with introduction of clinically appropriate interventions for the individual child and their particular issues.

Young families today have a lot of challenges living in Southern California due to the high cost of living, pressures of family life, and the demands of working. All of these responsibilities can contribute to a high level of stress and anxiety for parents. Many parents also deal with additional issues as having a special needs child, a family member experiencing trauma, divorce and blended families, a defiant child, and possibly marital problems. These circumstances can be overwhelming and difficult to deal with. You may feel alone and hopeless regarding your situation. Isolating, avoiding the problem, and repeating old arguments will not change the circumstance.