Play Therapy
Play Therapy is provided at St. Brigid’s to children and adolescents from ages 3 – 11 years one day per week, referals are via Social Worker with TUSLA child & family agency.
The non-directive play therapy method used is an approach based on Rogerian client centred therapy with adults (Rogers 1996) adapted to child therapy and uses play rather than verbal exchange as the principal means of communication.
Play Therapy helps children to explore their feelings, to express themselves and to make sense of their life experiences. Play is children’s natural medium to learn, communicate and to explore their worlds. A Play Therapist can facilitate a child to recover from difficult life experiences allowing the child freedom of expression in a safe and trusting environment.
A relationship is built up between the child and therapist in which the child with the therapists help, develops the freedom to choose the feelings he or she wishes to explore and the means through which to do this. The therapist is there to listen, understand and respond to the child, thus facilitating the child’s awareness of thoughts and feelings – particularly those which are conflicting and confused.
- Play Therapy attempts to help a child / adolescent overcome unresolved emotional conflicts from earlier development as well as furthering their current development (Ryan and Wilson 1994).
- Non Directive Play Therapy meets the therapeutic needs of children and adolescents because of its ability to address multiple problems simultaneously and its flexibility in adjusting to children’s and adolescents ever-changing needs.
Referrals for Play Therapy include:
- parental separation
- bereavement / loss
- illness
- physical / emotional / sexual abuse
- attachment difficulties.
Play therapy involves developing working alliances with the carers / parents as well as with the child / adolescent. Such approaches to working with families are advocated increasingly (Ryan and Wilson 2000). St. Brigid’s Family and Community Centre supports this approach to working with families and recognises the importance of the family as a unit.