Play By the Bay ~ Bellingham Play Therapy

Victoria McGuinness, MA, RC, RPT/S, EMDR

Victoria has served people for over 28 years in the field of mental health. Victoria earned a Master's Degree in Guidance and Counseling from the University of Colorado @ Colorado Springs and has over 1,100 hours of continuing education post-graduate. Victoria is a Registered Play Therapist/ Supervisor, is certified in Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR), Level II and has successfully sold thousands of copies of her book, Integrating Play Therapy & EMDR With Children, to professionals over the years. Victoria is also experienced and trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and Child-Parent Relational Therapy (CPRT) and a certified Parent Educator in addition to being a Level II Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki Tradition practitioner.

Victoria has spent the last 15 years working with children and their families. She has taught at local and national conferences, served on the Board for the Colorado Association for Play Therapy for four years and is currently working on a book entitled, Push Play: The Twelve Stages of Parenting. While Victoria believes that training, experience and education are vital, the experience of her young client's is most valuable:

"My experience of Victoria is that she deeply understands and cares about the inner life of children. She respects children; she sees them as vital and important to humanity and its future, and I think the children can sense this in her."(Jewel's Mother, 2006)

"Victoria's expertise in the fields of child psychology, play therapy and parenting brought much to light concerning my daughter's internal processes and responses. She encouraged my daughter directly, as well as encouraged me in ways to foster my daughter's continued movement through her issues."

"A primary reason my husband and I valued working with Victoria is that our children loved her. She helped the children work through issues in a way that parents could not, and she helped parents to better understand their children."
(T & C's mother)

"When it's time to say good-bye, Victoria prepared them in a gentle and caring way."(Alysa's mother)

"I was referred to Victoria by a therapist whose own children had benefited from seeing Victoria and she referred her to us. In my case, there weren't major issues like divorce or abuse, but I referred families who did have those issues. Victoria was universally able to be an advocate for the children, making them feel empowered and special."

LMHC - Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Washington State.

SPECIAL FEE ARRANGEMENTS FOR UNINSURED FAMILIES