Staff

“We find delight in the beauty and happiness of children that makes the heart too big for the body.”

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

Clinician


Amy Wickstrom

Amy Wickstrom (awickstrom@sdplay.org) founded San Diego Center for Play Therapy as a result of her vision for an establishment dedicated to the provision of child and family mental health services and professional training in play therapy. Amy is an author, clinician, and guest lecturer at non-profit organizations, churches, schools, and universities. She is a licensed Marital and Family Therapist and Registered Play Therapist. She received her Master of the Arts in Marital and Family Therapy from Bethel Seminary and her Bachelor of the Arts from Point Loma Nazarene University. She is currently getting her PhD at Loma Linda University.

Amy has experience in university teaching, counseling in schools, private practice, and agency counseling. Her previous clinical experience primarily involved working with children, adolescent girls, and women's issues. Additionally, Amy has assisted in the development of psychological programs for community-based organizations and schools. She is also trained in EMDR, a comprehensive and time-efficient methodology for treating anxiety, stress, and trauma.

Amy's professional work and vision extends overseas to those who live in other countries. She had the privilege of providing therapeutic play and life skills training to underprivileged youth and their families in Africa, Central America, South America, Asia, and Hawaii. She also spent several years living in Europe and continues to travel throughout the world providing therapeutic services to individuals in other cultures.

Presentations:

  • What Your Child Really Wants From You
  • How to Behave So Your Children Will Too
  • Learning to Listen
  • When Parents Disagree
  • Sexual Exploration in Children: What's Normal and What's Not
  • Healthy Self Confidence and Body Image
  • Battling Joy's Enemy: Depression and the Blues
  • The Difference Between Praise and Encouragement
  • Working with High-Risk Kids
  • When to Make Referrals
  • A Case for Child-Centered Play Therapy
  • Thinking Outside the Toy Box: Relating to Kids Through Play

Publications:

Clinician


Yumi Ogawa

Yumi Ogawa (yogawa@sdplay.org) brings a wealth of clinical, scholastic, and cultural experience to SDCPT. She has a Master's in Psychology from Meiji Gakuin Univeristy in Japan, as well as a Master's of Education in Counseling from University of North Texas, where she also completed her Ph.D. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Texas, Certified Clinical Psychologist in Japan, Registered Play Therapist Supervisor, National Certified Counselor (NCC), and Registered Marital and Family Therapist Intern.

Yumi has extensive clinical experience, including school counseling, private practice, university teaching, supervising graduate students, international speaking and training, and providing therapeutic services through the American Red Cross for victims of traumatic events. She has also served as the Research and Publications Coordinator at Center for Play Therapy in Texas, which is the largest training facility for play therapy in the world. She has made significant contributions to empirical support for child-centered play therapy with young children.

Yumi's expertise primarily relates to working with diverse populations, including immigrant youth and adopted children. She believes parents and care-givers are an integral part of children's lives; therefore, she often includes them in the therapeutic process in creative, sensitive ways.

Presentations:

  • Play Therapy with Children with Attachment Difficulties
  • Relationship Ethics: What All Play Therapists Need to Know
  • Involving Families in the Therapeutic Process Through Play
  • The Use of Expressive Therapy with Clients of all Ages
  • Systematic Conceptualization: A Case Study
  • Understanding A Child's World

Publications:

  • Ogawa, Y. (2006). Effectiveness of child-centered play therapy with Japanese children in the U.S. Human Development Research, 20, 123-130. (in Japanese)
  • Ogawa, Y. (2004). Childhood trauma and play therapy intervention for traumatized children. Journal of Professional Counseling: Practice, Theory, & Research, 32(1), 19-29.

Clinician


Dana O'Callaghan

Dana O'Callaghan (danaoc@sdplay.org) brings to San Diego Center for Play Therapy a wide range of experience working with children. She completed her Masters of Arts in Psychology at Pepperdine University and her Ph.D. in Counseling and Higher Education at University of North Texas.

Dana’s primary clinical work involves children and adolescents with social, emotional, and developmental difficulties. Her experience includes clinical practice in community and school settings, university teaching, state-sponsored children’s home supervision, private practice, and animal assisted therapy and equine therapy for children. In addition, Dana received training as a play therapist at the University of North Texas, the largest play therapy training facility in the world.

Dana spent several years promoting and researching the field of animal assisted therapy (AAT). She has been fortunate to work with prominent leaders in the AAT field, collaborate on statewide and national presentations, and contribute to literature and research on AAT. Her expertise in both AAT and play therapy allows her to provide a unique therapeutic experience for children and their families.

Presentations:

  • Animal assisted therapy in counselor education: Providing instruction and supervision
  • From practicum to internship: Exploring supervisee readiness
  • Furry healers: Working with your pet as co-therapists
  • Common concerns for client-centered counselors
  • Pawsitive pets: Working with your pet as co-therapist
  • Animals healing people

Publications:

  • Gorczyca, K., Fine, A. H., Spain, C. V., O’Callaghan, D., Nelson, L., Popejoy, L., Wong, B., Wong, S. (2006). The history, development and theory of human animal support services for people AIDS/HIV and other theoretical disabling/chronic conditions. In A. H. Fine (Ed.) Handbook on animal assisted therapy: Theoretical foundations and guidelines for practice (2nd ed.). Academic Press: San Diego, CA.
  • Pease-Carter, C. & O’Callaghan, D. (2006, Summer). Critters on campus: Incorporating animal-assisted therapy into university settings. Visions, 2(23).
  • O’Callaghan, D. M. (2008). Exploratory study of animal assisted therapy interventions used by mental health professionals. Dissertation Abstracts International.