Karen Pernet LCSW, RPT-S and Wendy Caplin Ph.D., RPT-S have separate private practices.
Karen’s practice is in the San Francisco, CA area and Wendy’s is in Philadelphia, PA.

We met in 1986 during our postgraduate trainings, which included a three-year program in Gestalt Therapy, and extensive trainings in play therapy, Sandtray Therapy and Filial Therapy. We share a similar understanding about healing and psychotherapy. We believe that when all is well, people develop in the direction of health, which includes growth and change. Help is called for when a person of any age is stuck. The signs for adults, couples and families may be repetitive patterns of negative situations. For children or adolescents, it may be behavior problems (acting out or acting in-withdrawal, depression, anxiety) or the inability to grow emotionally, intellectually or socially according to what is expected for their age. Psychotherapy is one piece of the healing journey, which also includes the physical, spiritual and social aspects of life. We use imagination, creativity, humor and play as integral parts of our work with you.

Adults
We offer services for individuals and couples using a combination of psychodynamic, experiential and cognitive methods, with a focus on the here and now. Our approach lies in helping both the verbal and non-verbal parts of a person to work together and includes play and sandtray therapies. We believe that relationship is key and the therapeutic alliance is both respectful and mutual.

Children, Adolescents and Families
We use a down-to-earth collaborative approach that recognizes parents and other caregivers as the most important people in children’s lives. Our services range from educational “enhancement” programs for families without major difficulties who wish to strengthen their relationships and prevent problems to services geared to the needs of seriously distressed children and families. In all cases, we respect the families with whom we work and involve parents as partners in the process whenever possible.