Services
Couples and Family Therapy
Play Therapy - ages 3 through 12
Sandtray Therapy - Adults, Teens, Children
Divorce Counseling for Parents & Children
Supervision - RPT Credentialing, LCSW clinical licensure
Areas where working with Tonia can help families, couples and individuals gain insight and healing through therapy:
Adoption
Aggression and Discipline Issues
Anxiety and Depression
Attachment Concerns
Blended Families
Death of a Family Member
Divorce or Separation
Family Life Cycle Changes
Medical Issues
Parent Coaching,br. Posttraumatic Stress
Post Separation and Divorce Counseling for Parents
Relationship Difficulties: couples, parent/child, siblings
Sexual Abuse
Sexual Orientation and Gender Issues
Couples and Family Therapy:
Tonia approaches families and couples from a contextual therapy model in which each person is considered within the context of his or her family of origin. In this tradition, there is an honoring of each person’s perspective and particular attention is paid to issues of fairness, entitlement, and invisible loyalties that can span several generations.
Play Therapy
“You can discover more about a child in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” Plato
Tonia works with children using a non-directive play therapy model which ascertains that play is the language of children. In the fantasy of the play a child is able to communicate his or her innermost feelings, gain mastery over her environment, resolve conflicts effectively, and experience healing. Sandtray therapy is often a part of a child’s play and healing work.
Sandtray
Tonia offers sandtray therapy as a modality for both children and adults. The use of figures that are placed in the wet or dry sand allows for the transference of anxieties, fears, fantasies, anger and guilt to objects rather than people and thus provides a safe and meaningful way to work on difficult issues. Children are especially drawn to sandtray as a way to express their innermost feelings and to gain a sense of mastery and healing around difficult, hurtful, or challenging situations. Sandtray can also be used by adults to work through challenging situations. Sandtray is much like dream work; it provides individuals with insight into the deepest parts of themselves.
Divorce Counseling for Adults and Children
We are living in difficult and challenging times. Oftentimes a couple is not able to find a solution to their problems and enter into the process of separation and divorce. My therapy practice has evolved over the past fifteen years around helping couples who are in transition to sort out their difficulties and to make parenting decisions that are best for their children. Play therapy is an effective and powerful modality that allows for children to express their emotions and experience healing during a difficult transition such as divorce.
Supervision:
Tonia is a licensed clinical social worker and enjoys working with clinicians in a supervisory capacity. She is credentialed as a supervisor and registered play therapist and able to help clinicians in their process of obtaining their play therapy certification as well. Tonia runs supervision groups. Please email or call her for dates and times.