Molly Sheehy Gillespie, LCSW, RPT

Your child is having a hard time at school—socially, emotionally, academically, or behaviorally. It's starting to affect their confidence. They seem overwhelmed by everyday experiences, have frequent meltdowns, or struggle with transitions or limits. They're having trouble making or keeping friends, navigating conflict, or expressing big feelings in appropriate ways. Your child is becoming more withdrawn, clingy, fearful, irritable, or reactive, and you're wondering what's underneath the behavior. You've tried talking things through, but when you ask "how was your day?" you get "I dunno" or worse. You want to give them a safe space to process it with someone trained to speak their language: play. You're parenting while healing from your own childhood wounds. You yell, shut down, or respond in ways that don't feel aligned with the parent you want to be. The mental load of household management and child-rearing isn't fairly distributed in your home and something needs to change. Parenting has changed your relationship with your partner and you're hoping to reconnect-- and get on the same page about family goals, values, and parenting strategies. You're struggling with constant family conflict around screens, routines, and limits. You're helping a child heal from trauma while managing your own fear, anger, or grief. You're embarrassed or anxious about your child's behavior in public- you dread public meltdowns and calls home from school. Your kid's already in services and their therapist asks: "Do you have anyone you can talk to?" I help parents and couples identify patterns rooted in their own upbringing and develop tools that actually work in real-life parenting moments. I help children and teens manage anxiety and trauma through both individual and family interventions. As a Registered Play Therapist™ I often use play-based approaches and I love working with kids who may be reluctant or uncertain about therapy. I often work with adults who have had childhood experiences of therapy that felt unhelpful or coercive. You don't have to keep parenting in survival mode. I help both parents and their children feel safer, more understood, and better equipped to weather storms together. My goal is to help you feel patient, peaceful, and delighted in your family even in chaotic moments and challenging seasons. Ready for more calm at home? Let’s connect for an introductory call.