About Experience Courage

Welcome! I am so glad you are here.

A Little About Working With Me

My name is Janet Nordine, and I believe one of the most important parts of therapy is having a place where you can show up as you are.

I strive to meet the people I work with with compassion, curiosity, acceptance, and authenticity. I am a real person in the therapy room. I bring my professional training and experience, but I also bring my humanity—and yes, my sense of humor. Sometimes there are tears. Sometimes there is anger. Sometimes we sit quietly together. And sometimes, laughter is exactly what is needed.

You don't have to perform in therapy. You don't have to take care of me, have the right answer, or know exactly what you are feeling. You don't even have to know where to begin.

Maybe you want to understand yourself more deeply. Maybe you are learning how to express what you need rather than hiding it. Maybe you want stronger, more authentic relationships with the people you love—or a stronger relationship with yourself. Or maybe you simply know that something needs to be different, even if you can't quite name what that is yet.

When You Are Looking for Help for Your Child

I know that choosing someone to work with your child is an important decision. You are trusting me with someone you love.

I will approach your child with kindness, curiosity, patience, and care, while respecting who they are and what they may be communicating through their words, behavior, play, and relationships. I don't see children as problems to be fixed. I want to understand what may be happening underneath the behavior and help your child feel safe enough to express what they may not yet have words for.

And I won't forget about you.

Parents and caregivers are an important part of the work I do with children. I hope to work alongside you—not to judge your parenting or tell you there is only one “right” way to respond to your child. Together, we can become curious about what your child needs, strengthen connection, and find ways to support both your child and your family.

For nearly 20 years, I have had the privilege of sitting alongside children, adults, and families as they navigate difficult experiences, relationships, change, grief, growth, and the sometimes messy work of becoming more fully themselves.

I won't presume to know your story before you tell it to me. I won't expect your experience—or your child's—to look like anyone else's. What I can offer is my training and experience, my genuine curiosity about you, and a willingness to stay present as we discover together what you or your family may need.

You don't have to be “ready.” You can simply begin, or begin again.

We can do hard things—together.

About Me

Janet Nordine, MS, LMFT, RPT-S™, RST

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist | Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™ | Registered Sand Therapist | AAMFT Approved Supervisor

Janet Nordine is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™, Registered Sand Therapist, and owner of Experience Courage Therapy and Consultation / Las Vegas Play Therapy in Las Vegas, Nevada. With more than 20 years of experience in social services and mental health, Janet works with children, adolescents, adults, parents, and families navigating trauma, anxiety, attachment and relationship challenges, identity, grief and loss, and the lifelong complexities of adoption.

Janet has a particular passion for working with members of the adoption constellation across the lifespan. As both an adoption-focused therapist and an adult adoptee, she brings professional expertise alongside a deep respect for the complexity of adoption, including experiences of belonging, identity, attachment, origin loss, grief, reunion, rejection, and the search for meaning. Her work honors the truth that adoption can hold many experiences at once and that each person's story deserves curiosity rather than assumption.

Janet’s clinical foundation is rooted in Gestalt Play Therapy, attachment theory, interpersonal neurobiology, and relational and experiential approaches to healing. She integrates play therapy, Sandtray therapy, expressive arts, LEGO®, EMDR, Synergetic Play Therapy, Theraplay principles, and Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI®) according to the developmental and relational needs of each client. She believes therapy is not simply about reducing symptoms; it is about creating a relationship in which people can safely explore their experiences, reconnect with themselves, and discover new possibilities.

Janet is a Certified Synergetic Play Therapist, is trained in EMDR, and is a TBRI® Practitioner. She has completed Level One Theraplay training and advanced training in using EMDR and sandtray with children and adults. She is also faculty with the West Coast Institute for Gestalt Therapy with Children and Adolescents.

In addition to her clinical practice, Janet is committed to supporting the next generation of therapists. As an AAMFT Approved Supervisor and Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™, she provides clinical supervision, play therapy supervision, consultation, and professional development for therapists and interns. Her approach to supervision emphasizes curiosity, authenticity, ethical practice, clinical competence, and the development of the therapist's own therapeutic voice.

Janet is also a presenter and educator who has taught locally, nationally, and internationally on play therapy, trauma, attachment, adoption, therapist development, and the therapeutic relationship. She believes strongly in the importance of the self of the therapist and in creating spaces where clinicians can remain grounded in sound theory while continuing to grow into who they uniquely are as therapists.

At the heart of Janet's work is a simple belief: healing happens in relationship. People do not need to perform, have the right words, or arrive in therapy already knowing what needs to change. Whether working with a six-year-old in the playroom, an adult sitting beside a sandtray, a parent trying to understand their child, or a therapist finding their professional voice, Janet seeks to create a space where people can experience curiosity, connection, courage, and belonging.

Janet is a lifelong Las Vegan and the founder of Las Vegas Play Therapy. Outside of the therapy room, she enjoys live theater, traveling, LEGO® projects, British mysteries, cheering for the Vegas Golden Knights, and exploring the ever-changing Las Vegas food scene.

Education:

2006 Bachelor of Science and Human Services Management - University of Phoenix

2009 Master of Science in Counseling - Marriage, Family and Child Therapy - University of Phoenix

Professional Credentials & Advanced Training

I value continued learning and believe that becoming a therapist is an ongoing process. Throughout my career, I have pursued additional training, supervision, consultation, and certification in approaches that support the work I do with children, adults, families, adoptees, and other therapists.

Clinical Supervision

• Nevada Board-Approved Supervisor for Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) and Clinical Professional Counselor (CPC) Interns

• AAMFT Approved Supervisor for Marriage and Family Therapy

• Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™ (RPT-S™) — Association for Play Therapy, 2019–present

Professional Credentials & Certifications

• Registered Sand Therapist (RST) — World Association of Sand Therapy Professionals, 2026

• Certified Synergetic Play Therapist (CSPT) — Synergetic Play Therapy Institute, 2024

• Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI®) Practitioner — Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development, Texas Christian University

Advanced Clinical Training

• EMDR with Adults and Children — EMDR training completed in 2024, including Playful EMDR

• Gestalt Therapy with Children & Adolescents — Advanced Certification Candidate and Faculty Member, West Coast Institute for Gestalt Therapy with Children and Adolescents

• Theraplay — Level One Training, The Theraplay Institute

My training informs my work, but it does not replace curiosity about the person in front of me. I continue to learn from colleagues, teachers, supervisees, clients, and the experiences that challenge me to keep growing as a therapist.

Areas of Focus

There are certain areas of therapy that I have been drawn to throughout my career and have pursued additional training and experience in. These areas continue to shape my work, while I remain mindful that every person, family, and story is different. I bring what I know into the room with curiosity—and with respect for what I do not yet know about you.

Trauma, Attachment & Relational Experiences
I work with children, adolescents, and adults who have experienced trauma, abuse, attachment disruptions, loss, and difficult or overwhelming life experiences. Together, we may explore safety, relationships, emotional regulation, meaning, and the ways past experiences continue to show up in the present.

Adoption, Identity & Belonging
Adoption has been an important area of both my professional work and my own lived experience. I work with adoptees across the lifespan, as well as adoptive parents and families. I do not believe there is one adoption experience or one way an adoptee is supposed to feel. Therapy can offer room for the complexity—the grief and connection, questions and discoveries, anger and love, identity and belonging, and whatever else may be part of your particular story.

Anxiety, Depression & Emotional Regulation
I work with children, adolescents, and adults experiencing anxiety, depression, overwhelm, sensory stressors, and difficulties with emotional regulation. We may explore thoughts and behaviors while also paying attention to the body, nervous system, relationships, and the experiences that may be underneath what is happening.

Women & Trauma
For many years, I have worked alongside adult women who have experienced sexual trauma, childhood trauma, relational wounds, and other painful experiences. Therapy may include exploring how those experiences have influenced relationships, boundaries, identity, self-worth, and the ways a person has learned to protect herself and move through the world.

Play Therapy, Sandtray & Expressive Approaches
Words are only one way we communicate and understand ourselves. I incorporate Play Therapy, Sandtray Therapy, expressive arts, LEGO®, and other experiential approaches into my work with children and adults. Sometimes creating, playing, building, or working symbolically allows something to emerge that has been difficult to find words for.

Attachment, Interpersonal Neurobiology & the Nervous System
Attachment theory and interpersonal neurobiology help inform how I understand people and relationships. I am interested in what happens not only in our thoughts, but also in our bodies, nervous systems, relationships, and experiences of safety and connection. This often means slowing down and becoming curious about what a response may be communicating rather than immediately trying to change it.

Parents & Caregivers
Parenting can bring tremendous love alongside frustration, uncertainty, exhaustion, and worry. I work collaboratively with parents and caregivers to become curious about what may be happening underneath a child's behavior, strengthen connection, establish appropriate boundaries, and find responses that fit both the child and the family.

LGBTQIA+ Affirming Care
I welcome LGBTQIA+ children, adolescents, adults, parents, and families into my practice. I strive to offer a respectful and affirming space where each person's identity, relationships, experiences, and questions can be explored without judgment or expectation.

Supervision, Consultation & Teaching
I also enjoy working with therapists who are developing their own clinical identities. Through supervision, consultation, and teaching, I hope to create space for clinicians to think deeply about their work, remain curious, strengthen their skills, and discover who they are becoming as therapists.

How I Approach This Work

My education, training, professional experience, and lived experiences all come into the therapy room with me—but they do not make me the expert on another person's life.

You know your story in a way I never can.

My role is to bring my training, experience, curiosity, and humanity into our work together. I believe therapy is something we do with one another, not something I do to you.

Together, we can pay attention to what emerges, become curious about what it may be telling us, and make room for greater understanding, choice, connection, and possibility.

You do not need to arrive knowing exactly what you need, having the right words, or knowing where to begin. We can start wherever you are.

Fees & Insurance

My standard fee is $165 for a 50-minute therapy session.

My practice is primarily private pay, although I participate with a limited number of insurance plans. Because insurance coverage and benefits vary, please contact me to discuss whether I currently participate with your specific plan and what options may be available. Currently, I can accept Aetna, some UMR plans, some Cigna plans, and some United Health Care plans. I also accept fee-for-service Nevada Medicaid.

I also maintain a limited number of reduced-fee spaces when available and offer a sliding-scale option specifically for adult adoptees. Please feel welcome to ask about availability.

Beginning Therapy

Finding a therapist is a very personal decision. Training and experience matter, but so does finding someone with whom you feel comfortable enough to be yourself.

If something you have read here resonates with you, I invite you to reach out. We can begin with a conversation and see whether working together feels like a good fit.

You bring your story. I’ll bring curiosity, experience, and a willingness to meet you there.

Janet’s Affiliations