My Approach to Working With Children & Adolescents

Approach to Working With Children

My work with children is grounded in a developmental and systems-based understanding that children grow and make sense of the world within the context of their relationships. Children’s behaviors are often expressions of underlying emotional experiences that may not yet have words, and therapy provides a safe, supportive space where those experiences can be explored, understood, and integrated.

I meet each child where they are developmentally, using a range of approaches—including play, conversation, and collaboration—to help them build self-awareness, emotional regulation, and the skills they need to navigate their world with greater confidence and resilience.

At the same time, I view children as part of a broader “village,” and meaningful change often involves the systems surrounding them. I work closely with parents—and when helpful, schools and other caregivers—to better understand the child’s experience and to create consistency, support, and alignment across environments.

In this way, therapy becomes not just an individual process, but a collaborative effort to strengthen the relationships and contexts that support a child’s growth, helping them move toward being their best selves within the communities they are part of.

Approach to Working With Adolescents

My work with adolescents is grounded in the understanding that this is a pivotal developmental period—one in which young people begin to more fully define who they are, what they value, and how they want to move through the world.

Adolescents are navigating an important shift toward greater autonomy while still relying on the relationships that have shaped them.  In therapy, I provide a space where they can reflect on their experiences, make sense of their emotions, and begin to articulate a clearer sense of self. Together, we work on developing insight, strengthening emotional regulation, and building confidence to make decisions that align with  emerging identity, values, and goals.

At the same time, I view adolescents within the context of their relationships, particularly with parents and other important adults. A key part of this work involves helping adolescents and their families renegotiate these relationships in ways that support growing independence while maintaining connection and trust.

Through a Building Villages Together lens, I support adolescents in learning how to engage in healthy, respectful relationships, communicate effectively, and take increasing ownership of their lives—so they can move toward adulthood with a sense of purpose, resilience, and the capacity to build meaningful, sustaining connections.