--- title: "Autism Therapy for Children in Eugene, Oregon | Ubuntu Counseling" description: "Play-based, parent-inclusive therapy for autistic children from age four in Eugene, Oregon with Heather Swaney, MA, LPC. Neurodiversity-affirming, never behavior-shaping." lang: en json-ld: | { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "MedicalWebPage", "name": "Autism Therapy for Children", "description": "Play-based, parent-inclusive therapy for autistic children from age four in Eugene, Oregon with Heather Swaney, MA, LPC. Neurodiversity-affirming, never behavior-shaping.", "url": "https://ubuntucounselingeugene.com/services/autism-children", "about": "Autism, Children", "provider": { "@type": "MedicalBusiness", "name": "Ubuntu Counseling", "telephone": "+1-458-215-1465" }, "areaServed": { "@type": "State", "name": "Oregon" }, "inLanguage": "en-US" } --- [![Ubuntu Counseling butterfly logo](/__l5e/assets-v1/01187caf-6a1d-4921-b206-5538892f6bb3/ubuntu-counseling-logo.png)Ubuntu Counseling Heather Swaney, MA, LPC ](/) - [About](/about) - Services - [Autism](/services/autism) - [ADHD](/services/adhd) - [Trauma and PTSD](/services/trauma-and-ptsd) - [Anxiety](/services/anxiety) - [Grief and Loss](/services/grief-and-loss) - [Life Transitions](/services/life-transitions) - [LGBTQIA+ Affirming](/services/lgbtqia-affirming) - [Couples and Family](/services/couples-and-family) - [Consultation and Letters](/services/consultation-and-letters) - [Reunification and Co-Parenting](/services/reunification-and-co-parenting) - [Foster Parent Support](/services/foster-parent-support) - [All services](/services) - Who I Help - [Children and Teens](/who-i-help/children-and-teens) - [Young Adults](/who-i-help/young-adults) - [Adults](/who-i-help/adults) - [Seniors](/who-i-help/seniors) - [Couples](/who-i-help/couples) - [Families and Parents](/who-i-help/families-and-parents) - [LGBTQIA+ Affirming](/services/lgbtqia-affirming) - [Everyone I see](/who-i-help) - Locations - [Eugene, Oregon](/eugene-therapist) - [Springfield, Oregon](/springfield-therapist) - [Lane County](/lane-county-therapist) - [Telehealth in Oregon](/oregon-telehealth) - [The Office](/office) - [Rates](/rates) - [FAQ](/faq) - [Contact](/contact) [Free 30-minute call](/contact)Menu [About](/about) Services - [Autism](/services/autism) - [ADHD](/services/adhd) - [Trauma and PTSD](/services/trauma-and-ptsd) - [Anxiety](/services/anxiety) - [Grief and Loss](/services/grief-and-loss) - [Life Transitions](/services/life-transitions) - [LGBTQIA+ Affirming](/services/lgbtqia-affirming) - [Couples and Family](/services/couples-and-family) - [Consultation and Letters](/services/consultation-and-letters) - [Reunification and Co-Parenting](/services/reunification-and-co-parenting) - [Foster Parent Support](/services/foster-parent-support) - [All services](/services) Who I Help - [Children and Teens](/who-i-help/children-and-teens) - [Young Adults](/who-i-help/young-adults) - [Adults](/who-i-help/adults) - [Seniors](/who-i-help/seniors) - [Couples](/who-i-help/couples) - [Families and Parents](/who-i-help/families-and-parents) - [LGBTQIA+ Affirming](/services/lgbtqia-affirming) - [Everyone I see](/who-i-help) Locations - [Eugene, Oregon](/eugene-therapist) - [Springfield, Oregon](/springfield-therapist) - [Lane County](/lane-county-therapist) - [Telehealth in Oregon](/oregon-telehealth) - [The Office](/office) [Rates](/rates)[FAQ](/faq)[Contact](/contact) [Call (458) 215-1465](tel:+14582151465) [Autism Therapy](/services/autism) # Autism Therapy for Children I work with children as young as four. At that age the work happens on the floor, with toys, and with you in the room more often than not. ## How Sessions Actually Look Small children do not sit across from an adult and describe their inner life. They show you. So sessions look like play: cars, blocks, drawing, games with rules that keep changing, long stretches of parallel play where very little is said out loud. That is not warm-up before the real work. That is the work. Your child can move, hum, line things up, leave the table, or spend the hour under it. Nothing about how they play is being scored. What I am watching for is what they are telling me: what is too loud, what is unpredictable, what makes them proud, where the day falls apart. Every behavior your child is showing you is an active communication. Their little bodies cannot always find the words. So when they are behaving some way, they are telling you something, and it is our job to figure out what. ## You Are Part of This Parents are not sent to the waiting room by default. Depending on your child and what we are working on, you may be in the whole session, part of it, or in a separate session of your own. Many families find that a regular parent session is where the most changes happen, because you are with your child for the other one hundred and sixty-seven hours of the week. In parent work we look at the shape of the day: mornings, transitions, meals, homework, bedtime, screens, the drive to school. We look at which demands are actually necessary and which ones the household has been carrying because someone said they mattered. We talk about what a meltdown is and what it is not, and what your child needs from you during one, which is usually less talking than you have been told. I will not hand you a compliance program. If a strategy requires your child to be someone else in order to work, it is the wrong strategy. ## School, and Being Believed A great deal of the difficulty lands at school, and a great deal of it never makes it into the meeting notes. I have been a school counselor and a child protection social worker, and I have sat in a lot of rooms where a child was described in language that did not match the child I knew. I can help you prepare for those meetings: what to ask for, what to put in writing, how to describe your child's supports in terms a school can act on, and how to keep your own footing when you are the only person in the room who is not paid to be there. Where consultation with a school or agency is useful, that is available as its own service. ## Siblings, Sleep and the Rest of the House Autism in a family is never only about one child. Siblings notice everything and often decide, quietly, that their needs should be smaller. Parents run out of each other. Sleep goes first, and everything is harder without it. So the work often widens: sibling sessions, both parents together, or simply a place where you can say the exhausted thing out loud without it becoming evidence against you. ## What I Do Not Provide I do not diagnose autism and I do not provide assessment, testing or evaluation for children. If you are seeking a diagnosis, you will need an evaluating provider, and we can talk about that path, but therapy here does not depend on having one. I do not provide ABA. My approach is neurodiversity-affirming, which means the aim is a child who is regulated, understood and able to communicate in their own way, not a child who looks typical. Who This Fits - Children from age four - Play-based and floor-level sessions - Parent sessions alongside child sessions - Transitions, sensory load and meltdowns - School meetings and support planning - Siblings and whole-family rhythm Next Step ## Start With a Free 30-Minute Call A short conversation so I can hear what is going on and we can decide together whether this is the right room for it. [Get in touch](/contact)[(458) 215-1465](tel:+14582151465) Related Reading [ ### Autism Therapy The main page for this work, across every age. ](/services/autism) [ ### Autism Therapy for Teens Identity, friendships, school and self-advocacy. ](/services/autism-teens) [ ### Affirming Therapy and ABA An honest explanation of how this differs, for parents comparing options. ](/autism-affirming-therapy-and-aba) [ ### ADHD Therapy for Children When behavior at school is being read as defiance. ](/services/adhd-children) ![Ubuntu Counseling butterfly logo](/__l5e/assets-v1/01187caf-6a1d-4921-b206-5538892f6bb3/ubuntu-counseling-logo.png)Ubuntu Counseling Heather Swaney, MA, LPC Office 132 E Broadway Suite 303 Eugene, OR 97401 [(458) 215-1465](tel:+14582151465) In person in Eugene, telehealth anywhere in Oregon. Weekend appointments available. Pages - [About Heather](/about) - [Services](/services) - [Rates and Payment](/rates) - [Who I Help](/who-i-help) - [Eugene, Oregon](/eugene-therapist) - [Springfield, Oregon](/springfield-therapist) - [Lane County, Oregon](/lane-county-therapist) - [Telehealth in Oregon](/oregon-telehealth) - [The Office](/office) - [Frequently Asked Questions](/faq) - [Contact](/contact) - [Privacy Policy](/privacy-policy) - [Terms of Use](/terms) - [Accessibility](/accessibility) Who I Help - [Children and Teens](/who-i-help/children-and-teens) - [Young Adults](/who-i-help/young-adults) - [Adults](/who-i-help/adults) - [Seniors](/who-i-help/seniors) - [Couples](/who-i-help/couples) - [Families and Parents](/who-i-help/families-and-parents) Areas of Focus - [Autism](/services/autism) - [ADHD](/services/adhd) - [Trauma and PTSD](/services/trauma-and-ptsd) - [Anxiety](/services/anxiety) - [Grief and Loss](/services/grief-and-loss) - [Life Transitions](/services/life-transitions) - [LGBTQIA+ Affirming](/services/lgbtqia-affirming) - [Couples and Family](/services/couples-and-family) - [Consultation and Letters](/services/consultation-and-letters) * * * Using this site or emailing does not create a client relationship. Email and web forms are not secure or monitored channels. Do not send clinical or emergency information. Therapy outcomes vary and are not guaranteed. In crisis, call or text 988, or 911 if there is immediate danger. Lane County Mobile Crisis [541-682-1001](tel:+15416821001). Heather Swaney is licensed as a Professional Counselor in Oregon and works only with people located in Oregon. Heather Swaney, MA, LPC, Oregon LPC license C8649. [Verified on the Oregon Counselors Directory](https://orcounselors.com/provider/heather-swaney-ma-lpc-behavioral-health-therapist). © 2026 Ubuntu Counseling. All rights reserved. Call now / Book now