We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Laura Olivos. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Laura below.
Laura, appreciate you joining us today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.
When I look back at my journey in mental health, I can say there have been several defining moments for me along the way. I look at the process in layers, each making an indelible mark on my growth. I had initially set my heart on becoming a psychologist solely working with Autistic and neurodiverse youth. But as luck would have it, the universe had other plans for me.
Throughout my graduate work, we had various rotations or practicum options. We could submit our top picks to be selected for training at a clinic or hospital setting each year. I had my heart set on yet another Autism specific clinic. However, I was chosen to work at the Child & Adolescent Traumatic Stress Program (CATSP) at Nova Southeastern University under the direction of Dr. Jan Faust. I was unsure of what to expect working in trauma and was scared this would detract from my plans to continue my Autism specific training. However, Dr. Faust had opened the doors for me to learn a completely different theoretical orientation and approach to children, which worked from the lens of attachment, cognitive-behavioral, and play-based theories.
I fell in love with working with children who had undergone harrowing circumstances in their short lives. I learned that the center of this work lies in creating a sense of relational safety with a child. To see a child place their trust in you, let go of their fears to let you into their world, tell their story through art or play, and help them heal with their non-offending caregivers was one of the greatest gifts I received in my training.
But this newfound love left me feeling conflicted. How was I to merge both areas of clinical interest? Could both co-exist in my clinical repertoire? That is when I met a child on the spectrum who had undergone a terrible trauma in their home. This child was selected to be a case I would pursue for over a year, ultimately answering all of the questions swirling in my head. In our training, seldom is it heard of a therapist deviating from behavioral-based approaches working with neurodiverse youth. I realized that all children, regardless of their neurotype, require a sense of safety in their relationships and that play can be a conduit to healing.
All children can heal when they have someone who can consistently show up to make them feel safe again.
This rotation imparted the wisdom of the old to blend with the new. I realized I could find the space to combine both worlds, ultimately creating my clinical niche to work with neurodiverse youth who had undergone trauma or loss in their life.
Laura, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My interest in pursuing a career in mental health came from early childhood experiences growing up in Lima, Peru. My grandmother worked with Mother Teresa to build homes for the underprivileged and impoverished populations of Tacora and Cuzco, Peru. At five years old, I volunteered to help my grandmother by visiting these homes with her colleagues. She would pack me breakfast and load me into a van full of volunteers. My grandmother would hold my hand tightly and guide me through the garbage-ridden streets. I would look up at her and see how fearless she was. She would allow me to help the nuns with different tasks and play with the children. I would hug the residents of the home and talk to them, listening to their stories and lived experiences.
This experience opened a doorway in my heart that refused to shut. This evolved into a lifelong pursuit to replicate these roles professionally, ultimately inspiring me to earn my doctorate in clinical psychology specializing in developmental disabilities and trauma.
As of today, I am the proud founder and owner of an outpatient pediatric psychology practice, The Olive Tree Center for Child & Family Psychology, located in Miami Beach, FL. I specialize in working with children ages 3-18 years of age who come to me with a myriad of different concerns, including but not limited to trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, and co-occurring issues relating to a developmental disability. What sets me apart is my niche in working with trauma in neurodiverse and developmentally disabled youth. It is a specialty that has evolved to fill a gap in the clinical world over the years.
I consider myself integrative in my clinical approach, blending various interventions that best fit that child’s unique neurotype or profile. At the center of this, I emphasize family involvement in this process. I tell my parents that I could work with their child for 1 hour a week, but they will be the most significant agents of change in their child’s healing process outside of these sessions.
I am most proud of the courage to show up as authentically as possible in the playroom. Sometimes, clinical training models sterilize the relationship by creating a power differential in the room. It takes away our most powerful clinical tool –to be human. When I get on the floor and enter the child’s world through their eyes without trying to “fix” them, they can feel seen. This is where the magic happens.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
My main ingredients for building a successful practice boil down to authenticity, resilience, good communication, and a heart to serve. I am a huge proponent of working collaboratively with multi-disciplinary teams. I cannot treat a child in a vacuum because they do not exist in one. I often tell parents I must learn from their speech, occupational, educational, and medical providers on what has been successful for them and how I can best compliment their interventions. I am continuously learning from my community and feel miracles can happen when people come together with the heart to serve their fellow man.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When quarantine happened in March of 2020, I was petrified. How was I to replicate and translate the same warmth, playfulness, and evidence-based interventions virtually? How was I to navigate my own family life in quarantine while holding the space for others? The answer lay in what I already knew–to show up with love and leverage this as an opportunity to grow.
I created a Youtube puppet show called The Olive Treehouse to teach children on a developmentally appropriate level what quarantine and stay-at-home orders meant and how to cope with the inevitable anxieties that come with this territory. At the same time, I was going through a dramatic paradigm shift professionally. I had stumbled upon several #ActuallyAutistic social media influencers and blogs, who taught me to prioritize Autistic voices and perspectives at the center of my work. It opened doors for me to rethink my language, my clinical approaches, and much more. This time in my life also led to many exciting writing opportunities over the summer, ultimately landing a position to be a part of Parents Magazine’s Board of Advisors.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.olivetreepsychology.com
- Instagram: @olivetreepsychology
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/olivetreepsychology
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-s-olivos-psy-d-59b94a91/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdURVUDCwbaVPYjgdLTt3cA
- Other: Board of Advisor for Parents Magazine: https://www.parents.com/about-us/meet-our-board-of-advisors/
Articles: https://www.parents.com/kids/education/back-to-school/5-big-back-to-school-challenges-and-how-to-tackle-them/ https://www.parents.com/kids/discipline/strategies/the-parents-expert-guide-to-nurturing-good-behavior/ https://www.parents.com/kids/development/behavioral/how-to-raise-a-kid-with-ambition/ https://issuu.com/miamikids/docs/mkm_issue_406_ News Interviews/Appearances: https://cbs12.com/news/deprecated-trending-at-9/talking-to-your-kids-about-drugs
Image Credits
Gabriela Alfonsin