About Kiilea

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I am a cisgender woman (she/her/hers), Mom, and white-bodied uninvited guest on the unceded, ancestral and tradition territory of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation  (known as the Coquitlam Watershed and its surrounding areas in British Columbia). 

I am a Certified Synergetic Play Therapist and Supervisor with the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute, a B.C. Registered Play Therapist (BCRPT) with the BC Play Therapy Association, and a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC # 3455) and Supervisor (CCC-S) with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association. I completed a Master of Education in Counselling Psychology at Simon Fraser University in 2014, and have been working alongside children, youth, and families for over 20 years.

I have been practicing Synergetic Play Therapy for eight years and have been a Certified Synergetic Play Therapist since 2017. My clinical experience as a Certified Synergetic Play Therapist has enabled me to gain a breadth of experience using therapeutic play, art, and conversation to support children and their families in expressing themselves and working through social, psychological, emotional, and behavioural challenges. In addition to my certification in Synergetic Play Therapy, I have certifications in Narrative Therapy (Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy), Indigenous Cultural Competency (San’yas, Indigenous Health, Provincial Health Services Authority), and Bruce Perry’s Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (The Neurosequential Network). 

Outside of working in private practice as both a therapist and supervisor, I have also fulfilled therapeutic roles in non-profits, health authorities, and in partnership with the Ministry of Child and Family Development. The majority of my work has centered on supporting children, youth, and families struggling with mental health issues, behavioral concerns, trauma and abuse, insecure attachment, and parenting difficulties. These roles have centered on child and youth mental health, including infant and early years, family preservation, and therapeutic support for children, youth, and families involved in foster and kinship care. Prior to gaining my graduate degree, I worked as a Child and Youth Care Counsellor with youth in foster care, Family Support Worker with family homeless shelters, and a childcare supervisor.