In-Person and Virtual Play Therapy in Colorado
Play Therapy for Children, Teens & Families
At Illuminate, we believe children deserve therapy that speaks their language.
We provide developmentally responsive play therapy for children and families experiencing trauma, anxiety, neurodivergence, emotional dysregulation, attachment challenges, behavioral concerns, life transitions, and other overwhelming experiences.
Through play, creativity, connection, sensory experiences, and developmentally appropriate therapeutic approaches, children are given space to express what may be difficult to put into words. Our clinicians draw from attachment, nervous-system regulation, neuroscience, trauma-informed care, and neurodivergent-affirming approaches to meet each child where they are.
Why Play Therapy for Children?
Children experience and communicate emotions differently than adults.
Children often communicate through play before they have the words to fully explain what they are feeling or experiencing. While traditional talk therapy can be helpful, play gives children another way to express emotions, explore experiences, build skills, and make sense of their world.
Play therapy allows children to:
Express feelings and experiences safely
Build emotional awareness and regulation
Develop coping and problem-solving skills
Explore difficult or overwhelming experiences
Strengthen confidence and self-understanding
Build trust, connection, and relational skills
Process trauma when it is part of the child's story
Through thoughtfully selected therapeutic play interventions, children can explore feelings, relationships, challenges, and experiences that may feel difficult, confusing, or overwhelming to put into words.
Healing Through Safe, Creative Expression
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Healing Through Safe, Creative Expression ✨
Our Trauma-Informed Approach
Our clinicians draw from a variety of developmentally responsive, trauma-informed, and experiential approaches based on each child's individual needs, including:
Play Therapy — developmentally appropriate emotional expression and processing
Attachment-Based Approaches — strengthening safety, trust, and connection
Nervous-System & Somatic Approaches — supporting regulation, body awareness, and felt safety
Sensory & Neurodivergent-Affirming Approaches — adapting therapy to the child's individual brain, body, and sensory needs
Expressive & Creative Therapies — using art, sandtray, imagination, and other experiential approaches
EMDR — trauma processing when clinically appropriate and provided by a trained clinician
This allows therapy to be individualized, appropriately paced, and responsive to each child's developmental, emotional, relational, and sensory needs.
How Play Therapy Can Help
Play therapy may support children experiencing:
Anxiety, worry & fears
ADHD, neurodivergence & sensory differences
Emotional regulation challenges
Behavioral concerns
Trauma, abuse & neglect
Attachment & relationship disruptions
Foster care, adoption & kinship experiences
Grief & loss
Medical trauma
Family separation, divorce & other major life transitions
Who Play Therapy is For
Young children
School-age children
Teens
Parents & caregivers
Families
Parent & Caregiver Involvement
Parents and caregivers can be an important part of a child's therapy process. Depending on your child's needs and treatment goals, therapy may include:
Parent and caregiver consultation
Education about your child's emotions, behavior, and nervous system
Attachment and connection support
Emotional and behavioral regulation strategies
Parent coaching
Family sessions when clinically appropriate
Our goal is to help caregivers understand their child's emotional world and build safety, connection, and regulation at home.
If your child is struggling emotionally, behaviorally, relationally, or developmentally, play therapy can provide a safe and developmentally appropriate way to understand what's happening and build new skills together.
What to Expect During Play Therapy
Your child's therapy journey will be:
Child-centered
Developmentally appropriate
Trauma-informed
Strengths-based
Responsive to sensory and neurodivergent needs
Individually tailored
Healing is not rushed. We honor each child's pace, capacity, and story.
How Illuminate is Different
At Illuminate, we believe therapy should meet children where they are—not expect children to adapt to therapy.
Our approach to play therapy is grounded in connection, development, and an understanding of the whole child. Rather than relying on words alone, our clinicians can incorporate play, movement, sensory experiences, creativity, sandtray, and nervous-system regulation based on each child's individual needs.
What makes our approach different:
Developmentally responsive and child-centered care
Trauma-informed and attachment-focused approaches
Neurodivergent-affirming and sensory-aware therapy
Play, sandtray, expressive, and experiential interventions
Nervous-system and emotional regulation support
Parent and caregiver involvement when appropriate
Individualized care rather than a one-size-fits-all approach
We don't expect every child to heal, communicate, or connect in the same way. Therapy is shaped around the child in front of us—their needs, strengths, relationships, nervous system, and story.
In-Person + Virtual Play Therapy
Illuminate offers in-person play therapy in Rifle, Colorado, along with virtual play therapy for children ages 8+ throughout Colorado.
Our virtual play therapy experience goes beyond traditional video sessions. Through interactive tools such as our Virtual Playroom, virtual sandtray, dollhouse, whiteboard, and other creative activities, children can engage in therapy in ways that feel natural, expressive, and developmentally appropriate.
Find the Right Support for Your Child
Every child is different, and finding the right therapist matters. Explore our therapists to learn more about their specialties, approaches, locations, and payment options and find the clinician who may be the best fit for your child or family.