Edmonton Centre for Play Therapy
Jocelyn Nand, M.C., B.A
Director & Registered Psychologist
I obtained my Bachelor of Arts in Psychology degree from The King’s University College in 2012. I completed my Masters of Arts in Counselling Psychology at Trinity Western University in 2014. I am Registered Provisional Psychologist in good standing with the College of Alberta Psychologists. I have received additional training in sand tray therapy, sand play therapy play therapy, art based therapy, animal assisted play therapy (AAPT), animal assisted therapy (AAT), child parent relationship therapy (CPRT), circle of security parenting (COSP), Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) level I training in pivotal response therapy, Trauma-Focused CBT, and suicide assessment/prevention.
I enjoy working with children, adolescents, and adults. It’s always a privilege to meet with clients and hear their life stories. Each client is unique in the experiences they have had and the journey in which they are seeking support. It is my belief that therapy is both a dialogue and collaborative relationship between the therapist and their clients. I aim to establish a safe, trusting and encouraging environment for my clients; however, I also strive towards building resiliency, raising self-awareness and connecting my clients to a greater sense of community. My therapeutic approach is integrative and largely stems from existential analysis, attachment theory and a relational-cultural framework. I also integrate cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior interventions, emotion-focused therapy, mindfulness based practices, and systemic frameworks.
Over the years I have taken training in filial approaches that strengthen the parent-child relationship. This has enabled me to help parents shift or tweak their parenting approach and repairing ruptures that have taken place in their parent-child relationship. Often parents feel overwhelmed by the parenting advice offered online and struggle to understand what approaches to take with the concerns they are hoping to address. I work with parents to help them find an approach that is developmentally appropriate for their child but is grounded in the latest research in neuroscience and attachment. My work with parents is collaborative and fulfilling. Parents often gain an insight into their child’s needs while reflecting on their parenting approach. Parents also benefit from exploring how their own childhood experiences impact their parenting practices.
Many of my clients have often asked deep existential questions that are similar to the four existential fundamental motivations:
I exist-but can I be as a whole person? Do I have the necessary space, protection and support? We experience these when we feel accepted; which supports us in having an accepting attitude towards ourselves.
I am alive- do I like this? Do I experience fulfillment, affection, or an appreciation of values?
I am myself- but do I feel free to be myself?
This motivation examines whether there are experiences of justice, appreciation, esteem, respect, and self-worth. I am here- for what purpose? This motivation examines whether the present is part of a meaningful whole. Moreover, it asks what do you live for? We are not isolated beings and our relationships strongly influence how we develop and how we feel about ourselves.
Krister Temme, M.C., B.A
Registered Psychologist and Registered Play Therapist
Play is a remarkable part of humanity. Unique to mammals, it is inherently biologically tied into relationship, emotion, and adaptation—the cornerstone of what makes us human. It even has its own unique and selected biological circuitry in the brain. There is little in human experience that is more innate and natural than play.
Play is also the language of children. Whereas adults benefit from “talk therapy”, the “talk” of children is play itself, and so the best approach to working with children is through a specialized approach in which the therapist and your child “talk” about the struggles your child is going through. Through this more natural and spontaneous language that is closer to the problem—and the solution—in your child’s mind than “mere words” are, play therapy facilitates foundational changes in children. This is very important to engage in prior to adolescence when maladaptive ways of being can bring greater hurts and become a set pattern of interacting with others.
I am continually amazed by the outcomes of play therapy in helping children work through trauma, changes, and challenges that are new or have been there since the beginning.
Kim Sessink, M.C., B.A
Registered Psychologist and Registered Play Therapist
I have been working with children and their families in a therapeutic setting for many years. My training background pertinent to children is in Family Therapy and Play Therapy. I believe that play is the language that children use to express their thought and feelings, so I work to use their language in the therapeutic relationship. Working through play allows me to interact with the child in a natural way allowing them to take the lead in the process of change. I also believe that the family is the environment in which children grow and that changing and developing the family environment can provide a child with the factors that they need to flourish. I have extensive experience in play therapy through the Canadian Association for Child and Play Therapy.
