APPROACHES

Play therapy has been a well-established and popular approach of child treatment in clinical practice.  “For children, toys are their words, and play is their conversation” (Hall, Kaduson, Schaefer, 2002).  

Often time, children have difficulty verbalizing their feelings and thoughts when directly questioned.  Therefore, playing games or toys can reduce children’s defenses and they are more likely to share their feelings in an enjoyable and appropriate manner.  Play Therapy involves a journey with the child to engage in self-discovery and self-exploration.  Children have creative, forward-moving, inner directional and self-healing power. 

As a play therapist, my role is to provide a warm and caring relationship with your child.  I would create a feeling of safety and permissiveness in the relationship so your child feels free to express and explore self completely.  I am also sensitive to your child’s feelings and gently reflects those feelings in such a manner that the child develops self-understanding.

Executive functions are a set of cognitive skills that help individuals manage their thoughts, emotions, behaviours, and resources in order to achieve goals. These skills include organization, planning, time management, emotional regulation, working memory, task initiation, and self-monitoring. Research suggests that individuals with ADHD may experience delays in the development of executive functioning skills compared to their peers (Goldrich, 2017).

As part of my practice, I help clients identify their strengths and challenges related to executive functioning and provide education about ADHD and its impact on daily life. I work collaboratively with clients to develop practical strategies, systems, and structures that support success at home, school, and work. I also support parents by offering guidance, resources, and evidence-informed recommendations, including books, websites, and parent training programs that can help foster their child’s growth and independence.

In cognitive behavioral therapy, individuals respond to situations cognitively, behaviorally, and emotionally through a set of core schemas or interpersonal strategies that people construct in response to their environment.  Core cognitive schemas are developed during childhood, are motivated by past consequences, and are elaborated throughout lives.  The schemas people develop may be dysfunctional and adaptive.  Therefore, cognitive distortions and deficits are the processes that lead to psychological problems and disorders.  

Cognitive behavioral therapy is problem-focused, directive, collaborative, and psychoeducational.  When clients feel overwhelmed with negative thoughts and maladaptive feelings and behaviour, cognitive behavioral therapy can help them overcome and challenge their automatic beliefs, and use practical strategies to modify their behaviors.  Through a learning process, clients can practice and acquire new skills and learn new ways of thinking and effective ways of coping with problems.  

Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) is a modified type of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).  DBT helps clients who have difficulty with emotional regulation or are having self-destructive behaviours.  Mindfulness skills is one the most important benefit of DBT.  Mindfulness skills help clients to stay calm, focus on the present moment, and avoid engaging in automatic negative thought patterns and impulsive and self-harming behaviours.  Distress tolerance is another crucial skill in DBT that helps clients to learn how to cope during a crisis and build up resiliency.  Distraction, self-soothing techniques and emotion regulation skills are also used in DBT.  

Person-centered therapy believes that each person is capable of finding self-awareness and a personal meaning and purpose in life, and moving toward “awareness, spontaneity, trust in self, and inner-directedness” (Corey, 2016, p. 432). In person-centered therapy, clients develop positive regard, warmth, love, and respect to develop feelings of worth.  

A secure attachment with a parent or caregiver plays a vital role in a child’s emotional, social, and psychological development. Early attachment experiences can have a lasting impact on an individual’s ability to form healthy relationships, develop self-awareness, regulate emotions, demonstrate empathy, and manage behaviours throughout life.

An Attachment-Based Approach recognizes the importance of these early relationships and how they continue to influence current thoughts, feelings, and interpersonal patterns. Through this approach, I help clients explore how past attachment experiences may be affecting their present relationships and emotional well-being. Together, we identify primary emotions, unmet attachment needs, and recurring relational patterns, while fostering new experiences of safety, connection, and emotional security. The goal is to support healing, strengthen relationships, and promote healthier ways of relating to oneself and others.