Emily Wegenke

LSW

Child & Family Therapist
Outreach Coordinator

I have experience working with emerging adults, parents, and children aging from 5 to 17. I have been focused on supporting children and teens for two years with hopes to expand my work within this population.

I operate from a strength-based perspective that empowers my clients to see all the amazing things they are doing. I am a very hands-on therapist that incorporates aspects of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Play-Therapy, and Art. Typically, when I work with children ages 6 to 10 I will use directive play therapy. I will have an activity or two set up for our session that allows the client to work towards their goals in sessions. At the end of sessions, I will invite the caregiver to join us so the child can share what they learned with their caregiver. With older teens, I incorporate their coping skills into sessions which could be deep breathing, journaling, coloring, fidgets, crafts or many other things! This creates an environment in which they feel comfortable while talking. At the end of our sessions, I will ask them what are 2 to 3 takeaways they would feel comfortable sharing with their parents if asked about the session.

As a child who asked a lot of questions, I was interested in understanding the world around me in depth. Growing up, both of my parents were public educators and I was always interested in what happened to their students when they got into trouble. This question is what lit the fire inside of me to pursue therapy. I am passionate about working with children and their families to expand their coping skills so that they can reach their goals set. I truly believe that all children will be successful, but success will look different for each.

I have experience on the other side of therapy as well! I have participated in group therapy as a teenager and individual therapy as an adult. As a clinician, it is important to me to know what it feels like to be on the other side of the questions! It's okay to need extra help in life and it is even braver to seek it out.

Growing up, I always imagined becoming a special education teacher. I began my bachelor's degree pursuing special education with a focus on emotional impairment. Through my undergraduate coursework and support from my professors, I switched my major to psychology with a double minor in family studies and youth studies. I kept coming to the question, "why" in regard to individual behaviors. I was interested in going deep into the development of children and learning about their patterns of behavior. I pursued a Master's in Social Work to support children and their families to make sense of the child's emotional responses and how to effectively support someone through a difficult time.