About our Therapists
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Suzy Young, MA
Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #100975 Supervised and mentored by Karen Wolfe, LMFT 53878 
My name is Suzy and I am an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist who has been providing therapeutic services for children, adolescents, adults, and families in the Bay Area over the past six years. I am passionate about helping children and their caretakers find new ways to communicate with one another in order to strengthen their relationship and better understand one another. I believe that at the end of the day, children want to be heard, seen, and validated by the adults in their life. My hope is to provide tools for caretakers to better understand their children’s wants and needs and to create space for children to express these needs in a safe and nurturing way.
My therapeutic approach is warm, relational, strengths-based, and collaborative. I draw from several different modalities depending on what my clients need in the moment. I offer a holistic approach to therapy and like to incorporate mindfulness and emphasize the mind-body connection. When working with children or adolescents, I use both directive and non-directive play therapy. I also incorporate narrative therapy, expressive arts therapy, and talk therapy. When working with any client, I meet them where they are at and let that serve as a guide for which interventions or modalities to use. I have extensive experience working with children and adolescents who struggle with emotional regulation, trauma, anxiety, grief, learning difficulties, and life transitions. If my approach aligns with you and your needs, please reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you! Phone: (415) 498-0714 Email: therapywithsuzy@gmail.com Office location: San Francisco |
Hannah Rudsten, MA
Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #105298 Supervised and mentored by Karen Wolfe, LMFT #53878 
My name is Hannah and I am an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, advocate, mentor, and group facilitator. My love for theater and visual arts has been a constant outlet throughout my life. I knew I found my true calling when I learned I could combine expressive arts with helping others.
I draw from my extensive drama therapy training to provide play and psychodramatic therapy to children, teens, and young adults who struggle with emotional regulation, separation anxiety, low-self esteem, gender and sexual identity, and life transitions. I offer individual and family sessions, parent support, and lead pro-social and emotional skill based groups. When I work with parents, I integrate tools from Parenting by Connection (Hand in Hand Parenting). Therapy with me is inclusive and LGBTQ+ affirming and my speciality is working with female-identified people. My therapeutic approach is multifaceted, strength based, client-centered, and collaborative. As I connect with each of my clients, we work together to create specific goals tailored to their unique needs. I customize the sessions to include their interests and hobbies to help facilitate a space in which they can embrace their true self and speak their inner voice. I incorporate grounding rituals and creative experiential techniques that allow my clients to access external and internal resources in order to be able to confront traumatic issues that were difficult before. I meet my clients where they are, giving them space to organically explore and embody different parts of themselves that need support and guidance. In addition to talking, therapy with me includes: play, art, sand tray, theater games, storytelling, role plays, guided imagery, and writing. I have utilized my therapeutic skills in private practice settings, youth development centers, schools, nature- based mentoring programs, and mental health clinics. I believe in commitment, consistency and meeting my clients where they are, acting as a guide and voice encourager as they move in the direction of their own path. I earned a Bachelors of Education in Family and Human Services from the University of Oregon and received my Masters in Arts in Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Drama Therapy from the California Institute of Integral Studies. If my therapeutic approach aligns with your values, please contact me for a consultation. HRudstenTherapy@gmail.com 510.485.9757 Office Location: 3655 Grand Ave, Oakland, CA 94610 |
Maggie Pantoni, MA
Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #117959 Supervised and mentored by Karen Wolfe, LMFT #53878 
When I began my journey into mental health work, I knew that I would end up working with families. While you may be facing issues that mirror or appear similar to another’s, each family has a distinct culture that is unique to them. My aim is to learn about your family landscape in order to identify your strengths as well as your stuck areas. It is my belief that looking at the family system as a whole can help empower you to resource yourself with the ingredients you already have in your cupboard. In this way, we are working to improve a recipe that you have been making for years, which makes the therapeutic process feel manageable, playful, and within your reach.
My work as a play therapist has taught me that parents often feel overwhelmed by the host of expectations placed upon them, and how challenging it can be to juggle them all. How can I be the perfect parent, employee, person, or spouse—with the limited amount resources and hours in a day? When this very normal pressure mounts, it can throw off the balance of the family system. With very careful attunement to your family’s specific strengths and edges, I can provide gentle nudges back towards harmony. My work as a play therapist allows me to enter into a child’s world using the language of play, the primary mode of communication for children. Children express themselves most fully through play, and you can think of the work of a play therapist as the work of translator, transcribing play into language. This helps parents and caregivers gain a deeper understanding of how to meet children’s needs. I have worked with children and their families to help manage anxiety, sadness, grief, aggression, self-esteem, bullying, rigid thinking/behaviors, divorce, and life transitions. I support families with a spirit of warmth and authenticity in attempt to create an environment of trust and safety. I tend to be rather direct, with a relaxed and off the cuff style of relating. The cornerstone of my practice is collaboration, wherein you will draw upon you, your child, and your families’ inner strengths to guide our path towards healing and harmony. At the end of the day, the therapeutic process is a relational one. The best therapy is done when two people feel comfortable in each others presence, so I look forward to connecting and seeing if we are a good fit for one another. maggiepantonitherapy@Gmail.com Office Location: San Francisco |
Karen Wolfe, MA, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Founder and CEO of SF Bay Play Therapy
and Nandi, the therapy dog
Founder and CEO of SF Bay Play Therapy
and Nandi, the therapy dog
I am a licensed marriage and family therapist (California License # 53878) specializing in supporting families with children who struggle with social and behavioral challenges, anger management, shyness, anxiety, and sensory/learning differences as well as couples and women who want more connection and intimacy. I provide psychotherapy for adults, individual play therapy for children, parenting support, family therapy, social skills groups, and school-based support, including in-class coaching (aka "shadowing") and working closely with your child's teachers.
Whether working with individual adults, parents, or children, my style is warm, inviting, and proactive. I honor both exploration of what arises in the moment and goal-directed troubleshooting, tailoring therapy to what each unique individual needs.
My approach to therapy is strongly integrative. I have extensive training in many varied modalities including Parenting by Connection (Hand in Hand Parenting), Floortime, Applied Behavior Analysis, Motivational Interviewing, Play Therapy, Expressive Arts Therapy, Sandtray/World Play, Depth Therapy, Mindfulness, Nonviolent Communication, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Positive Psychology.
Regardless of what approach is called for with a client, I emphasize the importance of developing a caring and supportive relationship in therapy, as I believe true change can only come about through a deep understanding of one another.
I thank you for being on this path to awakening, to seeking the harmony and understanding you truly desire, and
for taking the steps to make that a reality.
This path is not always easy, but it is certainly worth it.
I would be honored to support you along the journey.
Please contact me with any questions or to set up an appointment.
(415) 420-9459 KarenWolfeTherapy@gmail.com
If you are interested in my work with couples please visit www.EmbodiedRelationshipTherapy.com
Whether working with individual adults, parents, or children, my style is warm, inviting, and proactive. I honor both exploration of what arises in the moment and goal-directed troubleshooting, tailoring therapy to what each unique individual needs.
My approach to therapy is strongly integrative. I have extensive training in many varied modalities including Parenting by Connection (Hand in Hand Parenting), Floortime, Applied Behavior Analysis, Motivational Interviewing, Play Therapy, Expressive Arts Therapy, Sandtray/World Play, Depth Therapy, Mindfulness, Nonviolent Communication, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Positive Psychology.
Regardless of what approach is called for with a client, I emphasize the importance of developing a caring and supportive relationship in therapy, as I believe true change can only come about through a deep understanding of one another.
I thank you for being on this path to awakening, to seeking the harmony and understanding you truly desire, and
for taking the steps to make that a reality.
This path is not always easy, but it is certainly worth it.
I would be honored to support you along the journey.
Please contact me with any questions or to set up an appointment.
(415) 420-9459 KarenWolfeTherapy@gmail.com
If you are interested in my work with couples please visit www.EmbodiedRelationshipTherapy.com
At SF Bay Play therapy we believe in transparency in therapy and so we offer you our CV's below. We are happy to answer any questions you might have. Modeling open communication is an important part of who we are and how we practice therapy.
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