Alina Olaru, MA, LMHCA

Starting with my career as a teacher for young children, with my own children as they’ve grown and expanding to also support teenagers working through the social and academic challenges high school brings, I have been continually amazed at the nonstop stream of developmental phases. Just when our children or teens seem to balance their feet underneath themselves in one moment, their brain and body grow or something in their environment changes sending them off balance in the next.

 

Watching the resilience of youth as they stumble, gain their balance and try again despite their inexperience with the world is inspiring. I have been a Montessori teacher for over ten years and enjoyed being a direct part of the journey, supporting youth to keep tackling the challenges in front of them and building their confidence. A few years ago, I decided it was time for me to also take on a new challenge and went back to university to earn a master’s in psychology. Working therapeutically with children, teens and families I now have even more ways to help people take on life’s many challenges.

 

Since parents provide the solid ground for children to get their footing, then push off into their teen years and finally into adulthood, I am also passionate about supporting parents. Going back to school yet again, I became a certified Parent Coach through the Parent Coaching Institute as well as a Love and Logic parenting skills instructor. This knowledge allows me the opportunity to support parents too, as they guide their own children on their journey.

 

I love understanding the unique capabilities of each child or teen, helping them each see their own strengths. When children and teens learn to recognize their own strengths, their confidence soars as they develop into that next phase of life. When parents do this too, they can better guide their own children through those phases and enjoy parenting with a new confidence that makes them better parents and create happier families. I am privileged to share in this journey with each and every client.