Play Therapy: Your Questions Answered
What are the first steps with starting my child in Play Therapy?
The first step is an initial meeting/intake session that takes place between myself and the child's parents and/or legal guardians (you). The purpose of this initial meeting is for me to collect and assess presenting challenges and/or concerns related to your child. This session occurs without your child so that I am best able to accurately understand referring issues so that I can determine best treatment direction. Meeting without the child will limit opportunity for distraction so that we are able to speak and share freely. During this time, I will have many questions for you regarding your family history, your child's developmental history, school and social history, presenting challenges/struggles, along with other general concerns. Each family is unique and I make determinations based on you and your child's situation and needs when it comes to treatment. Therefore, the information gathering that occurs in this first session is both important and informative.
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Following this initial meeting, I then schedule a follow up session at whch time I will then meet with your child. Sometimes this session includes you as well, yet such will be determined upon the comfort and requests of the child. Going forward from this next session however, all sessions will occur between myself and the child only, unless it has been recommended that a parent-child focus or family therapy approach will be a part of the child's treatment.
How long will my child be coming to play therapy sessions?
The number of sessions varies from child to child. I will make a determination after we have begun our sessions and I have had the opportunity to get a sense of the child, their level of receptivity, their openness and engagement within sessions. Some children attend only a few sessions, successfully able to resolve challenges/struggles, where other children sometimes require a more long term treatment approach. Each child works at their own pace, and it is important that children feel supported in their process. Children will be most successful when their parents take an active role in their therapy.
How will I be kept informed of my child's progress?
I will request to meet with you periodically during your child's treatment where we will discuss any updates as they relate to your child and their play therapy sessions. I call these meetings, parent feedback sessions and will schedule these times outside of your child's usual play therapy sessions. These sessions will serve as a time for us to discuss ongoing challenges, ideas about ways to best respond to your child's behaviors at home and most importantly how to build upon the progress that is being made in therapy. You are also encouraged to bring any questions and/or concerns to me at this time. In addition, you are always welcome to request a meeting with me at anytime you should find it appropriate. A weekly update form will be made available to you at at the start of each session which you can complete during times when your child and I are in sessions together. This form serves as a way for you to remain engaged and an integral part of your child's treatment. Your feedback is not only appreciated, but very much encouraged! I request that these updates not be provided to me via email as email is not a secure and confidential form of communication and protecting your child and their confidentiality is my upmost priority.
What should I tell my child about Play Therapy?
Meeting new people can sometimes be very scary and confusing for children, therefore it will be important for you to prepare your child for their first play therapy session with me. I believe that honesty is very important when talking with our children. I suggest that children be told something like, "because of the difficulties that we have been having at home/school/etc., we thought that you would like to have some special play times with a person named Scott whose job is to play with children and help them learn about all the different ways that they feel. Scott has a playroom with a lot of toys that you will be able to play with when spending time with him. His job is to keep you safe and help you feel comfortable. He will never make you do anything that you don’t want to do. You will be able to choose when you want to share something with him. The play times with Scott will usually happen at the same time each week. Sometimes Scott will need to talk to us about how you are doing".
Children will always be given a tour of the play room with their adults on their first play therapy session in an effort to help lessen any uncertainty or anxiety they may be experiencing about being in a new place or meeting a new person.
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Lastly, please refrain from asking your child about their play time. Give your child permission to tell you as little or as much as they would like about their sessions. This way your child will feel respected and not pressured to preform in some specific sort of way when it comes to their therapeutic work.
What to do when I decide to stop my child's play therapy sessions?
Please recognize that addressing the termination of treatment is one of the most important phases of the therapeutic process, especially for young children. For termination to be handled properly, discussions between the play therapist, client and the clients parents/guardians should occur in advance and be addressed in a thoughtful and sensitive manner. It is best that children not feel that they have been abandoned, or that they have done something wrong which has resulted in the ending of their sessions. For some children, termination can sometimes be experienced this way, causing them to feel punished rather than rewarded. Most importantly, a proper termination from treatment provides the child with the healthiest and most appropriate way of ending a relationship with someone with whom they trusted and spent time with.