Therapy Approaches: What is Play Therapy?
A Quick Look at Play Therapy
Have you noticed a shift in your child recently? Whether they have been more withdrawn, easily frustrated, or anxious, it can be heartbreaking to watch and not feel sure how to reach them. You want to give therapy a try, but the idea of sitting in a sterile office answering questions may sound intimidating to your child or teen. If that’s the case, then maybe you would be interested in play therapy for your kid, as it offers a safe, natural alternative where they can process their world on their own terms.
The Big Idea Behind Play Therapy
Whether it be a limited vocabulary, a possible speech disorder, or their developmental stage, children and adolescents can have a hard time expressing themselves, especially when it comes to complex concepts or emotions. This is when play therapy can come in, and play itself can become a useful form of communication for your child. Play allows your child to recreate their inner world, stimulate the emotions they have been feeling, or process what concerns have been weighing on them.
What Play Therapy Looks Like In Session
The first session typically involves the child, their parent/guardian, and the therapist having a general discussion of concerns that have been impacting the child. Depending on the age of your child/teen and the presenting issues, the therapist will use their clinical judgement and take your child’s preference into consideration to see if involving family members in future sessions will be beneficial for their treatment.
Afterwards, sessions will involve the therapist continuing to encourage your child to learn that they have autonomy in the room. The therapist will provide a non-judgmental and empathetic space that your child needs, so that they can truly immerse themselves in the world they create. Your child can explore and play with the provided selection of play therapy supplies. There are a variety of supplies that include doll houses, arts and crafts materials, miniature figurines, card games, board games, and many more.
As your child/teen engages with the play therapy tools, the therapist observes their verbal and nonverbal cues to understand their inner world and how the presenting issues have been impacting your child’s emotions and behaviors. With the help of play therapy tools, the therapist will help bring these concerns into your child’s awareness, support them with processing their emotions, and guide their healing by introducing more constructive responses that your child can practice.
Who Might Benefit Most From Play Therapy
Play therapy has displayed its effectiveness for helping children and adolescents who are experiencing emotional disturbances, behavioral issues, difficulties in socialization, life transitions, or significant changes in their households. Play therapy can be beneficial for children who have witnessed or experienced any form of trauma as well. There has also been supporting evidence of how play therapy addresses anxiety, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism.
What Makes Play Therapy Helpful
The most powerful aspect of play therapy is that children and adolescents will feel that the therapist is communicating with them at their level, which can greatly strengthen the trust in the therapeutic relationship. The stronger the therapeutic relationship is with your child and the therapist, the more likely benefits can be seen in their treatment.
What to Keep In Mind
One thing to keep in mind when exploring play therapy, it is helpful to understand the distinction between a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and a play-informed therapist. A Registered Play Therapist holds a specific credential from the Association for Play Therapy, requiring post-graduate coursework, targeted clinical supervision, and specific direct play hours. At Bloom and Heal, our clinicians are play-informed therapists. This means while we do not hold the formal RPT designation, our team brings robust clinical training, extensive experience in child and adolescent mental health, and specialized education in play-based interventions. We continue to thoughtfully integrate play techniques into evidence-based frameworks to meet your child where they are at and foster meaningful healing in a safe, compassionate environment.
Key Takewaways
Play therapy is an empirically supported approach that could help address your child’s/teen’s concerns in an environment where they feel safe and understood by their therapist. Remember, that it is not just playing with toys or arts/crafts for an hour, but it is a form of communication for your child that can help them express and process deep, meaningful experiences that have been impacting them.
If you are interested in play therapy for your child/teen in Tallahassee, FL, then please feel free to contact us at Bloom & Heal to ask any questions and help you get started!
Resources:
Gupta, N., Chaudhary, R., Gupta, M., Ikehara, L. H., Zubiar, F., & Madabushi, J. S. (2023). Play therapy as effective options for school-age children with emotional and behavioral problems: A case series. Cureus, 15(6), e40093. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.40093
Koukourikos, K., Tsaloglidou, A., Tzeha, L., Iliadis, C., Frantzana, A., Katsimbeli, A., & Kourkouta, L. (2021). An overview of play therapy. Materia socio-medica, 33(4), 293–297. https://doi.org/10.5455/msm.2021.33.293-297
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