play therapy
Healing through games
Play therapy is a form of psychotherapy for children that uses play—toys, games, art, storytelling—as the primary medium for expression and communication.
Because young children lack the verbal skills for traditional talk therapy, play allows them to process emotions, work through trauma, and develop coping skills: The therapist recommended play therapy after the divorce.
Figures manipulated for performance
- dollhouseMiniature toy residence
- art materialsTools for making artwork
- clayMoldable earth for ceramics
- role-playingActing out characters
storytelling · games · costumes · figurines · blocks · drawing · miniatures · mask-making
Objects for amusement
- imaginationFaculty for forming ideas
- pretendAct as though
- make-believeImaginative play or fantasy
- fantasyImaginative mental wandering
games · creativity · developmental stages · emotional expression · regression · reenactment · mastery · coping
Professional guidance for problems
- child psychologistTherapist for young minds
- sessionScheduled time for activity
- interventionPurposeful involvement to change course
- dollhouseMiniature toy residence
trauma processing · attachment · emotional regulation · rapport · assessment · nondirective · directive · client-centered
Regaining stability after damage
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- emotional processingHandling feelings internally
- restorationReturning something to condition
- regulationOfficial rules governing conduct
integration · overcoming · coping skills · self-soothing · trust-building · grief work · anxiety reduction · behavioral change
puppets
Figures manipulated for performance
- dollhouseMiniature toy residence
- art materialsTools for making artwork
- clayMoldable earth for ceramics
role-playing · storytelling · games · costumes · figurines · blocks · drawing · miniatures · mask-making · bibliotherapy
toys
Objects for amusement
- imaginationFaculty for forming ideas
- pretendAct as though
- make-believeImaginative play or fantasy
fantasy · games · creativity · developmental stages · emotional expression · regression · reenactment · mastery · coping · self-expression
counseling
Professional guidance for problems
- child psychologistTherapist for young minds
- sessionScheduled time for activity
- interventionPurposeful involvement to change course
dollhouse · trauma processing · attachment · emotional regulation · rapport · assessment · nondirective · directive · client-centered · safe space
trauma recovery
Regaining stability after damage
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- emotional processingHandling feelings internally
- restorationReturning something to condition
regulation · integration · overcoming · coping skills · self-soothing · trust-building · grief work · anxiety reduction · behavioral change · empowerment
- child therapychild psychiatry, child counseling, teen counseling, youth counseling, ADHD treatment
- special educationspecial education, special ed, special needs, IEP, IEPs
- Child Psychiatrychild psychiatrist, child psychiatry, child psychologist, child psychology, child mental health
- developmentgrowth, progress, advancement, expansion, improvement
- playgames, played, toys, playfulness, players
- mental healthpsychiatry, mental illness, psychiatrist, psychiatrists, psychologist
play therapytalk therapy
Psychological treatment via conversation
psychoanalysis · cognitive behavioral therapy · group therapy · Socratic questioning · free association
play, therapy, therapist, therapeutic, therapists, psychotherapy, physical therapy, art therapy, music therapy