Adolescents and Counseling

Play therapy is a form of therapy where children can’t act out their fantasies and express their feelings or experiences and are simply encouraged to do so through play, abetted by a therapist's interpretations.

When children are presented with Art Therapy, it may be geared towards creative style and imagination.

According to an article published in Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art therapy Association, “…art therapy strengthened personal, spiritual and social development” (pg. 72, Kapitan, Litell, Torres, 2011). Additionally, it could also help children reduce “acute stress symptom” (pg. 103, Chapman, Morabito, Ladakakos, Schreier, Knudson, 2001). This type of therapy can be used to build child’s self-esteem by encouraging them to express themselves openly through art.

If play is a child's language, then toys can be taken as the words. With play therapy the child can resolve their difficulties and concerns utilizing the toys that they pick, exposing their inner thoughts and discussions. With play the child has the ability to check out numerous circumstances and habits in a supportive environment. Genuine favorable regard and approval urges the child to feel safe adequate to be able to discover

10). According to Landreth (2012), “Play therapy… facilitates the development of a safe relationship for the child… to fully express and explore self (feelings, thoughts, experiences, and behaviors) through play, the child’s natural medium of communication, for optimal growth and development”

Children often face various mental health issues when they are growing up. These issues include anxiety, trauma, depression and now even autistic children. Treating young children of these conditions has been a great challenge over time. Therapy can help give children the opportunity to express their feelings through play. According to the Association for Play Therapy (2002), play therapy is a "systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process in which trained play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth and development." Although various studies have been conducted in regards to play research, there is no link that has been given between play therapy and the success of an individual later in life.

According to a leading expert in Play Therapy, Landreth (2014) believes firmly that the focus of therapy needs to be on the child not on the client, and children are the best teachers for the

Using the historically noted context of the importance of play, many therapists have refined and structured this “natural language” and have been able to facilitate desirable change for a variety of issues. The rest of this paper aims at providing the reader with a proficient overview of play therapy. The benefits, history, credentials, inner workings, and role of the family will be examined. Classical cases, as well as individual case studies, and larger scale findings will be examined, and the role and credentials of the therapist outlined.

Play counselling helped an anxious, perfectionist student takes more risks in her schoolwork, improving her performance, which had suffered from her excessive fear of making mistakes.

I found this chapter to be very informative and another good resource for learning about the different types of play therapy. First, it discussed the directive approach, the toys/materials, and then the skills. It also had a great section for cultural sensitivity, which is very important in all types of therapy. I think both directive and non-directive have pros and cons. Additionally, it is very important to use non-directive first to see were the client is coming from. This is how I start my other forms of therapy as well by using a client-center approach first than gradually moving towards becoming more directive if needed. It is also important based on why the client is being brought in for play therapy. Play therapy is the systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process in which play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth (Kottman, 2011). This is done by using directive or non-directive play. Both types of play therapy are important and I will discuss this below.

The Adolescent Social-Emotional Management Program is designed to implement aspects of Mayer and Salovey’s theory of ability emotional intelligence, Goleman’s theory of mixed emotional intelligence, and cognitive behavioral therapy to teach adolescents how to effectively understand and manage their emotions, as well as understand the emotions of others. Additionally, adolescents will learn skills necessary to lead successful lives outside of treatment that include self-awareness, motivation, and responsibility, among many others. Due to the nature of the group, participants will need to be between the ages of 13-18 and reside in the same unit; this is to ensure that group totals range between 10-15 members and contain individuals with similar diagnoses. During each of the program’s eight weeks, adolescents will attend a total of three 50 minute groups that encompass psychoeducation, activities, and worksheets to learn about the different skills needed for improved emotional intelligence and social relationships, both within residential treatment and outside. Further, participants will discuss adolescent development and relate topics to situations that are typical during this age group. Designed to improve emotional intelligence and enhance interpersonal skills, the program aims to teach participants how to perceive, understand, and regulate emotions to aid them in their treatment during their residential stay, as well as improve their interactions with other residents.

Art therapy can be defined as a form of psychiatric rehabilitation which comprises of the inspiration of free expressiveness through coloring, sketching, and molding. Additionally, it gets used as a curative action or as an assistance to an individual’s analysis in regards to specific conditions. Coloring books were previously thought to be reserved for children and adults who undertook the activities with the children. The art therapy of coloring for adults has proven to be helpful. Most of the arts done under the therapy have found their way into the market, and additionally, the help they offer the adults who get involved. Being able to distract yourself from your daily problems, negative thoughts, and that fact that anyone can do it, are all reasons that this type of daily therapy should be used more often by adults and therapists treating adults.

Art therapy is a mental health profession in which clients, facilitated by the art therapist, use art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem. A goal in art therapy is to improve or restore a client’s functioning and his or her sense of personal well-being.

Expressive arts therapy is the use of art modalities, creative process, and aesthetic experience in a therapeutic context. It is a therapy of the imagination (McNiff, 1992). Effective communication is an essential element in therapeutic relationships and, although verbal language is the most conventional means of conveying information, other forms can convey just as much as words. The arts are an alternative form of communication that has recently received recognition for their value in therapeutic settings. There is a long well-established connection between the arts and psychology. Expressive arts therapy builds on a natural, complimentary relationship between the two disciplines. As a formal therapy, this form is relatively new with its

This article is recent, published within a peer-reviewed journal. The author-conducted research is empirical, qualitative and phenomenologically designed, uniquely enabling children to describe their play therapy experiences and identify factors that influence these experiences.