Dr. Lorraine Freedle is the owner/operator of Black Sand Neuropsychological Services, PC and a licensed Clinical Psychologist in Hilo, Hawaii. She provides pediatric and school neuropsychological evaluations and consultation services; NMT® assessment and trauma work; psychotherapy; sandplay therapy; clinical supervision/case consultation; and training at the national and international level in children’s behavioral health, trauma, neuropsychology, and sandplay therapy. She serves as Research Editor for the Journal of Sandplay Therapy.
Dr. Freedle is also the Clinical Director of Pacific Quest, a therapeutic wilderness program for adolescents and young adults that utilizes the Sustainable Growth™ model to treat individuals with a variety of disorders by integrating rites of passage, horticulture therapy, holistic wellness, experiential learning, and effective psychological and family supports.
Dr. Freedle holds a doctoral degree in clinical psychology with a specialization in neuropsychology. She completed postgraduate training and board certification in pediatric neuropsychology and school neuropsychology. She is also certified in the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT) through the Child Trauma Academy. Dr. Freedle also holds graduate degrees in social work and school psychology, and has over 25 years experience in behavioral health and clinical administration. Dr. Freedle has numerous professional publications including articles in the Journal of Sandplay Therapy.
Dr. Freedle combines her background in social work, education, behavioral health and neuropsychology to create a thorough, child-centered, systems approach to neuropsychological evaluation. She is committed to helping parents and all of those who work with children to develop an informed, strength-based approach to meeting a child’s unique needs.
Dr. Freedle is a professional member of the National Association of Neuropsychology, American Psychological Association, National Association of Social Workers, National Association of School Psychologists, American Psychotherapy Association, International Society for Sandplay Therapy (ISST), and Sandplay Therapists of America (STA) where she also serves as Chair of the research committee. She is also a member of the Hawaii Psychological Association and the Sandplay Therapists of Hawaii.
Dr. Freedle’s current research interests center on studying the multi-sensory aspects of sandplay therapy and the process of neural integration in the treatment of trauma. She conducted award winning research on “Sandplay Therapy and the Individuation Process in Adults with Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)” and on “The Role of Sandplay Therapy in the Treatment of Adolescents and Young Adults with Co-occurring Substance Use Disorders and Trauma.”