Arts Psychotherapy for Children
Therapeutic Arts Therapy is a multi-modal approach to therapy and can include art, clay, collage, drawing, journaling, painting, sand tray, and any other activity which engages the person's creativity. Clients can express themselves in ways that traditional therapy does not allow and allow the unconscious to become conscious.
Working with sand in a tray to create landscapes, and scenery that can soothe, heal or guide us is so powerful. Figurines are used to view problems, issues, and past stories that can be reviewed and new insights can arise.
A symbolic evidence-based technique that can bring excellent results, reflecting life allowing the individual to remove obstacles or problems, resolve conflicts and gain acceptance of self.
Art Therapy offers a unique way to process experiences in a safe and non-judgmental manner. Through symbolic play, one can work through and integrate life experiences helping to self-regulate and heal. Person-centered Expressive Arts Therapy lets clients lead at their pace which allows for autonomy and self-realization. For children needing guidance in areas such as:
- Anxiety
- ASD
- Difficulty expressing emotions
- Grief and Loss
- Trauma
The flexibility and range of the expressive arts therapy approach mean it can be offered as a short-term or more of a long-term therapeutic experience, depending on individual requirements.
For further information about Art Therapy, or to express your interest please Contact Me.
Integrative Sand Therapy
Integrative Sand Therapy is for all ages. Children love it and adults are amazed by its profound ability to get to the core of an issue and make meaning.
Sand play is a highly engaging form of therapy that can provide emotional release. Using the sand tray and chosen miniatures clients create worlds that represent their own intrinsic worlds. By creating sand worlds there is little need for a verbal explanation of feelings nor a need to verbally explain emotions, and bodily sensations, rather there is a felt sense between body and mind.
Play is a child's natural way of communicating. Through play, children learn to regulate emotions, reduce anxiety, explore feelings, and promote problem-solving and self-esteem. Play provides a child with a means through which they can develop, grow and learn about themselves and the relationships in their lives.
Many children are unable to verbalize emotional states, particularly in the face of trauma. The nonverbal nature of sand play therapy and the familiar medium of sand can help children achieve feelings of comfort and security. With little instruction from the therapist, the child is free to play and develop their own expression of situations. Often, the children will experience a sense of independent play and begin making assumptions and behaviour changes without cues from the therapist. This method of therapy can serve as a valuable and powerful outlet for children and an incredibly insightful method of gaining access to traumatic experiences.
For further information about Sand Therapy, or to express your interest please Contact Me.
Clay Field Therapy
Sensory Clay:
From the moment we're born, we rely on our hands to perceive the world. It's through touch that we communicate with our primary caregivers and attain a sense of love and security. In Clay Field Therapy, children work with clay and water in a rectangular box. The therapeutic focus is not on object creation, but on the touch connection with the clay as a symbolic external world. Movement, touch, and sensory feedback that have long been out of reach are actualized through the creative process, enabling the child to heal past wounds and regain a more fulfilling sense of self.
For further information about Clay Therapy, or to express your interest please Contact Me.