Kaitlyn Christian, Director of Therapy Services at Annie’s Place

Play therapy is for kids what talk therapy is for adults. While adults can often talk about their concerns, feelings, and wishes, children are still developing their language skills to be able to communicate their concerns. Children learn about their world through play. To meet developmental needs, children utilize play as their language and toys as their words to communicate with a specially trained professional.  

What makes the play therapy room so special and unique?  

Acceptance is often communicated nonverbally in the playroom. To create a safe space, there are many considerations made before a child or parent ever steps into the playroom. Here are a few examples: 

• Medical toys: At Annie’s Place, we provide medical toys to normalize hospital language and communicate to the child that these topics are allowed to be explored in the playroom. Examples of medical toys include an IV stand, a play hospital set, and real and play medical supplies. 

• Broken toys: At times, a toy may be broken, missing, or may not look the newest in the playroom. While any items that create danger for a child are removed, a toy with a missing piece sometimes is not. A broken toy can communicate that brokenness is accepted in the playroom. This can communicate that children can explore the parts of themselves that they feel are broken or not enough. It can also show a child that they do not need to show up “fixed” or “whole,” as the child is already whole, complete, and enough.  

• Wear and tear: Toys in the playroom need not look like they came right out of the box. As toys have some natural wear and tear on them, a child feels less pressure to be overly careful with a precious toy. Instead, children are able to let loose and express themselves more freely, unburdened by the need to be cautious or on guard in the playroom. 

• Culturally inclusive toys: When children enter a playroom that reflects aspects of their culture, they are able to feel accepted in a new space. This can include dolls that look like the child, pretend food that is common in the child’s home, crayons of all skin tones, musical instruments typical in the child’s culture, and books that represent the child’s race, gender, ability status, native language, etc. In a room where all identities are present, all identities can be explored. 

• Low-seated rolling chair: The therapist sits in a chair that easily moves around the room to stay in contact with the child through nonverbal communication during play. The therapist aims to “follow your nose with your toes,” meaning the child receives full attention as not only the therapist’s head, but entire body, faces and is focused on the child (Landreth, 2012). Being seated also keeps the therapist at eye level with the child, keeping power struggles at bay as the child does not need to look up to a hovering adult to engage with the therapist. 

These points are all communicated nonverbally, so children are able to experience acceptance as opposed to only hearing that these things are accepted.  

The play therapy room is generally permissive, with physical and emotional safety considered, for children to express themselves freely and experience acceptance on a feelings level. While we may be able to verbally agree that we are worthy, acceptable human beings, it takes the experience of being fully accepted to believe on a deeper level that we are worthy and enough just as we are. 

This is a place where all feelings, thoughts, desires, and wishes are accepted. Think about that one thing you have never told anyone, or that one thing you have only told one person. Now imagine being able to tell anyone and be met with acceptance and acknowledgement of your humanity in place of judgment or fear. That is what play therapy offers to the kids we serve at Annie’s Place. 

Remember, Annie's Place is here to support you and your children through medical crises. If you’d like further support or have specific questions about your family, please reach out to our play therapy department at 214-266-8065 or kchristian@anniesplacecares.org.   

References 

Landreth, G. L. (2012). Play therapy: The art of the relationship. Routledge.