Theraplay is a dyadic (parent/child) treatment modality for supporting children and families that focuses on harnessing the power of the relationship between the child and their caregiver as path toward change and healing.
Theraplay places a priority on strengthening the parent/child relationship as the way to create change for a child or within a family- even in diagnoses or symptoms that don’t seem obviously related to the parent/child relationship, such as ADHD or Autism. Theraplay believes that strengthening the parent/child relationship will always contribute positively to a child’s mental health, regardless of the specific symptoms or mental health diagnosis.
My guest today on today’s podcast episode is Mandy Jones, Program Director of The Theraplay Institute in Chicago, IL. Mandy is a Theraplay trainer, practitioner, and supervisor, a Registered Play Therapist, and an attorney. In addition to her administrative and training responsibilities at The Theraplay Institute, Mandy also provides therapy to children and families.
To learn more about the services at The Theraplay Institute, check out their website at https://theraplay.org/
Their online store has so many resources, including the books Parenting with Theraplay and the activity book Parenting the Theraplay Way. https://theraplay.org/store/
Teaching kids about their owl, watchdog, and possum brain is one key piece of growing their owl brain and calming their watchdog and possum brain!
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