My Areas of Specialty, by Laura Hetzel, MPS, ATR

Hi, I’m Laura, an art therapist here at Artful Explorations. I have been in the field since 2017, and have focused much of my work on supporting young people and their families. You can read a little about me in my bio, as well as below where I speak to some of my specialties.  

Child And Adolescent Therapy

My foundations in art therapy began working with children and teens. I have experience supporting kids with diagnoses like ADHD, Autism, Anxiety, Social Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, BPD, ODD, and through general life ups and downs. Caregiver involvement can be instrumental in getting a picture of the whole child, and creating lasting change by identifying opportunities for new skills to be practiced both in the therapy space and at home. I enjoy supporting children to build their internal resources as well as their skills at self advocacy, so they are able to reach out for support from adults when needed.

Trauma and Complex PTSD

In trauma-focused treatment, I support children, teens, and young adults to reduce symptoms, increase their quality of life, build self-confidence, and experience hope. Trauma can be debilitating. Sometimes this is due to one isolated traumatic event, and sometimes it is due to more chronic experiences such as instability, abuse, neglect, or an invalidating environment. This can include experiences of oppression such as racism or ableism. Clients who have endured repeated trauma often feel anxious, disconnected, despairing, and self-critical. In children, trauma often manifests in challenging behavior, big emotions, social problems, and trouble focusing. I pull on multiple modalities to best support clients through the complexities of trauma treatment. I work psychodynamically, meaning I support clients to make connections between their past and present experiences in order to identify and resolve barriers that keep them stuck. The use of cognitive techniques in conjunction supports relaxation, coping, and confidence. I have experience helping children as young as 4 through adults in trauma focused treatment. 

Family Therapy

For the last 6+ years, I have supported families to strengthen their connections to each other, reduce tension, and enhance the quality of their relationships. Dealing with challenging behaviors, adjusting to change, separations, and simply feeling overwhelmed are common reasons families seek my support. I enjoy collaborating with caregivers to troubleshoot problems, then to identify and implement solutions that make sense for their unique family. Art therapy provides a special space for families to practice their communication skills and being with each other as they navigate creating something new together. 

Perfectionism and Anxiety

I help teens and young adults break free of feeling like they just cannot get anything right. I support clients to get out of their heads and unstuck from patterns of rumination, worry, and shame. I support clients to move out of self-limiting beliefs and negative thought patterns to allow for more flexibility, creativity, and joy to enter their lives. 

Queer and Trans Clients

As a queer person, I enjoy supporting queer and trans clients and families. I have experience supporting clients through coming out, gender transitions, parenting trans and queer children, self-acceptance, and identity exploration. 

Sensory Impairments, Developmental Disabilities, Autism

I have supported youth with multiple sensory impairments, developmental disabilities, and physical disabilities, as well as autistic clients in group, individual, and family settings for many years. I have worked with youth with a wide range of communication styles and nonspeaking clients. I am skilled at adapting art making to suit different needs. Art therapy can serve as a space for identity exploration, self-expression, and emotional processing beyond spoken language. Clients often work with me to build confidence and process internalized ableism and low self esteem as a result of judgement from others and barriers within society. In addition, I have limited working proficiency in American Sign Language, which can be useful for individuals who utilize some signing. 

My Areas of Specialty, by Jordyn Staar, MA, ATR-BC, LPC

Hi, my name is Jordyn Staar, MA, ATR-BC, LPC. I’m an Art Therapist and Licensed Professional Counselor. My bio provides a general overview of my background, but I also wanted to share more about my experience and talk about some of my specialties here on the blog.  

Child And Adolescent Therapy

As an art therapist and counselor, I have 5 years of experience working with children and adolescents. I’ve worked in an inpatient setting with youth in crisis often displaying more severe behaviors. Working with teens in this setting, I fostered connections and developed trust allowing teens to feel safe to express inner turmoil. When I later transitioned to private practice, that experience helped me navigate change and emerging problems within families. In my 5 years of working with children and adolescents, I helped work through many challenges, transitions, and diagnoses such as Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, Divorce, Grief/loss, Family Conflict, Peer Conflict, and more. In my work, I use art therapy, verbal processing, and skill building to help their development. I like to create a space for kids and teens where they can develop their emotional vocabulary and build the confidence to support themselves while fostering healthier relationships with their families. 

Self Esteem

A big part of my practice is emboldening my clients to voice their feelings and concerns with friends and family by helping them develop confidence and self-esteem. I start by building a therapeutic relationship with kids and teens, so they can feel safe and allow themselves to be vulnerable as they explore their problems. Together, we explore their feelings and develop the words to better express themselves. As they practice their communication skills and work on their emotional intelligence, my clients set the foundation to become emotionally regulated adults. I hope the children and adolescents I work with walk away with a boost in self-esteem that can lead to feeling a sense of control over their emotions and problems that emerge. 

Loss

I believe loss encompasses death, divorce, moving, and even the ending of a relationship. I understand the complexity of the grieving process and empathize that is different for everyone.  Grieving can be difficult because using words may be too hard at the moment. Using art therapy is very helpful; the act of creating a visual piece that the client can then choose to verbally process is often experienced as less threatening and more empowering. 

Family Systems

I find when working with children and adolescents, understanding their family dynamics tends to play a part in addressing their presenting behaviors. I encourage parents to be part of their child’s therapeutic process. I provide parent sessions to troubleshoot ways to support their child in their home. I help parents get a better understanding of the obstacles they may be facing communicating with their children and work toward creating a better dialogue. Having family sessions can allow both parents and children to feel seen and heard as they express their concerns on equal terms, which helps everyone develop the necessary skills to be capable and comfortable working out problems on their own outside of therapy sessions.

My Areas of Specialty, by Kristen Rashid, MA, ATR-BC, LPC

Hi there, this is Kristen Rashid, MA, ATR-BC, LPC: Art Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, and founder of Artful Explorations Therapy. My bio and the art therapy page are great places to learn about me and my work, but today I also want to share a little further about some specific areas of practice that over the years have become my specialties.

Child and Adolescent Therapy

I have 15 years of experience working with children and adolescents in art therapy and counseling. Over that time I have supported kids and teens through many experiences, challenges, and diagnoses including Generalized Anxiety, Social Anxiety, ADHD, Autism, Adjustments, Divorce, Grief/loss, Emotion Dysregulation, Immigration & Acculturation, Adoption, Family Conflict, Peer Relationship concerns, Trauma, and more. Many times families come to me for support to work through and move beyond the cycle of power struggles they find themselves getting pulled into with their child or teen. Other times a divorce, loss, or other adjustment prompts a client to reach out to me. Still other times, a family may reach out due to their child or teen experiencing difficulty with communication or social connection, or having big feelings they don't know how to manage. I’m here to offer an outlet for expression, facilitate healthy change, and offer steady support when things feel stormy.

Anxiety

Many clients come to me with anxiety that preoccupies them, prevents them from full participation at school/work/social settings, impacts their overall emotional regulation, or drives them to engage in perfectionistic or obsessive-compulsive behaviors. I've helped many kids, teens, and adults to process, move through, and manage their anxiety in order to more fully function in, enjoy, and experience their social relationships, better navigate various settings and situations, and learn how to self-regulate.

ADHD

ADHD can bring with it challenges in sustaining focus and attention, managing impulsivity, making and keeping friends, staying organized and engaged enough to be successful at school or work, and regulating emotions. I have found that art therapy is especially helpful to be able to target and practice some of these skills as well as process some of the underlying emotional and relational content that someone with ADHD may find relevant to their experience. I welcome neurodiversity and creative approaches, and lean into each client’s strengths to provide support for them to reach their goals and grow.

Family Systems

When working with kids and teens, I always view the client in the context of their family system. I consider the roles and dynamics in family interactions and the home setting, and aim to involve parents/guardians in treatment. Parent/guardian consultations and sessions, sibling sessions, and whole family sessions are offered as relevant to support the children and adolescents on my caseload in communication, conflict resolution, family dynamics, and family support.

Cultural Competence

I’m an Asian-American therapist of color. I value cultural humility and also have lived experience that I bring with me to my interactions with clients. Beyond that, I’ve engaged in continuing education courses and further training that supports a framework of culturally sensitive therapy to develop a therapeutic approach that centers inclusivity, accessibility, antiracism, and cultural humility. I invite you to bring your whole self into our sessions.

I’m seeing clients in-person at our office in Society Hill, Philadelphia, PA. I also offer telehealth as needed or requested. You can find general info about our therapy team and location on our about page.

Contact us to find out more or to schedule a free initial consultation.