Getting started
Where we are, how we work, and what the first step looks like.
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We’re at 255 Gordon Drive, Suites 202 and 203, in Exton, PA 19341. We’re the stone building with the orange roof, right at the intersection on Route 113.
You’ll be in good company. We share the corner with All Star Pediatrics, Pickering Valley Feed Store, and Lionville Pharmacy.
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Both. We see clients in person at our Exton office, and we offer telehealth throughout Pennsylvania.
For our youngest clients, in-person play therapy works best. Little kids do their real work through play, and that’s hard to replicate over a screen.
For teens, young adults, and parents, telehealth is available anywhere in PA.
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Call, text, or email us and tell us you need help. That’s the whole first step.
From there, we’ll set up a free 15 to 30 minute phone consultation to hear what you and your family need and figure out how we can help. You can reach us at 610-806-6426 or joy@willowtreementalhealth.com.
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Technically 45 to 60 minutes. Realistically, I can never fit all the feelings into anything less than the full 60.
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We’re a private-pay practice. We are not participating in-network with any insurance companies, but we are able to provide proper documentation for you to submit receipts for reimbursement as out-of-network providers.
Contact your insurance company to determine what your out-of-network benefits are.
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Preschoolers, kids, teens, parents, and adults are all welcome at Willow Tree. We work with ages 3 to 5 all the way up to their involved grandparents.
Although we focus on kids, teens, and families, we’re happy to have fully functional adults as clients too. No kid ages out, and no adult is turned away.
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Plan to meet with your therapist for about an hour. In an effort to complete a thorough assessment of your child’s needs, we ask that your child be accompanied for the first full appointment by one or both parents.
We will discuss your child’s current struggles, but also their strengths, interests, academic experiences, social world, and family dynamics.
We hope in this first session to establish a comfortable and safe beginning to our relationship with both you and your child. Before the end of the session, we will create a treatment plan that will include goals for our work together, scheduling, and answer any questions you have.
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Each of our clinicians, with different levels of experience and licensure, have different fees.
Fees range from $125–$175 for individual sessions, $135–$200 for family/couple sessions, and $160–$225 for Initial Assessments.
Sliding Scale fees are available upon request and based on need.
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The therapeutic process depends on many things, including diagnosis, chronicity and severity of symptoms, supports outside of therapy, as well as commitment and consistency in therapy.
It is common for clients to attend therapy weekly for one to two months, and continue with bi-weekly support for 4–6 months following.
You will be able to work with your therapist throughout your time together to make sure that you are benefitting from the therapeutic process, with adjustments to the frequency and focus based on your needs.
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We do not have a prescribing physician on staff but we do have multiple psychiatrists in the area that we have confidence in.
We can refer you to one of these providers and work in conjunction with them in managing your child’s medication and symptoms as a team.
When your child doesn’t want to come
Resistance is ordinary. So is not knowing whether this needs therapy at all.
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Plenty of kids dig in their heels about coming, and that’s okay. We frame the first appointment as a no-commitment try.
There’s nothing to sign up for and nothing to lose by showing up once.
Most kids feel the value of having a safe, neutral space pretty quickly. Once they experience it, the resistance usually softens on its own.
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Therapy isn’t a last resort or a punishment. You don’t have to wait until things are dire.
Here’s our rule of thumb: if the bad mood or behavior isn’t temporary, and your teen doesn’t bounce back the way they used to, reach out sooner rather than later. Getting them support communicates love, not failure.
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We honor your teen’s confidentiality, and we keep you in the loop. Those two things aren’t at odds.
There are legal limits we’re always upfront about: if there’s a risk of harm to themselves or others, or any abuse, we have to share that. Within those limits, what your teen tells us stays between us, which is what lets them open up in the first place.
One of our core beliefs is that therapy should bring families closer, not push them apart. Parents attend sessions regularly, and we’ll help build the bridge back to real conversation at home.
Inside the playroom
What actually happens in a session, and where you fit in it.
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Children don’t always have the vocabulary or the insight to articulate their emotions in the same way adults do. Play is a safe, comfortable, and non-threatening part of every child’s world.
It is through play that children can convey their thoughts, feelings, and experiences without being directed or coached. As the child plays, we can begin to recognize themes and patterns, or their way of using the materials, that can indicate the child’s emotions and their sources.
Various forms of play are used in Play Therapy, including but not limited to art, sand tray, imaginative play, board games, story telling using dolls, puppets, and figures, and interactive play.
Together, as therapist, child, and parent, we can then address the problems that are present.
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EMDR is a well-researched therapeutic approach that engages both hemispheres of the brain.
Through this supportive, neurological therapy, traumatic memories can move from feeling present and active towards something we can understand and process as part of our past.
EMDR is a safe, supportive, and effective resource we are happy to offer to our clients.
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We ask that one or both parents attend the first session with their child.
In subsequent sessions, you will work with your child’s therapist to determine the best balance of time for your child to confidentially work with their therapist and time for you, as parents, to be involved to support your child in their growth.
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Our playroom is set up on purpose. We have specific toys that help kids express feelings, tell their stories, and show us where the hard parts are.
As they play, we interpret and validate what we’re seeing. We use a non-directive approach, which means we follow your child’s lead so they feel safe, understood, and supported.
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For the first session, always. We want one or both parents there so we get the full picture of your child’s development.
After that, we’ll coach you on how to stay present while giving your child room to be themselves.
Over time, we usually work toward your child being comfortable alone with us. We do that carefully, always with plenty of support.
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Keep it simple and positive. You can say you’re going to meet someone whose job is to help kids with their feelings.
We’ll want to hear your child’s story and what makes them who they are, and then we’ll make a plan together. You’ll be in the room for that first session, so the whole thing stays light and low-pressure.
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It makes sense to worry about that, especially when certain topics have always ended in a fight at home.
That’s exactly what we’re trained for. We help conversations stay productive, honest, and respectful, and we guide everyone toward the real problem underneath so we can name the patterns and cycles keeping it going.
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No. To get started, we do need consent from both legal parents, but you don’t have to be in the same room.
We’re happy to meet with each of you separately. The more supportive parents we have involved, the better. That’s always the goal.
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Not necessarily. Willow Tree provides sessions for the parents of our individual clients, built around your parenting goals and the barriers getting in the way.
The goal is a stronger relationship between you and your child.
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Not necessarily. One of our clinicians, Kelly, is certified in EMDR, which is designed for processing trauma.
With EMDR, we can focus on your thoughts and the physical sensations that come up rather than walking through every detail of what happened. For a lot of people, that’s a relief.
Identity and affirming care
How we hold a child’s questions about who they are.
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Our job is to help people feel safe enough to explore and discover who they are. We won’t push your child toward any conclusion on a timeline.
Questioning deserves to be honored and given room, without anxiety and without an agenda. We have a strong background in child development and in how exploration looks different at every age and stage.
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Coming out isn’t something we ask of anyone. If and when it happens is wholly up to your child.
What we can do is make it clear there’s room for the full range of identities, so your child knows they’re safe to be honest. The best thing you can do is show that same openness at home.
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No. We’re all cisgender, heterosexual, married women.
If having a Queer therapist matters to you or your child, just say so. We can refer you to local clinics with wonderful Queer therapists.
About us
Credentials, couches, and the tissue incident.
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I earned my Master’s of Social Work in 2004, and I’ve done a thousand trainings on kids and teens since then.
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Yes! I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the state of Pennsylvania.
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We’re known across the county for our comfy couches. Shoes optional, cozy blanket available, and stuffies to choose from.
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No, but you may want to. Plenty of kid and parent snuggles have happened on those couches.
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We may cry, you may cry, but none of us will care about your mascara situation while we’re crying.
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True story: I once accidentally stocked the office with eucalyptus-infused tissues.
Great for rubbing sore noses, not great for rubbing crying eyes. I won’t make that mistake again.
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Of course. We all only talk about what we want to talk about, so neither of us needs to be afraid to ask.
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The Libby app is the hardest working app on my phone. I love audiobooks and have them going any time I don’t need (or want) to use my brain for my own thoughts.
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Dogs. I’m wholeheartedly obsessed with my four-year-old Bernadoodle, Milo.
He’s the home screen on my phone, the happiest part of coming home after a trip, and the most annoying when I’m cooking any form of meat in the kitchen.
Your Home Can Feel Steady Again
Your child needs help, and you need help. We can give you both.
Fill out the form and we’ll be in touch within a day. You can start feeling some hope right away.
