Play Therapy

“Play is your child’s most natural form of expression. It is crucial to children’s mental health”

Play therapy is a form of therapy used primarily for children with behavioural challenges, anxiety and complex emotions. That’s because children may not be able to process their own emotions or articulate problems to parents or other adults.  It aims to help kids build emotional resilience and coping skills.

While it may look like ordinary playtime, play therapy can be much more than that, and may even be done in family context.  A trained therapist can use playtime to observe and gain insights into a child’s problems. The therapist can then help the child explore emotions and deal with unresolved trauma. Through play, children can learn new coping mechanisms and how to redirect inappropriate behaviours.

Although people of all ages can benefit from play therapy, it’s typically used with children between the ages of 3 and 12. Play therapy may be helpful in a variety of circumstances, such as:

• facing medical procedures, chronic illness, or palliative care;
• developmental delay or learning disabilities;
• problem behaviours in school;
• aggressive or angry behaviour;
• family issues, like divorce, separation, or death of a close family member
• natural disasters or traumatic events
• domestic violence, abuse, or neglect
• anxiety, depression, grief
• eating and toileting disorders
• attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Salveo Centre has a fully stocked playroom, fitted with visual and audio equipment to aid play therapy and the recording of sessions for psycho-education on parenting skills.