Play therapy is a powerful tool for children struggling with anxiety, behavioral challenges, trauma, depression, and relationship difficulties (National Institute of Health). At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, we specialize in working with anxious, angry, and overwhelmed kids. Many of the kids we see look angry on the outside, but inside are filled with anxiety and stress. That anxiety comes out as temper tantrums, defiance, and big meltdowns.

Our expert therapists take the time to dig into the root of your child’s anger, using play therapy interventions alongside cognitive-behavioral and family-focused interventions to create real, lasting change. We don’t just help kids feel better in the moment—we help them (and you) build the skills to see real improvement at home, at school, and in their relationships.

Research shows that play therapy is most effective for children ages 3-12, as play is their natural way of processing emotions. At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, we go beyond traditional play therapy—we specialize in anxiety and anxiety-driven anger, using tailored interventions to help children of all ages. For older kids and teens, we integrate play therapy techniques alongside cognitive-behavioral strategies to ensure therapy is both engaging and effective.

A 45-minute play therapy informed session with our specialized therapists costs $205. Our approach isn’t just about play—it’s about real progress. We use evidence-based interventions to get to the root of your child’s struggles, helping them build meaningful skills for emotional regulation, resilience, and self-expression.

Yes, play therapy is often covered by insurance. While we are an out-of-network provider, we make the process easier by providing superbills, which you can submit to your insurance company for potential reimbursement. Many families find that they can receive partial coverage, or that part of our session fee can apply to their deductible, depending on their out-of-network benefits. You can read more over on our fees and insurance page.

While we love incorporating play into our sessions with kids ages 3 on up, we also know that kids with anxiety and anxiety-driven anger need to build skills to manage their overwhelming emotions. We also know that you, as the parent, are desperate for things to improve. So, what’s the biggest challenge with play therapy? If you’re not tracking outcomes in some kind of capacity, how do you know it’s working?

That’s why we take a data-driven, results-oriented approach. Every session integrates Feedback-Informed Treatment (FIT) so we can measure progress on our outcomes, tailor our interventions, and ensure your child is truly improving. Our therapists don’t just "hope" therapy is working, or tell you that we “feel” like your child is improving—we track real results, with you and with your child, to ensure that progress is measurable, and that you can feel the difference.