Child Psychologists and Child Therapists in Jersey City, NJ.

Whether your child is experiencing anxiety, frequent tantrums, challenges in school, changes in their mood, friendship difficulties, trauma, low self-esteem, or they are processing family changes, I can help. I have extensive experience working with children in mental health clinics and in school settings. I’ve completed intensive postgraduate clinical training in Child and Adolescent Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. I have advanced training in Play Therapy, and I hold certificates in Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and the Creative Arts Therapies. But most importantly, I can help your child express their feelings, uncover bravery, and begin to heal.

Children are our future and we want to make sure we can do everything to help them to be happy, healthy, well-adjusted individuals. At Mars and Venus Counseling Center, we see children and their parents as young as one year old. Our services include: effective parenting techniques for your child’s unique personality, anger management, behavior modification, divorce support, anxiety, depression, overcoming fears, social development, and issues at school. Depending on the age of the child, we often incorporate play therapy to communicate with children in their own language. We use puppets, dolls, clay, drawing, as well as a variety of therapy games to help children identify what is upsetting

I am a registered play therapy supervisor who believes that play is the natural language of children. Through play children are able to express themselves in a way that the child does not feel pressured and can process their emotions and experiences at their own pace. I am also trained in playful EMDR for children to help them process their trauma in a safe and creative space.

As a family therapist, I will work with young children, however, this is always done in the context of family therapy. I try to understand what else is happening in the family, and how it may be impacting the child (children). Is there conflict between the parents? Has there been a loss of a loved one? Young children don't always have the language to express their feelings. Parents may also have unresolved issues from their own childhoods which may emerge. Often, much of the work will end up being with the parents, not because they are "bad parents," but because they are the most important people in their children's lives!

We all have one common goal for our children, we want them to be happy. My work with parents and children include: provide emotion coaching for the parent and child strengthen the marital relationship in order to provide a model for healthy communication and stress management explore the impact of the parents' own childhood struggles on their capacity to parent effectively create an atmosphere where the parent and child feel respected, understood and validated improve parental understanding of their child's development designing effective behavior plans for increasing a child's positive emotions experiences and behavior

Is your child bullied or isolated from others? Is your child reluctant to go to school, has trouble making friends, or seems withdrawn and lonely? Many children have trouble with self confidence, anxiety or social skills. Improving self esteem, emotional regulation, and social skills deficits in the younger years reduces difficulties later. We all want the best for our children, and as a parent myself I know how it can hurt to watch your child suffer and not know how to help. Find out how your child can be helped by in-person counselling, online coaching, or online educational programs.

Children are sweet, sensitive, naive and trusting. Many children enter a world where there is more chaos than they deserve. Chaos challenges the ability o function optimally. In working with adults, parents and caregivers, I guide and educate adults in children lives how to Make best available choices while functioning under stress. By doing such, the adult is modeling for the child(ren) effective, strategic and positive ways of coping. As well, I work With children helping them identify, define and express their sometimes complex emotions. By effectively processing feelings children are then able to go on to play , properly develop age appropriately and build a healthy strong self.