Supporting Big Feelings, Strong Families, and Connected Kids: Inside SF Bay Play Therapy

Interview by Heather Anderson

SF Bay Play Therapy is more than just a therapy practice. It’s a hub of warmth, connection, and evidence-based care for children, parents, and families navigating emotional challenges. Led by a team of compassionate therapists, their work centers on building relationships, validating emotions, and using play as a powerful tool for growth. In this conversation with Karen Wolfe, founder and psychotherapist, we explore the origins of the practice, what really happens in a play therapy session, and how their team helps families move from feeling overwhelmed to supported and seen.

How did your counseling center get its start?

We started with a simple but profound realization: children needed more than words to process their experiences. One early memory that shaped this work happened with a shy child I was supporting at her school. She longed for connection with peers but didn’t have the confidence to reach out. I sat with her in the sand and gently validated both her longing and her hesitation. In that moment, I became the adult I wish I’d had as a child—someone who could reflect, support, and understand without judgment.

From there, we expanded. Initially focused solely on children, it quickly became clear that parents needed just as much support—not just tips or coaching, but deep therapeutic work around their own stress, triggers, and life transitions. So we trained in Parenting by Connection and broadened our services. Eventually, we grew into a group practice to meet the overwhelming need in the Bay Area. Now, our therapists are trained in both play therapy and connection-based approaches, supporting families across California.

What are the core specialties your team offers?

We offer services across four core niches:

  • Children ages 4-12 dealing with big emotions, friendship challenges, anxiety, aggression, trauma, or transitions like divorce. We use individual and/or family play therapy to help them process and build emotional resilience.

  • Parents who want to bring more play, connection, and calm into family life. We offer individual therapy and parenting classes and support groups using Hand in Hand Parenting tools.

  • Couples therapy, especially for parents or those preparing to become parents, using Emotionally Focused Therapy to strengthen communication and connection.

  • Individual therapy for adults working through emotional triggers, relationship struggles, life transitions, or unresolved childhood trauma—especially those navigating the emotional complexity that comes with parenting.

What exactly is play therapy, and what does a session look like?

Play therapy is the therapeutic use of children’s natural language: play. Because a child’s emotional development moves faster than their ability to articulate with words, play becomes the medium through which they express and process their inner world.

In a typical session, we start with child-centered play therapy. Think of it like talk therapy for adults—but instead of sitting and speaking, the child chooses how to play, and that play becomes the channel for healing. For example, we might say, “You can play whatever you want today. Anything we play or talk about can help with what’s been hard at school or with those big mad feelings.”

Over time, we may layer in directive play therapy, where we guide specific games or activities that target themes or challenges. For older kids, that might look like cooperative games, storytelling, or even creative art. Everything is tailored to their developmental stage, but always grounded in connection.

“Parenting is hard—really hard—especially in a society that doesn’t support parents economically, emotionally, or practically. If you’re feeling exhausted, angry, or like nothing is working, you’re not broken. You’re human.”
— Karen Wolfe

Your practice uses a variety of modalities—how do you choose what to use with each family?

We pull from many modalities— Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Mindfulness, Drama and Sandtray Therapy, Nonviolent Communication (NVC), Hand in Hand Parenting, and more. But the real magic lies in the relationship.

We know that developing a secure attachment style and healing anything that has disrupted that leads the best outcomes, for both parents and children. Our therapists deeply care about each family we see, and step into the delicate world of their family life with the utmost care. Nurturing attachments at all points helps children open up about problems, be ready to receive help, and has parents feel that someone is actually in their court. Our therapists work closely with parents to learn what’s happening at home, what’s been tried, what’s overwhelming, and what’s not working. If the family is open to it, we love to collaborate with teachers, speech or occupational therapists, or even extended family. When children are surrounded by a web of support, everyone thrives.

What’s a common myth about parenting or behavioral struggles you wish more parents understood?

That it's their fault.

Parenting is hard—really hard—especially in a society that doesn’t support parents economically, emotionally, or practically. If you’re feeling exhausted, angry, or like nothing is working, you’re not broken. You’re human.

We often start helping parents by providing emotional support in our parent meetings—a therapist to truly listen, validate, and witness their challenges without judgment or advice. That alone can shift a family’s dynamic. We use the Hand in Hand model because it focuses on connection over control. Kids are good. You are good. We just need support to think our way through the difficulties life throws at us.

You also offer classroom observations and school-based support. Why bring therapy into real-life environments?

So much happens outside the office. When we observe a child in class or consult with teachers, we can bridge the gap between what a parent is seeing at home and what’s happening at school. Often, we’re able to advocate for both sides—validating the parent’s concerns while offering support and insight to the teacher, who may be overwhelmed too.

Sometimes just one observation leads to small changes in the classroom that make a big difference for a child. It can also help parents feel less alone when a therapist says, “Yes, I saw that too—and here’s how we can help.”

What do parents often misunderstand about highly sensitive or sensory-seeking kids?

That their behavior is intentional.

Even when you know it’s not, it can feel like your child is doing something to you. Especially when they’re pushing kids at the park, melting down at school drop-off, or having constant power struggles.

But these kids aren’t out to get you—they’re struggling to make sense of a world that feels too loud, too bright, or too overwhelming. And your frustration, exhaustion, or guilt doesn’t mean you’re a bad parent. It just means you need community and support, too.

Your team often talks about building “deep understanding” in therapy. What does that look like in everyday life?

We start by offering that deep understanding to parents themselves. In every intake session, we ask: What do you love about your children? and What’s been the hardest part of parenting? Those questions open the door to being fully seen and supported in all the joys and sufferings that being a parent brings.

Only once we feel truly heard can we offer that same understanding to our children. And when parents make that shift—from feeling in opposition to our kids to leaning in to connect, even in the rough moments—everything changes. Meltdowns become communication. Behavior becomes a clue. And families move into a place of empathy and connection.

How do you and your team of therapists take care of yourselves?

Play therapy can be isolating. That’s one reason we created a group practice—so our therapists could feel less alone.

We meet every week for training, connection, and case consultation. We go out to lunches and foot massages and just enjoy each other’s company. My favorite tradition is our Holiday celebration. My mom was a big Christmas fan and filled my stocking well into my 40’s. So every year I do the same for all the therapists and their SO’s. It’s a way I get to let my inner child play and find wonder. In our trainings we often do role-plays of tricky kid behaviors (it can be hilarious and cathartic), and we hold space for each other to process the emotional intensity of the work including what it brings up for us from our childhoods. We try to model what we ask of parents: get support and connection, make space for both big feelings and play, and find people who really get you.

What’s a moment that made you laugh out loud during a session?

One time during a family therapy session, we were playing a fast-paced card game that involved slapping cards down and yelling words. All of us were huddled over the table, trying to win, and bursting into uncontrollable laughter. It was pure joy.

Another time during a training, one of our therapists role-played a particularly oppositional kid. She got so into it and said, “Wow, it feels great to just act like a total jerk—kids are allowed to do this all the time!” It cracked us up and reminded us how important it is to understand what kids get out of their behavior.

Wondering if our practice is the right fit for your family?

You can also explore more about our services and philosophy at sfbayplaytherapy.com.

Connect with Karen Wolfe on Facebook or LinkedIn.

You can also find SF Bay Play Therapy on The M List, The Mamahood’s searchable database of mom-recommended resources, or connect and collaborate with their team inside The Club membership for women Founders.

Heather Anderson