What is it?
Serenity Counseling Services is now offering Play therapy. The process begins with a 45-minute parent-only session. After that initial session, there will be weekly sessions at 45 minutes each, the first 30 minutes is the special play session and the last 15 minutes is the processing questions for the parent and therapist only.
Because play is a child’s language (and toys are their words), we provide parents with a limited number of carefully selected toys and Bluetooth earbuds which will enable the therapist to become a supervisor/trainer while the parent becomes the extension of the therapist.
For 30 minutes each week, the child is the center of the parent’s universe. In this special playtime, the parent, with the help of the therapist, creates an accepting relationship in which the child feels completely safe to express himself through his play – fears, likes, dislikes, wishes, anger, loneliness, joy, or feelings of failure. This is not a typical playtime. It is a special playtime in which the therapist facilitates, the child leads, and the parent follows. In this special relationship there are no:
- Reprimands
- Put-downs
- Evaluations
- Requirements (to draw pictures a certain way)
- Judgments (about the child or his play being good or bad or right or wrong)
How will it help my child?
In the special playtimes, you will build a different kind of relationship with your child, and your child will discover that he/she is capable, important, understood, and accepted as she is. When children experience a play relationship in which they feel accepted, understood, and cared for, they play out many of their problems, and in the process, release tensions, feelings, and burdens. Your child will then feel better about herself and will be able to discover her own strengths and assume greater responsibility as she takes charge of play situations.
How your child feels about herself will make a significant difference in her behavior. In the special playtimes where you learn to focus on your child rather than your child’s problem, your child will begin to react differently because how your child behaves, how she thinks, and how she performs in school are directly related to how she feels about herself. When your child feels better about herself, she will behave in more self-enhancing ways rather than self-defeating ways.
What do I need to do to get started?
All you need to do is give us a call at 361-350-8088. From there, our receptionist will schedule your first intake session and email over the appropriate consenting paperwork.