PLAY THERAPY IS receiving increasing attention in Ireland of late, while few would realise that its origins trace back to the early 1920s and 30s when Anna Freud & Melanie Klein developed the first models of play therapy.

Contemporary play therapy developed significantly in the US during the 50s, 60s and 70s. Here in Ireland, formal training of play therapists began in the 1990s when The Children’s Therapy Centre was first established by Eileen Prendiville. Nowadays, many parents are seeking play therapy for their children, yet parents are often unsure of how the process works.

It’s worth noting, too, that play is not only important in childhood — it is a human need across the lifespan. While play therapy is most commonly associated with children, playful, creative and expressive approaches can support therapeutic work with adolescents and adults too, helping people explore emotions, relationships and life experiences in ways that can feel safer and more natural than words alone.

As a clinician, I work with children and adolescents and am currently expanding my training to support adult clients in the near future.

Healing in a different way

As adults, when we struggle, we can communicate with words. We talk to a friend, a partner or a therapist. We try to explain what’s wrong. But children speak another language – they speak the language of play – and for children, this language is often more effective at communicating their experience than words alone.

During the play therapy process, children communicate their developmental needs and represent their world to the therapist through play. Play therapy can support children through a wide range of life challenges. A child may be struggling with anxiety, stress, low self-esteem, behavioural difficulties, friendship issues, family changes, loss or separation.

Parents or teachers may be concerned about a child’s emotional wellbeing or finding it difficult to understand what lies beneath a child’s behaviour. Some children may be neurodivergent and benefit from the close attunement, acceptance and flexibility of the therapeutic relationship.

Others may have experienced traumatic events, whether medical, relational or otherwise. Ultimately, play therapy offers children a safe space to process their experiences, strengthen their resilience and continue their natural development.

Sometimes parents believe that play therapy is a way we can “get children to talk about their feelings”, and sometimes children do use words, but they don’t have to. Rather, play therapy is a space for children to act out their feelings and communicate through the safe distance of metaphor.

As a Child & Adolescent Psychotherapist and Play Therapist, I see behaviour as communication, and I coach parents to connect more deeply with their children through play, playfulness and the development of deep attachment bonds.

Play supports social engagement; it facilitates shared experiences and bonding with others. Even as adults, we still need play to enhance joy and social connection. For children, play is more than a way to experience positive social connections. It’s through play that children develop mentally and physically.

File photo. Alamy Stock........

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