Child Therapy and Play Therapy

Child Therapy

Child Therapy is considered any therapy involving children under the age of 18. Children are oftentimes seen in our clinic when they have faced traumatic life events, are struggling with mental illness or developmental disabilities, or are trying to cope with other family-related struggles. If your child is struggling with home life, academics, relationships with friends, extracurricular activities or if you are noticing a dramatic change in their behavior or mood, it might be time to meet with one of our therapists. After an evaluation, your child’s therapist will recommend either seeing your child one-on-one, with one or both parents in the session or together with the entire family; sometimes the whole family needs support while trying to learn, communicate, create boundaries, and cope with life changes. We believe this to be the most effective option for change in the family dynamic.

Child therapy typically involves playing, drawing, talking, creative problem solving and feeling identification, depending on the child’s age and cognitive abilities. Allowing children the space to talk through issues in a calm and safe environment can make all the difference.

Our child therapists at The EFT Clinic recognize the value of positive reinforcement and will give praise and support as the child learns and shares thoughts and feelings. We encourage the child to identify strengths, build helpful thinking patterns, learn healthy behaviors and develop positive coping skills. Ideally, the parent and child will meet together so that things learned in session can be exercised at home. Sometimes our therapists may request individual sessions with the parent or child to seek understanding and depth for their situation.

Play Therapy

Therapeutic play is used to help children with social or emotional deficits learn to communicate better, develop problem-solving skills, express repressed thoughts and emotions, or change their behavior in a positive way. Play therapy is primarily used to help children ages 3-12.

At The EFT Clinic our therapists provide a safe, comfortable play therapy experience for each child client. Play Therapy is often used for a child who has witnessed stressful events in their lives such as a serious illness or hospitalization, domestic violence, abuse, trauma, a family crisis, or an upsetting change in their environment. Play therapy can help children with academic and social problems, anxiety, depression, grief, learning disabilities, behavioral disorders, or anger, as well as those with attention deficit disorders or who are on the autism spectrum.