NEW CLIENTS
Hi! I’m Jeanne, and I’m pleased to welcome you to Jeanne L Williams Psychological Services. 
I hope this site will answer some of the questions you may have, and help you prepare your child and/or you for an appointment at my office. Here are some of the questions most frequently asked by new clients and their adults:
- How can we get ready for the first appointment?
- What should we expect when we get to your office?
- Is there a waiting room?
- What’s the best way to communicate with you?
- What about client confidentiality?
- What happens in therapy if I’m not a little kid? ... or ... I’m much too old and way too cool for Play Therapy!
- How do I get there?
How can we get ready for the first appointment?
In preparation for your visit, you may want to look through the website with your child to let them check out the pictures. All the pictures on the site were taken in my office, (except for the circle of kids on the banner, and the pictures of me - which my 10-year-old took). The pictures will show your child some of the toys and other things they will see when they get here.
In addition, please look at the following resources that will help you and your child know what to expect:
- On the PLAY THERAPY page, you can read about play therapy – what it is, and how it works - plus learn what to tell your child before the first session, and read some important information about after the session.
- If you need to know how to get to my office, check out the contact info, which includes the address, bus route information, and more.
What should we expect when we get to your office?
When you arrive at my office, check to see if my door (just to the right at the top of the stairs) is open or closed. If it’s open, just pop your head in to let me know you have arrived, and then you can wait in the waiting room until I come to get you. If it is closed, I probably have a client in with me, and I will come look for you in the waiting room as soon as I can.
Sessions usually last 45 minutes. I typically spend all or most of the session with the child. I practice a child-centered style of therapy, which means that the child gets a lot of choice in how they spend that 45 minutes. There is a variety of toys and art materials to choose from, as well as some books and games. Some children prefer to play most of the time, and some children want to talk. The child gets to choose. You can read more about my philosophy of play therapy on the play therapy page of this website.
I almost always start and end appointments on time, so please arrive promptly, and you can expect to get out at the planned ending time (45 minutes after the session start time).
Is there a waiting room?
My office is on the second floor of a two-story house that has been converted to an office building. Also on the second floor is a small waiting room where parents or other family members can hang out while the client is in with me. There are a few toys and books in the waiting room. There are other offices on the same floor as well as throughout the building, so we ask that you help to keep things quiet in the waiting room, as well as making sure toys and books are picked up before you leave.
If you do not want to wait in the building, Whyte Avenue is 5 blocks south of the office, with a terrific selection of coffee shops, restaurants, and shops awaiting you, and the river valley runs along the north side, if you would like to take a walk. I do ask that you return to my office at the correct time for your child’s appointment to be over, as I often have more clients waiting for me, and cannot be responsible for children left alone in the building.
What’s the best way to communicate with Jeanne?
It is important that I know how things are going with your child during the week. I need to hear about problems or concerns that you have, and also about things that are going well. I am also glad to help you with parenting questions that you may have.
Since I want to give the child as much time as possible for their therapy session, parents and caregivers have several options for communicating with me.
- You can call me at any time at 780-414-6298, ext. 2. If I don’t answer, leave a message that includes a good time to call back.
- You can email me at info@jeannewilliams.ca.
- You can request a few minutes at the beginning or end of the session to talk to me alone. If you have a young child, please bring another adult along who can wait with the child in the waiting room until it is their turn to come in with me.
- You can request an appointment to come see me without your child.
One thing I ask you not to do is to ask me, after the sessions, in front of the child, “how did she do?”, or “how was it?” That is really not a question I could answer at that time, both because of time constraints, and for the sake of the child, who probably does not want to be talked about like that.
My clients (the kids) are also welcome to email me any time they want, with a question, a problem, or just a Hi to brighten my day... send it to kids@jeannewilliams.ca
What about client confidentiality?
A parent or guardian is usually entitled to know what goes on in their child’s therapy session. However, for the sake of building the child’s trust and sense of safety during their therapy, I request that what happens in the therapy office remain confidential, unless of course the child herself or himself chooses to share it. I am happy to give general reports on how therapy is going (see Communicating with Jeanne), but prefer to keep the details of what the child is playing with, or what they are saying, between the child and me.
I do have some exceptions to this, however. If there is information that I think is important for parents or caregivers to know, I will certainly report that information. Depending on the age of the child, I will often talk it over with the child first. For older children I may say something like “I think your parent should know about this. Do you want to have them come in and you can tell them yourself, or would you rather I told them?” For very young children, I may not talk it over with them before talking to the parent.
In addition to this, I have an obligation to report suspected child abuse to the appropriate authorities.
What happens in therapy if I’m not a little kid? ... or ...
I’m much too old and way too cool for Play Therapy!
I work with kids of all ages, from toddlers to teens, and I even see some adults. Older kids often wonder what they will be doing during their therapy session. Typically, very young children spend most of their time playing or doing art, and older teens spend most of their time talking (although teens and adults seem to really enjoy art, sand tray therapy, and other non-talking activities!) Children in between those ages get to choose how they will spend their therapy time – depending on the child, some may choose to spend most of their time playing, and others may prefer to talk more of the time. A lot of teens like to play cards or other games, and mix that in with talking when they feel like it. This is up to the client, and what they feel comfortable with.
Another difference with older kids and teens, is that I like for them to help me set goals for their counselling, or in fact, to set their own goals. So if you fall into this category, start thinking about what you would like to get out of your time with me.
How do I get there?
See my contact page, with contact information, a map, and a link to nearby bus routes.