This book presents the foundational knowledge to ethically and knowledgably integrate yoga into play therapy practice with children and families and create life-long change. The mind-body connection that underpins the approach taken by the authors helps children to integrate adverse experiences and find new meanings associated with the past, and allows healing to begin. The book covers infant toddler mental health, theories of attachment, learning and development, neurobiology and the pervasive effects of developmental adversity or trauma on a child. It offers adaptations with special populations including group work and family systems work, and provides next steps for future professional growth in this area.

Special Education.

Maximizes treatment of childhood trauma by combining two powerful modalities This pioneering guidebook fully integrates the theoretical foundations and practical applications of play therapy and EMDR in order to maximize healing in in children with trauma. By highlighting the work of innovative EMDR therapists and play and expressive art therapists and their pioneering clinical work, the authors provide a fully integrated approach to using EMDR in a play therapy context while being faithful to both play therapy principles and the 8 phases of the EMDR standard protocol. This book provides in-depth discussions on how leading innovators integrate their modalities—TraumaPlay, sand tray, art therapy, Synergetic Play therapy, Child-centered and Developmental Play Therapy—with EMDR and includes real life examples of assessment, parent and child preparation, developing emotional resources for reprocessing trauma using EMDR in play or expressive therapy, and a comprehensive look at complications of dissociation in trauma processing and how to manage these. Corresponding to the eight EMDR phases are twelve interventions, comprised of a brief rationale, step-by-step directions, materials needed, case examples, and supporting visual materials. Key Features: Integrates EMDR and play therapy to create a powerful method for treating children suffering from trauma Includes contributions from dually credentialled EMDR clinicians and registered play therapists, art therapists, and sand tray practitioners Offers a fully integrated approach to EMDR and play therapy faithful to the eight phases of standard EMDR protocol and play therapy principles Includes a chapter on culturally sensitive EMDR and play using Latinx culture as the lens Describes how traditional play therapy creates an emotionally safe space for trauma work for children Provides hands-on play therapy interventions for each EMDR phase in quick reference format Delivers multiple interventions with rationale, step-by-step directions, materials required, case examples, and visual aids Foreward by Ana Gomez, leading author on the use of EMDR with children

This deeply compassionate and inclusive resource explores the practice of yoga therapy, mindfulness, and somatic enquiry with children and young people who have complex needs. Suitable for working with ages 5-18, the book explores a wide range of conditions, including sensory processing disorder, autism, Down syndrome, hypermobility, scoliosis, anxiety, depression, and trauma. Chapters also include comprehensive theory on the nervous system, child development from the age of 3+, the benefits of expressive arts, and regular reflective prompts for the adults. It is supplemented with over 100 photographs to ease learning and is an invaluable resource for therapists working with children and teens with complex needs.

Offers play therapists practical ways of handling a pervasive issue with intense and aggressive play by their clients. With an understanding of aggressive play based on brain function and neuroscience, this book provides therapists with a framework to work authentically with aggressive play, while making it an integrative and therapeutic experience for the child. Through the lens of neuroscience and interpersonal neurobiology, therapists are taught how to integrate the intensity experienced by both the child and the therapist during aggressive play in a way that leads towards greater healing and integration. The book explains the neurological processes that lead kids to dysregulation and provides therapists with tools to help their clients facilitate deep emotional healing, without causing their own nervous system to shut down. Topics covered include: embracing aggression; understanding the nervous system; understanding regulation; developing yourself as an external regulator; authentic expression; setting boundaries; working with emotional flooding; supporting parents during aggressive play.

Yoga postures, meditation and art therapy-based techniques are combined in this innovative approach structured around targeting a specific treatment goal for each therapeutic session. For each goal, a mudra (hand position) meditation, yoga pose and art directive are recommended to embody the chosen intention.

Play therapy is one of the fastest-growing specialty areas in mental health. Understanding the skills, knowledge, and strategies that make play therapy supervision effective is essential in supporting the integrity and needs of a thriving field. Play Therapy Supervision: A Practical Guide to Models and Best Practices is an all-encompassing play therapy supervision compendium. In these pages, current and prospective play therapy professionals and supervisors will find effective strategies for engaging in supervision, with literature that is firmly rooted in empirical research, and practical examples. Useful for novice and experienced supervisors, this book describes best practices in supervision and contemporary topics for building an effective play therapy supervision practice. This text also emphasizes the critical importance of cultural humility in play therapy supervision. Other important features include: Ethical and legal issues in play therapy supervision Building a play therapy supervision relationship Evaluation in play therapy supervision Technology in play therapy supervision, including extended reality School-based play therapy supervision Techniques in play therapy supervision: mindfulness, sand tray, self-compassion, art and movement, and more!