Play therapy for children in Penticton and the South Okanagan
Play is a child’s first language. In a room set up for them, with an adult who isn’t hurrying them anywhere, children show what they can’t yet say, and then, slowly, it starts to change shape.
Ages 3 to 12, mostly
Younger children work almost entirely through play. Older kids often use a mix of play, art, and talking, whichever gets closest to the thing they’re carrying.
Neurodivergent kids welcome
I’m a Certified AutPlay® Therapy Provider, which is play-based and neurodiversity-affirming. The goal is never to make a child less themselves.
You start, not your child
We usually meet as parents first, so your child doesn’t have to be persuaded of anything before you get in touch.
It’s quieter than it looks
From the doorway it can look like an hour of playing. What’s actually happening is that a child is testing whether this room, and this adult, can hold something difficult without flinching, and finding out that they can.
I follow your child’s lead rather than steering. My advanced training in Synergetic Play Therapy is essentially the study of how to stay regulated and present alongside a child moving through something big, so their nervous system can borrow the calm.
No fixed programme, no set number of sessions, and no homework for an already tired family.
What children bring here
- Anxiety, worry, stomach aches
- Big emotions and meltdowns
- Separation, divorce, a new home
- Grief and loss
- Friendship struggles and school refusal
- Sleep that has fallen apart
- Frightening or traumatic events
- Being overwhelmed by a loud world
$150 per 50 minutes for a child, and $175 for family or parent sessions. Twenty-four hours’ notice to change a time.
Most extended-health plans cover counselling with an RCC, Autism Funding can be used here, and I’m registered with CVAP.
In person in Penticton, or securely online anywhere in British Columbia.
Two lines is plenty to start
Most people write two lines, which is plenty, and we can work the rest out together. If you’d rather talk first, we can set up a free 15-minute call with no obligation and no paperwork.