Confusion!  

I see it on many parents’ faces when they bring their 4-10 year old child to session and I pull out the large sand tray from under the couch.

 The child is instantly thrilled. We take to the floor, dig through the sand which is a fun sensory calibration exercise. We start matching figurines to family members, placing them in a world fully designed by their child’s imagination. 

You can almost see the thought progression for many parents that might go something like: My child is being removed from his classroom, being disrespectful toward me, oppositional and defiant at school, and you want him to play??!  What? “I am confused! And maybe frustrated, too!”

But trust us. Play is the thing.

Play is something we tend to lose sight of as we age. But is one of the most powerful treatment modalities for our children. Next time your child vocalizes that they colored, blew bubbles, played Uno or Yeti in my Spaghetti , I encourage you to think, “good! My child and Ms. Brooke are getting somewhere!”

Play therapy is a form of psychotherapy that utilizes intentional play formats and techniquest to help children deal with emotional and mental health concerns. When play is used as the medium children are able to explore their feelings in a way that is comforting and familiar to them. 

We’ve all been there: something happens and we find it difficult to talk about how we truly feel. 

Children often find it more difficult to articulate their feelings than adults do. 

Play is a natural way for children to explore their world and find solutions. Playing in and of itself is a cathartic experience for children.

When we allow life experiences to “play out” and explore emotions through play, children are able to create a safe distance from the issue so that they can understand and digest their own emotions, without feeling forced to change them. In play therapy the emphasis is on your child and what is best for them moment by moment. 

Your therapist utilizing play therapy will allow the child to lead, giving the child autonomy to take control over their emotional state and resolve what is causing distress to them at their own pace. 

Play helps the therapist understand the child’s needs through a non-directive approach. This specific therapy dynamic establishes trust between therapist and child, it provides safety to explore without fear of being “wrong.”

Your therapist’s role in conduting play therapy is to follow guidelines during the course of the therapeutic relationship.  We place a large importance on acceptance of the child as they are and not to judge or over-interpret, but rather to sit with the child and reflect on the experience. 

This facilitates potential to bring about change internally,  exploring themes and issues that emerge.  

A play therapist is trained to observe the child’s behavior during the session, explore issues, and make a diagnosis. That diagnosis helps the therapist construct specific activities that can help the child heal. 

Most sessions occur between the therapist and the child. The parent may be trained to play with the child at home or given play assignments during the session. Parents may also be coached about how to interact with their child. 

You might be thinking okay cool, I get it, but who is this for? 

Play therapy is particularly effective for children who have: 

• Experienced physical or emotional trauma
• Experienced physical, emotional or sexual abuse
• Witnessed conflict or have been bullied
• Been severely punished by teachers or authority figures
• Witnessed armed conflicts or natural calamities
• Been displaying behavior or conduct issues
• Experienced significant life changes (loss of parents, parents’ divorce or separation from family)
• Had trouble reaching developmental milestones
• Feeling anxiety or sadness
• Having trouble coping with their home or school environment

What will my child gain? 

• Learn basic or advanced motor skills
• Learn decision-making and problem-solving skills
• Learn social skills
• Release excess energy
• Understand their emotions and their problems and begin to heal and find solutions
• Gain more confidence through self-expression
• Enhance their imagination and creativity

At JSA play is the thing.  We love play. Your child is learning so much about themselves each session in a creative way that, to them, just feels like having fun. When kids are able to be authentically themselves, feel relaxed and secure, the therapeutic relationship thrives and that’s when real change occurs. 

We can’t wait to meet you on the carpet soon!

Brooke Davis, LISW-CP
Child and Family Therapist

As I wrapped up my last session of the day, I remembered to pace myself and take my time exploring with my clients. Lucky to have the flexibility to engage in-depth with clients, the way that’s needed. As I sit down and reflect on my sessions today, I am reminded of the peace I feel. Peace, that wouldn’t be if not for others before me making a way, for me to succeed in a Caucasian-dominated career field of mental health.

We are in February, proudly known as Black History Month. As an African American female, I love embracing my heritage and showing my culture to the world. As a therapist, I pride myself on breaking barriers on a daily basis. I’ve had clients tell me they are proud to work with me and appreciate my skill set. Each day I come to the office, I am a walking celebration of pride and love for my Black Culture and psychotherapy.

As I grab my laptop to complete notes, I remember stories from my great-grandmother of her struggles to gain an education due to segregation. I was blessed to be given opportunities the others in my family weren’t given.   I represent more than just myself when I enter a room; I represent being the first generation college student in my family to obtain degrees and establish a career.

I love being young and goal-oriented. I love being knowledgeable in my career and learning new techniques. Most importantly I love being African American and embracing all my culture has to offer. As we dive into February, challenge yourself to learn about African American Culture and how we have celebrate diversity to make us stronger as a community. 

Remind yourself that history can be enriching, and past negative actions don’t have to be repeated. Lastly, applaud yourself for celebrating with others during Black History Month.

-Erin Tolbert

One service that we have always offered at JSA is “telehealth.” Simply put, it’s the phrase we use to describe online therapy. As our country is on the move these days and so connected to our laptops and our phones, telehealth has become a more and more popular option because it’s easy to fit into your day and into your travel schedule.

Telehealth, for us, has been more of a back-up option to in-person therapy. We have used it for couples that live too far away to commute to our office, for clients who have had a broken leg and were unable to drive, and for clients who have moved to the low country or to the upstate but still wanted to continue their therapy with us.

Because of COVID-19 and recommendations from the CDC for helping to slow the spread, most of us are practicing and encouraging “social distancing.” We are actively doing both here at JSA so our team is moving all of our sessions to telehealth. This is temporary and we will resume our normal office family life—of which you are a huge part—as soon as we are given the “all clear” from the CDC.

How does telehealth work?

It’s easy!

You will be given access to a website that lets you into our “portal.” From there, you will click on “appointments” and find a link to click to start your session. You can do this from your laptop or your smartphone… and you can do it anywhere! Ideally, you’ll have a quiet, private place to retreat to for your sessions just like you do when you come to our office in person.

This was an exceptionally tough decision for our team to make—your faces and your voices in our office literally make our day each day. This is a friendly, warm office and we love inviting you in for your appointment. We love welcoming you, opening the door when you forget your code, saying goodbye in unison, sharing a chuckle and a comment with you on the weather or the issue of the day. Not having this in person interaction with each of you is something that we will miss terribly during this time.

However, it was an easy decision to make when we took into account the safety of each of our clients, the safety of our staff, and the safety of the community that we all love so much. We support the CDC, our state government, and our federal government in all ways throughout the duration of COVID-19.

Know this: our important therapy and work together continues. We are not taking a break from our work with you. Therapy continues, as do all of our policies, standards, and goals. We do not take lightly the work of healing, exploring, and growing that happens in this office. You trust us to do our best and to show up ready to work. We trust you to be here with your honest openness.

Onward ever. Backward never.