Your child’s emotions are out of control. You have decided to seek out support. A Google search shows you multiple options and to be honest it is overwhelming. You’ve decided your child needs therapy – now what? What should you look for in choosing a therapist for your child?
When searching for a therapist to help your child, I recommend looking for a registered play therapist or registered play therapist supervisor.
- A mental health professional with this credential has extensive training, experience, and supervision in working with play therapy.
- This training, experience, and supervision has been approved by the Association for Play Therapy, a national organization supporting professionals utilizing play to treat clients, especially children.
Why a play therapist?
- Children communicate all sorts of emotions, needs, and thoughts during their play.
- Play can help a child to build trust and mastery, regulate emotions, promote creativity and problem solving, encourage communication, and elevate self-esteem.
- Play therapy allows children to use toys, games, art and other play materials to express their thoughts and feelings. Instead of talking, they are able to show the therapist what they are thinking and feeling.
How do you find a local registered play therapist or registered play therapist supervisor?
- You can search straight from the Association for Play Therapy website https://www.a4pt.org/search/custom.asp?id=3571
- If someone local is not available, search for one in your state, as a lot of providers are offering telehealth services as well.
Once you have found an RPT (Registered Play Therapist) or RPT-S (Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor) in your area:
- Feel free to check out their website or social media.
- Give them a call to schedule a free consultation- most offer this.
- Make sure the therapist is a good fit for you, your child, and your family.
Drop me a comment and let me know what qualities you would look for in a play therapist.
If you are local and looking for a therapist for your child, CONTACT us here to discuss ways we can help.