Child Therapy in Ajax, Oshawa & Durham Region
Helping Children Ages 3-12 Navigate Big Feelings, Build Confidence, and Thrive . Play Therapy & Child Counseling in Ajax & Oshawa. Our Oshawa and Ajax child therapists are here to help your child build confidence, resilience, and the skills they need to thrive in their world.
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When Your Child Is Struggling, You Feel It Too
You know your child better than anyone. And lately, something hasn't felt quite right.
Maybe they're more anxious than other kids their age—scared to go to school, worried about things that never used to bother them, or clinging to you in situations where they used to feel confident. Maybe you're seeing big emotions you don't know how to handle—meltdowns that seem out of nowhere, anger that explodes over small things, or sadness that won't go away no matter how hard you try to help.
Or maybe it's the quiet struggles that worry you most. Your child withdrawing, having trouble making friends, not wanting to talk about their feelings. You see them hurting, and you don't know how to reach them.
As a parent, watching your child struggle is heartbreaking. You want to fix it, to take away their pain, to help them feel safe and happy again. But sometimes, despite your best efforts, the tools you have aren't quite enough.
You might be wondering: Is this just a phase? Will they grow out of it? Or is this something that needs professional support? And if they do need help, how do you even begin to find the right therapist for a child so young?
Here's what you need to know: If you're noticing these signs, your instinct is right. Your child is telling you—through their behavior, their emotions, or their withdrawal—that they need support. And the good news is that children are incredibly resilient. With the right help, at the right time, they can learn to navigate their emotions, build confidence, and develop the skills they need to thrive.
How to Decide If Child Therapy in Ajax or Oshawa is a Good Fit
Child therapy can help with a wide range of emotional, behavioral, and developmental challenges. You don't need to wait until things are in crisis—early support often prevents struggles from getting bigger.
Child therapy might be right for your child if they are:
Experiencing anxiety or excessive worry
Fear of separation, worries about school, nightmares, or being scared of things that don't seem to bother other kids their age
Having behavioral challenges
Defiance, aggression, difficulty following rules, frequent conflicts at home or school
Coping with loss or grief
Death of a loved one, pet loss, or other significant losses that they're struggling to process
Having school-related difficulties
School refusal, performance anxiety, conflicts with teachers or peers, learning challenges affecting their confidence
Experiencing physical symptoms with no medical cause
Frequent stomachaches, headaches, or other physical complaints that appear connected to stress or emotions
Showing signs of depression or sadness
Withdrawal, loss of interest in activities they used to love, persistent sadness, low energy
Experiencing trauma
Exposure to violence, abuse, accidents, medical trauma, or other frightening experiences that continue to affect them
Struggling socially
Difficulty making or keeping friends, being excluded or bullied, trouble with social cues and interactions
Showing regressive behaviors
Bedwetting after being potty-trained, baby talk, increased clinginess, separation anxiety that seems unusual for their age
Experiencing family conflict
High-conflict home environment, parental stress, sibling rivalry that's affecting their emotional well-being
Struggling with big emotions
Frequent meltdowns, intense anger, emotional outbursts that seem disproportionate to the situation
Dealing with ADHD
Hyperactivity, impulsivity, difficulty focusing, struggles with self-regulation and organization
Adjusting to major life changes
Divorce or separation, moving to a new home, changing schools, arrival of a new sibling
Dealing with low self-esteem
Negative self-talk, feeling "not good enough," comparing themselves unfavorably to others
Being neurodivergent
Children with autism, ADHD, or other neurodevelopmental differences who need support navigating social, emotional, or sensory challenges
What Is Child Therapy and How Does It Work?
Child therapy is a specialized form of counseling designed to help children ages 3 to 12 process emotions, develop coping skills, and work through challenges in ways that make sense for their age and development. Unlike adult therapy, which relies heavily on talking, child therapy meets kids where they are—using play, creativity, and movement to help them express what they can't always put into words.
How Children Communicate in Therapy
Young children don't have the language or cognitive development to sit down and analyze their feelings. Instead, they show us what's going on through how they play, what they draw, the stories they create, and how they interact with their environment.
A child who's experienced a divorce might reenact family conflict with toy figures. A child struggling with anxiety might draw pictures that reveal their worries. A child dealing with anger might use play to work through feelings they can't verbalize. This is how kids process—and it's exactly what child therapy is designed to support.
The Approaches We Use in Child Therapy
Play Therapy: Play is the natural language of childhood. In play therapy, children use toys, games, and imaginative scenarios to express their inner world. Through play, they can work through difficult emotions, practice new behaviors, and develop problem-solving skills—all in a way that feels safe and natural to them.
EMDR for Children: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) isn't just for adults. For children who have experienced trauma—whether it's a frightening event, ongoing stress, or emotional hurt—EMDR helps their brain reprocess these memories so they're no longer overwhelming. With kids, we adapt EMDR to be child-friendly, using games, movement, and creative activities alongside the bilateral stimulation that makes EMDR so effective.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): For older children in our age range (typically 8-12), CBT can be incredibly helpful. CBT teaches kids to recognize the connection between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. They learn to identify unhelpful thinking patterns (like "Nobody likes me" or "I'm bad at everything") and replace them with more balanced, realistic thoughts.
Mindfulness and Emotional Regulation: Many children struggle to manage big emotions—anxiety, anger, sadness, frustration. We teach mindfulness techniques adapted for kids, helping them learn to notice what they're feeling, calm their bodies down, and respond to emotions in healthier ways. These are skills they'll use for the rest of their lives.
Attachment-Based Approaches: A child's sense of safety and security comes from their relationships with caregivers. When those relationships have been disrupted—through divorce, trauma, inconsistent parenting, or other challenges—attachment-based therapy helps repair and strengthen those bonds. We work with both child and parent to rebuild trust, security, and connection.
How Child Therapy Helps Your Child Thrive
Emotional Regulation and Coping Skills
Children learn to recognize their emotions, understand what triggers them, and develop healthy ways to cope. Instead of melting down when they're overwhelmed, they learn to calm their body, name their feelings, and ask for what they need.
Stronger Social Skills and Friendships
Therapy helps children develop the social and emotional skills they need to make friends, navigate peer relationships, handle conflict, and feel confident in social situations.
Processing Trauma and Difficult Experiences
For children who have experienced trauma, therapy provides a safe space to process what happened and heal. EMDR and trauma-focused play therapy help children's brains reprocess traumatic memories so they no longer feel overwhelming or frightening.
Consistent Behavior at Home and School
When children feel understood and have tools to manage their emotions, behavioral challenges often decrease. They're able to follow rules, cooperate, and navigate conflicts more effectively.
Stronger Family Relationships
When you learn new ways to respond to your child and your child develops better emotional regulation, the entire family dynamic improves. There's less conflict, more connection, and a greater sense of understanding and support.
Increased Self-Esteem and Confidence
As children work through challenges and experience success in therapy, they start to see themselves differently. They recognize their strengths, feel more capable, and develop a healthier sense of self.
Building Resilience for Life
The skills children learn in therapy—emotional awareness, coping strategies, communication, problem-solving—aren't just for right now. They're building a foundation of emotional health and resilience that will serve them throughout their entire lives.
Reduced Anxiety and Worry
Children learn that emotions aren't dangerous, that they can handle difficult feelings, and that they have control over their responses. Anxiety decreases as they build confidence and develop coping strategies.
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When to Seek Help for Your Child
As a parent, it can be hard to know when struggles are "normal childhood development" and when they're something that needs professional support. Here are some signs that it's time to reach out:
The behaviors or emotions have lasted for several weeks or months and aren't getting better
Your child's struggles are affecting multiple areas of their life—home, school, friendships
You've tried different approaches at home and nothing seems to help
Your child seems stuck, and you don't know how to help them move forward
Your instinct tells you something isn't right, even if you can't quite put your finger on it
Trust your instinct. You know your child. If you're concerned, that's reason enough to reach out.
Get Matched with a Child Therapist Within 24 Hours
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What to Expect in Child Therapy at The Relationship Agency
The Initial Consultation: Starting with You
Before we ever meet your child, we start with you. We'll schedule a parent consultation where we learn about your child's history, what's been happening, what you've noticed, and what you're hoping therapy can help with.
This gives us important context—not just about your child's challenges, but about their strengths, their personality, what they love, what comforts them, and what makes them unique. We want to know your child as a whole person, not just a set of symptoms.
This consultation also gives you a chance to ask questions, share your concerns, and get a feel for whether we're the right fit for your family.
The First Session with Your Child
The first session is all about creating safety and connection. We don't jump right into "fixing problems"—we focus on helping your child feel comfortable, curious, and safe in the therapy space.
For younger children (ages 3-7), the session will be play-based. We'll have toys, art materials, games, and activities that invite them to explore and express themselves. We're building rapport and observing how they play, what themes show up, and how they interact.
For older children (ages 8-12), there may be more conversation alongside play and creative activities. We'll start to introduce the idea of therapy as a space where they can talk about anything, work through hard stuff, and learn new skills.
Parents are welcome to be present for part or all of the first session, depending on what helps your child feel most comfortable.
Ongoing Therapy Sessions
After the initial sessions, we typically recommend weekly appointments. Consistency is important for children—it helps them build trust, feel safe, and make steady progress.
Each session is tailored to your child's needs and what they're working on. Some sessions might be playful and lighthearted as we build skills through games. Others might be more focused as we work through something difficult using EMDR, art, or guided conversations.
We follow your child's lead. If they need to process something that just happened at school, we make space for that. If they're not ready to talk about the "big" issue yet, we honor that and build trust. Therapy moves at your child's pace, not ours.
Parent Check-Ins and Involvement
We'll regularly check in with you to share what we're noticing, what we're working on, and what you can do at home to support your child's progress. These check-ins might happen at the end of sessions, through scheduled parent meetings, or through brief updates as needed.
We'll also teach you strategies—how to respond when your child is anxious, how to set limits with compassion, how to validate their feelings while still holding boundaries, and how to strengthen your relationship with them.
Because here's the truth: Therapy works best when it's a partnership between the therapist, the child, and the parents. We're here to support your whole family.
In-Person and Virtual Options
We strongly recommend in-person child therapy, especially for younger children. Play therapy, EMDR, and other child-centered approaches work best when we can be physically present with your child—reading their body language, engaging in play, creating a safe sensory environment.
That said, we understand that sometimes virtual sessions are necessary—whether due to distance, illness, scheduling challenges, or other circumstances. Virtual child therapy is available when needed, and we adapt our approach to make it as engaging and effective as possible through the screen.
Meet Your Child Therapists
Maria: Compassionate, Play-Based Child Therapy
Maria brings warmth, patience, and deep expertise to her work with children. She understands that kids don't heal through lectures or adult-style conversations—they heal through play, creativity, and connection.
Maria specializes in play therapy, attachment-based approaches, and CBT for children. She creates a playful, safe space where children can be themselves, express what they're feeling, and develop the skills they need to navigate their world with confidence.
Parents often describe Maria as someone who truly "gets" their child—she sees their strengths, understands their struggles, and knows how to meet them exactly where they are.
Dee: Trauma-Focused Child Therapy Specialist
Dee is a trauma specialist who works with children who have experienced difficult, frightening, or overwhelming events. Using EMDR for kids, play therapy, and Internal Family Systems, Dee helps children process trauma in a way that's developmentally appropriate and gentle.
Dee understands that trauma shows up differently in children than in adults. A child might not talk about what happened, but they'll show it through their play, their behavior, or their fears. Dee knows how to recognize these signs and help children heal without retraumatizing them.
For children dealing with anxiety, PTSD, attachment wounds, or the effects of difficult experiences, Dee provides specialized care that addresses both the traumatic memory and the child's overall sense of safety and well-being.
Why Choose Maria and Dee for Child Therapy
Specialized training in child therapy: Both Maria and Dee have advanced training in child development, play therapy, EMDR for children, and trauma-informed care
Developmentally appropriate approaches: They understand how children ages 3-12 process emotions and adapt their methods accordingly
Trauma-informed care: Whether or not your child has experienced overt trauma, Maria and Dee create safety, build trust, and never push children beyond what they're ready for
Parent partnership: They work collaboratively with parents, providing tools, strategies, and support for the whole family
Warm, child-centered approach: They genuinely enjoy working with kids and create a space where children feel safe, understood, and valued
All of Your Questions About Child Therapy
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Trust your instinct. If you're noticing changes in your child's behavior, emotions, or functioning that concern you—and they've lasted for several weeks or aren't improving—it's worth reaching out. You don't need to wait until things are in crisis. Early support often prevents struggles from getting bigger.
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Many children are nervous or resistant at first—that's completely normal. We don't force kids to talk or do anything they're not ready for. Instead, we create a playful, safe space and build trust gradually. Most children quickly warm up once they realize therapy isn't scary and that we're here to help, not judge.
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Parent involvement is flexible and based on what works best for your family. At minimum, we'll have regular check-ins where we share what we're working on and give you strategies to support your child at home. Some parents participate in parts of sessions, especially with younger children. We'll work together to figure out what's most helpful.
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It depends on what we're working on. Some children make significant progress in 8-12 weeks. Others benefit from longer-term support, especially if they're dealing with complex trauma, ongoing family stress, or developmental challenges. We'll regularly assess progress with you and adjust the treatment plan as needed.
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For younger children, sessions are primarily play-based. Your child might play with toys, create art, engage in games, or use sand tray while we observe, guide, and support. For older children, there's often a mix of play, creative activities, and conversation. We might use EMDR, CBT techniques, mindfulness exercises, or other approaches depending on what we're working on.
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Yes! Play therapy is particularly effective for young children who don't yet have the language to express what they're feeling. We use age-appropriate play, simple emotion vocabulary, and sensory activities to help even very young children process emotions and build skills.
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Absolutely. While we can't diagnose ADHD (that requires a psychological or medical assessment), we can help children with ADHD develop emotional regulation skills, coping strategies for impulsivity and hyperactivity, organizational tools, and ways to manage the frustration that often comes with ADHD. We also work with parents on ADHD-informed parenting strategies.
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Yes. EMDR is highly effective and safe for children when adapted to be developmentally appropriate. We use play-based EMDR techniques, incorporating movement, games, and creative activities. Children don't have to talk in detail about their trauma for EMDR to work—their brain does the processing naturally with the right support.
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Adult therapy relies heavily on verbal processing and insight. Child therapy is developmentally appropriate for how kids actually communicate—through play, art, movement, and action. We meet children where they are, using methods that work with their natural way of expressing and processing emotions.
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We offer both, though we strongly recommend in-person therapy for most children, especially younger kids. Play therapy and EMDR work best when we can be physically present. Virtual therapy is available when necessary and can be effective for older children (8-12) who are comfortable with technology.
Help Your Child Thrive: Book Child Therapy in Ajax or Oshawa
You don't have to navigate your child's struggles alone. Maria and Dee provide compassionate, specialized child therapy in Ajax and Oshawa that helps children ages 3-12 process emotions, build confidence, and develop the skills they need to thrive.
Whether your child is dealing with anxiety, behavioral challenges, trauma, ADHD, social difficulties, or any other struggle, we're here to help—and we're here to support you as a parent, too.
Start with a free 20-minute consultation. We'll talk about what's happening with your child, answer your questions, and help you determine if child therapy is the right next step.
The Relationship Agency
Child Therapy in Ajax & Oshawa
Serving Durham Region, Toronto & Ontario
Child Therapists: Maria & Dee
Child Therapy & Play Therapy Serving:
Ajax • Oshawa • Whitby • Pickering • Bowmanville • Courtice • Brooklin • Durham Region • Toronto • Scarborough • Greater Toronto Area • Ontario
Child Therapy Services for Ages 3-12:
Play Therapy • Child Counseling • EMDR for Children • Child Anxiety Therapy • ADHD Therapy for Kids • Trauma Therapy for Children • Behavioral Therapy • Grief Counseling for Kids • Divorce Adjustment Therapy • Social Skills Therapy • School-Related Counseling • Attachment Therapy • Mindfulness for Children • CBT for Kids