“Enter into children’s play and you will find the place where their minds, hearts, and souls meet”- Virginia Axline

Play is essential to the optimal brain development of a child and at the same time, it is also critical for adults who had experienced traumatic events in allowing them to express and communicate via different mediums (e.g. art, sandtray, puppets, etc.) symbolically where words could not be articulated.

Play is a natural process that:

• Builds trust and mastery

• Fosters learning and acceptable behaviours

• Regulates emotions

• Reduces anxieties

• Promotes creative thinking and problem-solving

• Encourages open communication

• Elevates spirit and self-esteem

Research suggests Play Therapy is an effective mental health approach, regardless of age, gender or the nature of the issue and works best when a parent, family member or primary caregiver is actively involved in the process.

“In Play Therapy, the most troubling problems can be confronted and lasting resolutions can be discovered, rehearsed, mastered and become lifelong strategies” – Sandra Russ, Ph.D.

Play Therapy is a powerful tool for addressing cognitive, behavioural, and emotional challenges. Trained professionals therapeutically use play to help clients better process their experiences and develop more effective strategies for managing their worlds.

Play Therapy is used as a primary intervention or supportive therapy in schools, hospitals, organisations for:

• Behavioural issues caused by bullying, grief and loss, divorce and abandonment, physical and sexual abuse, crisis and trauma

• Mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity (ADHD), autism spectrum disorders, academic and social concerns, physical and learning disabilities and conduct disorders

Each child, adolescent and individual is unique and hence a wide variety of materials and toy are available including puppets, a miniature doll house, sandtray, props for drama and art supplies.

Session 1

The therapist will conduct an intake and assessment session with the parents and/or with the primary caregiver or with the adult seeking assistance. Questions pertaining to early development, current functioning and concerns/issues would be asked. This would assist the therapist in having an initial understanding of the difficulties and struggles as well as conceptualise an initial treatment plan.

Session 2

There will be a parent-child observation assessment that will take place, which would require both parent and child to be engaged in various activities. This would allow the therapist to ascertain and build on the strengths of the family system, along with providing parents and caregivers with additional tools that would help the child when they are back in the home environment outside of the therapy sessions.

Session 3 onwards

The child would then be involved with the therapist in individual sessions comprising of assessment and treatment. This will be the time where the child would be getting used to the therapist, playroom and the play therapy process. The therapist will also be concurrently working with the parents through frequent updates and parent coaching sessions that will seek to equip and empower the family system as a whole.

The Association for Play Therapy (USA) defines play therapy as "the systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process wherein trained play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth and development."

More simply put, child play therapy is a way of being with the child that honors their unique developmental level and looks for ways of helping in the “language” of the child – play. Therapists use play to help their clients, age ranging from 3 years upwards, including adults, to better express themselves and resolve their problems. Play Therapy works best when a safe relationship is created between the therapist and client, one in which the latter may freely and naturally express both what pleases and bothers them.

Research suggests Play Therapy is an effective mental health approach, regardless of age, gender, or the nature of the problem, and works best when a parent, family member, or caretaker is actively involved in the treatment process.

Play Therapy is the generic overarching term, of which comprise numerous approaches.

For example, under the term "clothing" there are different styles, categories, and brands to suit different purposes and occassions. Similarly Play Therapy approaches are numerous, and many organisations and therapists have different approaches, with different methods, ethics, boudaries, with widely varying results.

Amongst the main differences, there are directive and non-directive approaches, of which differentiate how much a therapist directs a client during the session.

At Healing Hearts, we apply Adlerian Play Therapy and TraumaPlayTM as the ideal approach, being integrative and prescriptive, with its well balanced ethical, neurological, and emotional standpoint that delivers a pleasant, wholesome, and progressive experience for the clients and any family members involved.

Our Introduction to Play Therapy Course will give you a comprehensive overview of the different Play Therapy approaches, their characteristics, and benefits. If you are wanting to become a play therapist, and are undecided on the direction to embark on, this is the course for you to make an informed decision.

Being aware of which approach suits you best, helps you to save costs and focus in on what works best for you and most importantly, your future clients.

APT(USA) encourages play therapy research that demonstrates the value and effectiveness of play and play therapy, increases play therapy knowledge or improves play therapy techniques, and supports evidence-based play therapy practices. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) remains the leading force in evaluating and promoting mental health interventions based on "Quality of Research and Readiness for Dissemination" (SAMHSA, 2014). The National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices (NREPP) provided on the SAMHSA website now includes: Theraplay Adlerian Play Therapy (AdPT) Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT) Filial Family Therapy Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT)