How often does that fear creep in for you that kids are just telling you what you want to hear in the playroom?
This is definitely a real challenge for play therapists, and therapists that work with grownups too! One of the big challenges with kids is comprehension. They might not exactly understand what you are saying, might not want to ask questions, and just agree so you can “move on”.
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Long story short, anxiety is a result of your body deeming something in the environment or future as threatening leading it to kick into a sympathetic nervous system response where the body “revs up” in preparation to fight the dangerous thing or run away.
And in real life situations like having a pop quiz, being on stage at a dance competition, or going into a birthday party with kids a child doesn’t know - there are few times in life that running away or fighting actually solves the problem. 
As a Play Therapist I am always learning new techniques and strategies for calming and regulation in some of the most unexpected places.
Yup - sometimes it comes from Facebook, observations of families in public, or my own personal experiences. Other times these new techniques and strategies come from unrelated to therapy books or podcasts. Really - anywhere! 
Freshly sharpened pencils, a backpack of new school supplies, and that first day of school outfit all picked out. It can only mean one thing - back to school is here!
As a play therapist you know that kids either LOVE it or HATE it! And for the kids that love it - it’s easy peasy! The transition is as smooth as butter. 
Anxiety can get out of control pretty fast. Kind of like weeds in the garden that seem to grow 5 feet tall in one afternoon. And just like weeds they can shade out and suck the nutrients for the good things that we are trying to grow.
One thing you will hear nearly every session in my therapy office?
Laughter. And that says a lot coming from a therapist that works with high levels of trauma, attachment difficulties, and significant dysregulation. 
As a therapist you likely focus on regulation skills with the parents and families you work with. Emotional regulation can be broken down into two categories: co-regulation (someone outside of ourselves is supporting regulation) or self-regulation (the regulation mechanisms we use by ourselves or on our own).
When you think of warning signs to meltdowns what comes up for you?
Irritable mood, arguing, agitation, increased heart rate, glaring, whining, difficulty with concentration, and difficulty following through with expected tasks are a couple of the popular ones that come in my office. 
What if… hear me out… we could inadvertently be giving kids and teens the message that some feelings are “bad” and other feelings are “good”. As in, if you are calm that equals good and if you are sad, mad, frustrated, embarrassed, anxious, stressed, or one of the other dysregulated feelings it equals bad.
AND we can often (unintentionally) give that message when the focus of therapy exclusively becomes on regulation and calm. 
One of the most important case conceptualization questions I ask for kids with dysregulation (and let’s be honest - nearly every diagnosis deals with regulation in some capacity) is “does this child have a trauma history?”
Want to know more about how trauma affects emotional dysregulation check out Part 1 and Part 2 in my series about what every therapist should know about how trauma affects emotional regulation. |
Hi, there!I'm Ann Meehan, an LPCC, 
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[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2022
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[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2022