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Archive for sand play therapy

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

Posted by Gary Yorke 
· April 11, 2018 
· 1 Comment

As child clinicians we will become involved in many cases of abuse and neglect. A report of child abuse is made every 10 seconds. 3.6 million reports of child abuse, covering 6.6 million children, are made annually. Four to five children die daily from abuse and neglect. At least 80% of abused and neglected children will meet criteria for one or more psychological disorders at age 21. Up to two-thirds of people in treatment for substance abuse report a history of neglect or abuse. Incarceration rates for men and women who have been abused are substantially higher than the general population.

Child therapists are in a unique position as we often become intimately involved with victims of neglect and abuse as providers, reporters of the abuse, and sometimes as expert witnesses. To be successful with this population, child therapists must have ongoing training and support. Anyone working with abused and neglected children should seek out some form of supervision. More experienced clinicians may choose a peer supervision group which can not only offer clinical guidance, but emotional support as well. Most of us are much more comfortable in our roles as clinicians than expert witnesses. However, being an expert witness doesn’t have to be intimidating and can be a very important opportunity to serve a client. Here is a great list of do’s and dont’s if called on to be an expert witness: 25 Tips for Expert Witnesses.

Self-care is essential for clinicians working with victims of abuse. Vicarious traumatization is a significant risk and can lead to burnout. “Therapist burnout” can be manifested as reduced compassion, a loss of caring and empathy, emotional exhaustion, and not feeling competent. The Society of Psychotherapy offers some excellent insights into recognizing burnout and strategies for self-care.

We recommend that anyone doing therapy with children become a member of The Association for Play Therapy (A4PT), and take advantage of the training opportunities at the national and state conferences. A4PT publications include Play Therapy Magazine and The International Journal of Play Therapy. Online resources are also available to members. Advanced training is available from TF-CBT, which offers a certification in Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. TF-CBT is listed as an evidence-based therapy on SAMHSA.GOV.

Of course, there is a treasure trove of resources available on the internet. A good place to start is the 2018 Prevention Resource Guide from the US Dept of Health and Human Services. Other helpful online resources include Prevent Child Abuse, ASPCC, and the Joyful Heart Foundation. ChildTherapyToys.com also offers a wide variety of resources to clinicians working with children and teens.

1 Comment
Categories : Play Therapy, Resources, Sandplay/Sand Tray Therapy, Self-Esteem, Sexual Abuse, Trauma and Grief
Tags : Abuse, awareness, behavioral therapy, Child Abuse, Child Advocate, child therapy toys, expert witness, Play Therapy, play therapy intervention, sand play therapy, Trauma

Play Therapy Termination Activity: The Chain of Intentions by Jennifer Taylor

Posted by Gary Yorke 
· December 21, 2017 
· 1 Comment

Termination of play therapy services can be difficult for the counselor and the child. The relationship formed during the months of therapy is one of the most important aspects of the process. Termination activities differ across settings:  some offices provide certificates and some simply said good bye.

Today, I will share a termination activity that has been quite popular in my office.

The truth is that it is also a goal setting activity. So, you can use it at the beginning and the end of therapy.

It started way back in January 2016….I like to call it the Chain of Intentions.

The Inspiration for This Termination Activity

The Chain of Intentions was inspired by a commercial that I watched about the My Intent Project.  According to their webpage,

We believe there is purpose inside each of us and we want our efforts to encourage people to share more truth and inspiration with each other. We are not a jewelry company – we are an intentions project-My Intent Project

Despite their claim not to be a jewelry company, they do in fact, make jewelry. The customer chooses a word of inspiration to have marked on a disc and uses that as inspiration or motivation in their daily life.

(Note…I have no affiliation with the My Intent project and have received no financial compensation from them…this is purely background).

So, I ordered one with my intention for my play therapy practice.

My word was FOCUS.

Focus on PLAY THERAPY.

See, I have a habit of saying yes to all opportunities. Those things were taking me away from my core mission which was to use play therapy to help children deal with trauma or other difficulties at home or in school.

I needed to FOCUS.

But, because I could not buy a necklace as a termination gift for each or my clients, I came up with a way to create a chain of intentions with all of the (willing) clients and students that came to my office.

Chain of Intention Instructions:

  1. I started by tying a very long piece of yarn to the air ducts in my office to form a string that went from one end of my office to the other. You could do this by tying it to a nail or a hook of any kind.
  2. Cut out strips of construction paper by folding in half vertically and then folding in half again. You will get 4 strips for each standard sheet.
  3. Using a marker, I wrote my word FOCUS and made the first circle around the piece of yarn. It was very sad and lonely all by itself. 
  4. As children noticed it and started to ask about it, I told them the story about the necklace that I just told you.   Now..even though I said this was a termination activity, it can also be a treatment goal activity.
  5. If a child wanted to create an intention as a treatment plan goal, I allowed them to make a strip with a word about what they wanted to achieve during their therapy visits. Children choose things like listen, happy, create, design, friends.   Make sure that the intention is positive. So no chains that say “Stop, no, don’t.”
  6. I had the child stand on a chair and link their strip onto mine (or the last one up) and then staple it themselves so that their word of intention was visible.
  7. At the end of therapy, the child would either create another strip (or do one for the first time if they were not interested in doing a goal strip) that said what they learned during the therapy. Or sometimes, it was a benefit or just something they wanted to continue working on. Their INTENTION after our services ended. Some wrote happy, friends, joy, connection, success. Again, I had the child write the word, put it up and staple it themselves.
  8. If children were too young to spell, they tried their best. Or they drew a picture. Sometimes, I wrote the word down and they copied it.

 

 

Thoughts on Termination

The end result was a way for them to leave something behind. A testament to the power of therapy and the work that was accomplished. A motivation for other children that success was possible. And a vision for their future about what could help guide them after therapy was over.

My goal was to get from one side of the room to the other. It took the entire year. My office is big! But as it grew, it became a fixture in the office and I am excited to take it down and start again. And a little sad to see it go. I am thinking that I can use it as a garland for my office Christmas tree. A symbolic way to honor the work of the year and transition into the intentions for the new one.

***

Thanks to Jennifer Taylor for an other great reader submission! Check out more from Jennifer at jentaylorplaytherapy.com

Have a post you would like to feature on our page? Let us know!

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Categories : Behavior, Child Development, Communication, Feelings, Intervention Ideas, Play Therapy, Reader Submissions
Tags : Play Therapy, sand play, sand play therapy, sand therapy, sand tray therapy, sandplay therapy, sandtray therapy, termination of play therapy, termination of therapy, therapy tools
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