Degrees
Master’s in Education, Certified Child Life Specialist, Reiki Master
My Expert Service
I have been helping children and families for twenty years. As a certified child life specialist at The Children's Hospital of NY, I worked on a general medical floor providing therapeutic activities for children facing chronic or life threatening illness. Through play and preparation I encouraged self-esteem, mastery and control over their illness, as well as promoted choice in an environment that offers little or none. I also helped children and families cope with the rigors of a cancer diagnosis in an outpatient oncology clinic. During that time I developed programs for children returning to school, sibling groups, as well as supported families through each stage of diagnosis, treatment, survival, or end of life. I also functioned as a consultant to the adult service, working with parents facing their own illness, encouraging age-appropriate explanations and strategies that helped families cope, learn about, and understand hospitalization and illness.
In my private practice, Practical Parenting Solutions www.practicalparentingsolutions.com I use my skills as a certified child life specialist and Reiki Master working with children and families facing a variety of extraordinary circumstances; divorce, special needs, explaining wakes and funerals, and developing coping strategies for doctor or dentist visits. I utilize developmentally appropriate activities that empower families to face any of life's challenges. Through my training at the Holistic Healing Center at Beth Israel Hospital, I have created curriculum that teaches the fundamentals of relaxation, guided imagery, and Reiki to children and families.
I began my Reiki Training over 10 years ago and has been offering Reiki in homes, hospitals, and to patients and families in hospice care. As a Reiki Master, I also have treated and attuned both families and professionals working to incorporate Reiki into their professional and personal lives.
Experience & Qualifications
I have a master's degree in Education from Fordham University and an undergraduate from Wheelock College, a nationally recognized college specializing in early childhood development. I received the Leadership award from Wheelock College for volunteering as a child life specialist on medical missions with Operation Smile, an organization providing cleft lip and palate repair in countries with limited or no health care. Currently, I am an adjunct professor at Bankstreet College of Education in NY, NY; I have also been a consultant to www.pbsparents.org. In addition, I am an accomplished lecturer, and published author.