Play Therapy Tools and Techniques Workshop by Rachel Taylor, LMFT, RPT-S

This workshop defines Play Therapy and offers educational content which enhances Play Therapy practice by exploring various tools and techniques used to diagnose, treat and empower clients. Examples of numerous Play Therapy Interventions will be given such as the use of: sandtray interventions, therapeutic artwork, worksheets and therapeutic games.

Workshop material will include the criterion for determining the best Play Therapy Intervention to use with each client. There will be a hands-on demonstration of using a Play Therapy Intervention with a family. The information presented is for those mental health professionals who would like more information on Play Therapy along with the experienced Play Therapist interested in gaining new Play Therapy Interventions and techniques. The Interventions demonstrated can be used with children, adolescents, adults and families. 

The Workshop objectives include: 

1. Participants will have a clear understanding of directive and non-directive Play Therapy.  
2. Participants will be able to name several Play Therapy Interventions that can be used with their clients.
3. Participants will be able to name several considerations to keep in mind when choosing Play Therapy Interventions.
4. Participants will experience a hands-on Play Therapy activity that can be used with an individual client or a family.

ALL WE DID WAS PLAY UNO IN THERAPY TODAY! 

By Rachel Taylor, LMFT, RPT-S

What is Play Therapy anyway? Is it just “playing?” I do play UNO with some of my clients, and I have had more than one parent tell me that their child said we played UNO all session (more about that later).

Play is the child’s natural way of communicating. Play Therapy is traditionally used with children aged 10 and under.  However, many older children and adults benefit from participating in various aspects of Play Therapy. The two main types of Play Therapy are directive and non-directive. Non-directive Play Therapy is traditionally what we think of when talking about Play Therapy--the therapist allows the client to play with any toy in the office and does not interact with the client unless the client approaches the therapist. Directive Play Therapy can be somewhat structured such as giving the client some choices, “Pick a game you would like to play” to a more structured approach such as, “We are going to play this game now”.  Play Therapy can be used to address a variety of conditions such as depression, anxiety, socialization challenges, sensory integration, and trauma from domestic violence or abuse.

In a non-directive setting, the therapist can observe how the client interacts with toys and gain understanding how the child interacts in their world outside of the office. In a directive setting, the therapist can direct the client to use certain Play Therapy Interventions to address specific issues. I fingerpainted with a child who was struggling with sensory integration issues and would not get her hands dirty. We started the activity by me “painting” my fingernails as I dipped my fingers into the paint, the client then allowed me to touch her nails with the paint to “paint” her nails. Eventually she allowed herself to get both hands covered in paint without becoming agitated.

There are situations when therapists might not think to use Play Therapy because the client is “too old” for Play Therapy. However, I would challenge therapists to use interventions with teens, adults, couples and entire families. I have found that using the sandtray in various situations can be a catalyst for insights that may not have been realized in a different setting. I was treating a teenage girl and her mother who had boundary issues. When I asked them to construct a sandtray together, the teen walked up to the tray and immediately started by drawing a line down the middle of the tray and informed her mother “to stay on your own side”. This action gave us a talking point about boundaries after the tray was completed. In addition to parent/child combinations, I have used the sandtray in working with couples. The activity is introduced by asking the couple to construct a tray together that represents their present relationship and then change the tray to make it represent what they would like their relationship to be like. After the tray is completed we explore how they can get from the first tray to the second one. 

Family art projects are beneficial in helping the therapist observe the family’s dynamics and in providing a forum for members to share their feelings. I used an art project in which family members were asked to make one fish each to represent themselves. The mother insisted on making two fish. Later she shared that she felt she had the responsibility of being both the mother and the father to her children even though the children’s father lived in the home. The benefits of Play Therapy are many and include giving clients the ability to express their emotions in a non-verbal manner, allowing adult clients to get in touch with their inner child, and giving the therapist a chance to bond with the client in a playful manner. Next time you don’t know what to do with a client, try a Play Therapy Intervention. Oh, by the way, when I play UNO for more than one or two hands, I use an additional deck of cards from one of my therapeutic games and when a player has to draw an UNO card, they also have to take a therapeutic card and answer the question.