Therapies for Children & Teenagers
‍Play Therapy

I work with children of primary school age (and sometimes beyond) to support the alleviation of anxiety and other emotional, behavioural and mental health problems, using Therapeutic Play and Tomatis Method.

Therapeutic Play generally consists of a 10-12 week series of 45 minute sessions, held at the same time each week. Tomatis consists of three episodes of 14-day home training sandwiched between six sessions and takes approximately 4 months in total.

I charge reasonable fees as I have a focus of expanding the availability of therapeutic support for children in Oxford, following months of Covid isolation.

I am a certified practitioner in therapeutic play skills - this is a type of therapy where play and art materials are used as the main way for children to express themselves. I am the editor of two professional books on the importance of childhood and our somatic (felt) experience. In addition, I am trained in Dr. Gabor Mate’s trauma-informed Compassionate Inquiry method, in BodyTalk and I am also a Tomatis Method practitioner.

My practice philosophy is grounded in the Polyvagal Theory of Dr. Stephen Porges, and the role of the vagus nerve and autonomic nervous system in emotion regulation, social connection and fear response. Put simply, this means that our primary concern as human beings is safety and when we don’t FEEL safe, all kinds of unwanted behaviours and fears can arise.

Thinking of our children as behaving badly disposes us to think of punishment. Thinking of our children as struggling to handle something difficult encourages us to help them through their distress

Qualifications:
Certified Practitioner in Therapeutic Play Skills (National University of Ireland, Galway)
Play Therapy UK Membership 201701915
TOMATIS® Practitioner (Level 1)
Completed Compassionate Inquiry Professional Training (1 year)
MA (Cambs) in Law and Social Anthropology
In the process of completing Diploma in Play Therapy (Leeds Beckett University)

As an integrative child and adolescent counsellor I work using various approaches and techniques that I adapt individually to the needs of my clients. These include elements of art and play therapy, person-centered approaches, attachment theory, body psychotherapy and psychoeducation. I also incorporate elements of mindfulness and breath work into the sessions. I specialise in working with young people and support them with issues such as anxiety, depression, self-harm, identity issues, negative self and body image, low self-esteem, aggressive behaviour, bullying, and help them with various transitions that they experience during teenagehood and early adulthood. I also have an interest in trauma related work, childhood sexual abuse and the body-mind connection. I see counselling as a collaborative process between the counsellor and the client and see myself as an ally who supports the young person in understanding themselves and their behaviours better.

Sessions last 50 minutes. I meet clients for an initial assessment session before starting counselling. Sessions can be for a short term (a minimum of 6 sessions) to long term (40 sessions or more).

I have worked with children and young people most of my professional life - initially as a teacher/educator and currently as a child and adolescent counsellor in schools and charities. I greatly enjoy supporting young people and their wisdom never ceases to astonish me.