Therapy that helps you do more of what matters.
Recreational therapy uses purposeful activity, movement, creativity, leisure, and real-world practice to work toward meaningful mental health goals. Sessions are individualized around what you want to build, practice, or reconnect with in your life.
Purposeful activity with a therapeutic goal.
Recreational therapy is a professional therapeutic service that uses activities and experiences intentionally to work toward treatment goals. Instead of relying only on conversation, you and your recreational therapist can use movement, creativity, games, leisure, mindfulness, community activities, or other forms of participation as part of the work.
The activity itself is not the treatment goal. What matters is what you are practicing through it: flexibility, confidence, engagement, distress tolerance, connection, problem-solving, routine, or another skill that matters in everyday life.
The activity changes. The treatment goal comes first.
Recreational therapy is individualized, so two clients may use very different activities even when they are working toward similar goals.
Confidence & self-efficacy
Practice trying, learning, making mistakes, and noticing what you can do rather than waiting to feel completely ready first.
Flexibility
Work with changes in plans, unexpected outcomes, uncertainty, and the urge for things to happen in one particular way.
Meaningful routine
Build activities, structure, and leisure into daily life in ways that support engagement rather than avoidance or isolation.
Mindfulness & awareness
Practice noticing thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and the present moment while actively engaged in something.
Social participation
Build comfort with communication, shared activities, vulnerability, boundaries, or connecting with other people.
Reconnecting with what matters
Explore interests, creativity, movement, or leisure that anxiety, OCD, depression, or life changes may have pushed out of your life.
There is no single recreational therapy session.
Activities are chosen because they connect to your goals, not because everyone in recreational therapy follows the same program. Sessions may look different over time as treatment progresses.
Art & creative activities
Use drawing, collage, crafts, music, writing, or other forms of creativity to practice expression, flexibility, engagement, or tolerating imperfection.
Yoga, movement & body-based practice
Incorporate movement, stretching, breathing, or mindful physical activity when those tools support the goals you are working toward.
Exploring interests
Identify activities that are meaningful, sustainable, accessible, and realistic enough to become part of life outside therapy.
Games & problem-solving
Use structured activities to practice uncertainty, decision-making, frustration tolerance, flexibility, or responding to mistakes.
Community-based activities
When clinically appropriate, sessions can use real-world settings to practice skills in the situations where you actually need them.
Mindfulness & grounding
Practice staying present with internal experiences while engaged in an activity rather than getting pulled entirely into thoughts, worry, or self-monitoring.
Sometimes the best place to practice is inside the activity itself.
OCD and anxiety often interfere with activities people care about: going places, trying something unfamiliar, being around other people, making mistakes, exercising, creating, or doing something without knowing exactly how it will turn out.
Recreational therapy can create opportunities to practice new responses while you are actively doing something. Depending on the treatment plan, this can include behavioral activation, mindfulness, flexibility practice, or exposure-based work.
Meet Hannah Ose, MSW, LGSW, CTRS.
Hannah is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS) and Minnesota Licensed Graduate Social Worker (LGSW). She incorporates recreational therapy into work with OCD, anxiety, neurodivergence, life transitions, identity, mindfulness, and other concerns.
Her approach uses clients' interests and strengths as part of treatment while keeping the work connected to specific goals. Sessions may involve creativity, movement, leisure exploration, mindfulness, real-world practice, or other activities that fit the person and what they are working toward.
Hannah's credentials reflect two professional pathways: LGSW is her Minnesota social work license, and CTRS is her national recreational therapy certification. As an LGSW in clinical social work practice, she works under the licensing supervision required by the Minnesota Board of Social Work.
- Works with
- Adolescents and adults
- Session options
- In office, telehealth, and out of office
- Credentials
- MSW, LGSW, CTRS
What to know before getting started.
- Session Length
- 60 minutes
- Rate
- $120 per session
- Clinician
- Hannah Ose, MSW, LGSW, CTRS
- Who
- Adolescents and adults
- Format
- In office, telehealth, and out-of-office sessions
- Workshops
- Recreational therapy workshops may also be offered
- Payment
- Private pay
You do not need to know what the activity should be.
Start with what you want to change, build, return to, or feel more able to do. The activity can be figured out from there.