Julija Milovanovic Ilic
Julija is an educational counsellor (pedagogist) from Serbia, currently living and working in Oman, with Master’s degrees in Pedagogy and in Creative Arts & Play Therapy. Her work brings together education, child development, counselling, and mental health, with a particular interest in attachment & relational approaches, slow pedagogy, Reggio Emilia, nature-based support, children’s neurobiology, and emotionally responsive educational practice.
With experience across different educational settings, she supports parents, educators and teachers to better understand children’s developmental, emotional, and relational needs, integrating pedagogical knowledge with play therapy perspectives. She provides Play Therapy sessions in Muscat/Oman.
She is also a facilitator of Circle of Security Parenting and Positive Discipline.
She has collaborated with international schools, NGOs, child centres, and centres supporting children with additional needs, delivering workshops on play therapy, parenting, learning, and other child-related topics. Through this work, she advocates for the power of play in supporting healing and emotional regulation, while helping parents and professionals understand the neuroscience behind children’s emotional and developmental needs.
Having lived in the Balkans and worked in Spain and across the GCC (Kuwait & Oman), and through her own experience of motherhood, she knows the challenges of new beginnings and has developed a particular interest in Third Culture Kids (TCKs), exploring how play therapy can support their emotional wellbeing, sense of belonging, and social transitions. Outside of her professional work, she enjoys travelling, collecting interesting cultural toys, discovering new dishes, reading, and, most importantly, being covered in sand at the beach while playing with her dog, husband and little curious girl.
- Country: Croatia, Oman, Serbia
Qualification: Certified Play Therapist , Trainee Clinical Supervisor
