Specialized Child Therapists for children ages 3-14 Call 813-421-5437 today!

Let me start by saying that we feel like we have our boy back!! After years of searching for answers by reading every child behavioral book, and getting evaluated by... read more another therapist only to get labels and no real solutions and help, we finally found the answer we were looking for with Dr. Brenna’s play therapy. Our son was exhibiting a lot of aggression, towards us and his siblings and extremely defiant behavior and outbursts. There was a lot of power struggles and was very strong willed. After meeting with Brenna for the initial consult she explained everything so well to us and helped us to understand how NOT broken our child was and helped us to see the why behind the behavior. When we started the sessions things got worse before they got better. We started to really see amazing shifts in his behavior and his ability to self regulate about weeks 10-12. At our 5 week follow up meetings, Dr. Hicks was so detailed with what she saw in play therapy and the why behind what she saw. She helped us by role playing how we would respond to him and gave us incredible tools to help going forward. She was truly amazing in every aspect in the process. Honestly, we miss her. Our son worked so hard in therapy and has tools for life now. He can self regulate and is such a joy to be around. You know your child has made great changes when other people say stuff to you that they’ve noticed how different he is. We are so incredibly grateful to Dr. Brenna and her work. We HIGHLY recommend her! We have our boy back! Best investment we ever made!

Taking my son to Ms. Brenna was life changing. My 4 year old son was genetically pre-disposed to anger and behavioral issues and was being removed from school after school.... read more You could tell his own confidence was deteriorating. Working with Ms. Brenna, we were able to help him restore his confidence and re-wire him to understand the right and wrong. As parents we learned how he operated and how to control behavior through choices, which she taught us. The hardest part was understanding this is not a quick fix but seeing his progression has been amazing and so well worth it. Ms. Brenna has done wonders with my baby and it’s hard to even think where he would be if I didn’t take him to her. He is still progressing so well in school they are now talking about taking him off his behavior plan.

My son saw Brenna in her office once a week for several month. During this time we saw great improvement in our son's behavior, however we really wanted to... read more learn how to better communicate with him at home. We decided to take the home courses for 10 weeks. The techniques that are learned in the program are invaluable and so effective. Word of advice, stick to it and be consistent. We are working in reviewing all the material again to ensure we stay on track. Thank you Brenna for all you've done for our family.

I cannot say enough about the positive experience my son had with Ms. Brenna. Ms. Brenna helped him through a very difficult time and she did it with much patience,... read more support and perseverance. Not only did she help him, she guided me through the process as well and was always there to answer any questions I had and address my many concerns. I highly recommend Ms. Brenna - she made such a difference in my son’s life .

We loved having Mrs. Brenna work with our 5 year old daughter. From the moment we met with her at our consultation we felt that Brenna knew our daughter. Brenna... read more was describing her and the dynamics of our family and other siblings to a T having not even met her. We knew in that moment that what felt like a hopeless situation now had hope and we felt confident that Mrs. Brenna knew what our daughter needed and had a plan to get her there. We were so impressed with Brenna and how she communicates with children and parents. Brenna never makes kids or parents feel defeated or judged. She is generous in her time and efforts to provide parents with free resources through her blog and YouTube channel. Last year our family of 6 was unable to do normal family outings, or even go to a store or have family routines without a meltdown, power struggle or harsh words. Brenna helped us understand how to reflect our daughter’s feelings and how to validate her and give her choices that helped minimize our power struggles. In paying attention to all that Brenna does so intentionally, intricately, and yet gracefully, we as parents were able to reflect on ourselves, our habits, and role in our daughter’s behavior. She taught us to reflect on how our parents parented us and how that’s affecting us now, and learned strategies that have even been helpful with our other children and healing our entire family dynamic. After less than 6 months we are now able to enjoy our daughter, can go out and about and do things we used to enjoy. We are seeing the gifts come out in our daughter that she has always had that were buried in bad behaviors. She is happier, calmer, more in control, and most importantly, more self-regulated. I’d love to keep my daughter with Brenna forever but that’s not a reality. Thankfully we leave confidently knowing that we have the skills and knowledge to do the hard work that continues daily, and Brenna has helped us understand our role in helping our daughter feel her emotional best. We are so thankful to have found Brenna and love that she believes in the inherent goodness in children, despite seeing them often at their worst. Brenna believes in her methods using play therapy and knows that she can use play therapy to modify behaviors using a holistic approach. She allows kids to play like kids and bring about changes to their issues at their pace and through their own direction. Brenna never once tried to diagnose or label our daughter with something that could have shifted her identity or affected her with lasting implications in the future. Brenna showed us that she understood our daughter’s behavior was not who she is, and she helped me and my husband see it too. Brenna is gifted in her work with families and we know we can always visit her again if we need it.

Dr. Brenna is an angel that saved our family from an unimaginable situation that involved the courts and a reunification therapist that was not taking into account the best interest... read more of my son. She was so gracious to see my son knowing that I would eventually need her to provide her expertise in my case. She was able to allow my son to have a voice based on what he wanted while others were telling him that he didn't have a say in the matter and would do as he was told. Fortunately for us, the courts took her advise and the case was closed. My son established such a bond with Dr. Brenna that even after the case was closed, he still wanted to go see her. From the bottom of my heart there are not enough words to express my family's gratitude for your professionalism, your willingness to help and your caring ways! Forever grateful. If I could give 10 stars I would!

If you’re reading reviews, then you’re considering play therapy for your child. And lucky for you, you’ve found the best. Dr. Hicks is professional, smart, articulate, caring, respectful, and incredibly... read more knowledgeable. After being told by several academic settings (and even professionals who never even spent time with my son!) “maybe he needs a diagnosis” or “maybe medications might help,” we knew that those weren’t the next step. Thankfully, our research led us to Dr. Hicks. Dr.Hicks is the first professional we met who wasn’t trying to “diagnosis” our son. She wanted to give him and US the tools to navigate his emotions and behaviors. And that she did. (I HIGHLY recommend her parenting workshop,too.) Dr. Hicks was accommodating to all our needs and always willingly to consult with professionals involved in our son’s care. This was crucial, esp in the educational setting. We will be forever thankful to have her as part of our son’s team!

Brenna is amazing! She is so gentle and loving but knows exactly how to get your child’s attention. My daughter is in love with Brenna and was so sad when... read more her sessions were over. I cannot possibly recommend her enough. She helped my child tremendously during my divorce and helped me to see her behavioral issues as a reaction to her emotions and how to help her express those in healthier ways. I’m so grateful my daughter had her during this difficult time

Definitely worth the time to help your child grow. Don’t expect to see results right away, but over time the play therapy does help you better understand how your child... read more processes information and he/she will learn how to better understand themselves. Brenna will take the time to explain your child’s behaviors and help you identify triggers and strategies to help you and your child learn to control behaviors. My daughter struggled with self control, anxiety, and confidence prior to her visits. Today she still has some moments, but she is better equipped to handle those situations with better self regulation. She is more confident and out going in public and has less “meltdowns”. Just keep in mind you as the parent are part of the equation too and Brenna definitely helped my wife and I understand that, and now we are all able to work together.

We have 9 yr old boy/girl twins and recently had a few major changes that was causing anxiety and sometimes panic for both kids. We tried the usual therapy talk... read more sessions with someone else, but wanted to try something more for them. We are extremely impressed with the results from play therapy. We did both individual and group (my 2 kids together) sessions. We were amazed at what all Brenna could see in each of our kids through play. We gradually saw improvement each week and now have the skills and tools needed to cope if anything were to arise thanks to her!! My kids loved going each week!! You will not be disappointed. Best investment you will make to help your child for sure!!

Over the summer I made the decision to take Dr. Brenna's online CPRT (Child Parent Relationship Therapy) online training. This is most certainly one of the best decisions I have... read more made. Before enrolling in the course I have read up a lot on parenting and child behavior, I had watched and followed some really great therapists on YouTube and learned quite a bit. What I gained from this training far exceeds what I have been able to do on my own. The content of the training and the mindset shift that you go through as you start to digest the material is remarkable. Along with the quality content and the skills training, the real magic for me came with the consistency, accountability and follow up that is built into the training. Being a parent of school-aged children it has been a blessing to have such a valuable resource at my fingertips via the online portal. I was able to log in at my own convenience to watch the training. I honestly don't think I would ever have completed the course any other way. After watching the weekly video training I met with Dr. Brenna for our scheduled check-in to review course content and talk about our progress or lack thereof, and review session videos once those come into play. The 100% undivided attention that Dr. Brenna offers during our sessions is such a testament to her passion for this program. She lives and breathes CPRT and has talked me through so many scenarios and shown me progress where I often felt defeat. This experience has been and still is a real journey. As Dr. Brenna has reminded me many times, learning CPRT skills is like learning a new language. It will feel very unnatural at first, but the more you exercise your new skills the more organically they will start to become a part of how you interact with your children. To me it is still a new language, I am still working on organically incorporating the new skills into my everyday interactions, but it is worth every bit of effort. I have looked back on many interactions with my children since starting CPRT, comparing how I would have reacted pre-CPRT with the outcome with using CPRT skills and have been able to see the fruits of my labor. I cannot thank Dr. Brenna enough for the hope she has given me through CPRT and the unwavering and sincere support she has offered along the way.

For my child it has been a great support. He started very young, just 3 years old but the therapy has helped him to develop some basic emotional tools to... read more deal with separation and divorce.