Sarah Burgos Play Therapy Professional + Certified

Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) is an incredibly powerful and effective approach for children struggling with oppositional and defiant behaviors. I understand what's happening underneath the behavior and help parents to understand it too, while coaching on how to respond in ways that support meaningful change. This work is personal to me, too—one of my own sons has ODD, so I understand firsthand how challenging these behaviors can be for the entire family.

Parents are an essential part of the therapy process. Every five child sessions, I meet with parents for a free, one-hour Parent Consultation to discuss progress, concerns, and what I'm seeing in the playroom. I also provide parent coaching using principles from Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT), helping parents better understand what's happening beneath their child's behavior and respond in ways that strengthen the parent-child relationship and support lasting change.

Children aren't just one of the populations I work with—they're my specialty. I exclusively provide therapy for children ages 3–12 and have over 20 years of experience working with children and families. I use Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT), an evidence-based approach designed specifically for children, to address anxiety, big emotions and behaviors, low self-esteem, grief and loss, family changes, school difficulties, autism-related challenges, and more.

Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) is the foundation of my practice. CCPT is an evidence-based form of play therapy designed specifically for children and requires specialized training. Rather than expecting children to process their experiences through adult-style conversation, I provide a carefully structured therapeutic environment where children use play to work through emotions, experiences, relationships, and challenges at their developmental level.

Attachment Theory recognizes that a child's earliest relationships with caregivers shape their sense of safety, trust, self-worth, and relationships with others. After more than 20 years of working with children and families, I've learned that healthy attachment is at the root of healing and lasting change. At its core, Child-Centered Play Therapy is an attachment-based approach, using a safe, accepting therapeutic relationship to help children grow, heal, and develop a stronger sense of self.

Children live in the here and now and experience their world largely through emotions. They don't yet have the abstract reasoning or language to talk through their issues—or even think through their feelings. Play therapy is experiential, allowing children to process what they're dealing with beneath the surface through play. They can experience difficult emotions, work through challenges, desensitize themselves to painful experiences, and even rewrite the endings to hard things.