An interview with Richard Hill of the Science of Psychotherapy https://www.thescienceofpsychotherapy.com/dr-jessica-stone-talks-about-virtual-therapy-tools/?fbclid=IwAR3g1q0a4rZoXeINXDrNHgrBUW0ERqH8uWt1e-Iup0djs2n6dOopZ1jWIfM

Check out their site – it is chock full of information! https://www.thescienceofpsychotherapy.com

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Check it out here: https://www.psychotherapy.net/interview/jessica-stone-on-play-therapy!

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By Jessica Stone, Ph.D., RPT-S

            Storytelling has a rich, vast history. Passed down from generation to generation, stories have informed, taught, warned, expressed, and so much more. Utilizing storytelling in therapy has been highlighted in everything from narrative therapies to play therapy to bibliotherapy. When integrating storytelling into therapy it is important to have a variety of ways for the client to express themselves.  People are different, their stories are different, and how they tell their stories should respect and reflect such differences.

“Each individual owns their own story, and any effective helper knows this” (Lyons, 2019, para 4).

Storytelling 

Storytelling describes the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation or instilling moral values  (Wikipedia, 2020, para 1).

Storytelling predates writing. The earliest forms of storytelling were usually oral combined with gestures and expressions. In addition to being part of religious rituals, some archaeologists believe rock art may have served as a form of storytelling for many ancient cultures.^[2] The Australian aboriginal people painted symbols from stories on cave walls as a means of helping the storyteller remember the story. The story was then told using a combination of oral narrative, music, rock art and dance, which bring understanding and meaning of human existence through remembrance and enactment of stories.^[3] People have used the carved trunks of living trees and ephemeral media (such as sand and leaves) to record stories in pictures or with writing. Complex forms of tattooing may also represent stories, with information about genealogy, affiliation and social status.^[4]

With the advent of writing and the use of stable, portable media, stories were recorded, transcribed and shared over wide regions of the world. Stories have been carved, scratched, painted, printed or inked onto wood or bamboo, ivory and other bones, pottery, clay tablets, stone, palm-leaf books, skins (parchment), bark cloth, paper, silk, canvas and other textiles, recorded on film and stored electronically in digital form. Oral stories continue to be created, improvisationally by impromptu storytellers, as well as committed to memory and passed from generation to generation, despite the increasing popularity of written and televised media in much of the world.

 (Wikipedia, 2020, para 3-4)

Sand Storytelling

            Telling stories in safe, non-threatening, projective, creative, even non-verbal ways can be important parts of mental health treatment.  Sand therapies (tray and play) can allow clients to express both conscious and sub-conscious experiences, concerns, self-and other- perceptions and so much more.  Many sand therapists utilize their sand tools to allow the space and environment for people to express such stories.  Some have even formalized the process, such as Lara Kazsa and her SandStory Therapy® technique. “SandStory Therapy® is a gentle and safe way of working therapeutically with sand and symbols within a contained sandtray that offers clients the opportunity to tell their ‘story in the sand’.” (Kazsa, 2020, para 5).

Virtual Sandtray Storytelling

            The Virtual Sandtray allows clients to access the powerful process of sand therapies both in person and via telehealth.  This tool expands the traditional sand therapies to include digital native’s culture, interests, and knowledge, while also expanding the ways one’s world can be depicted.  Want to have a dragon who can fly?  A house that is levitated/floating? A forboding sky or lava under the surface?  You can do all of this and more in the Virtual Sandtray.

            One technique – Virtual Sandtray Storytelling – can be used in person and via telehealth in the remote feature.  Starting with an empty tray of sand, the person chosen to go first (either the client or therapist in individual therapy or different members of a group or family) chooses 5  models (miniature/item/symbol, etc.) and buries them in the sand.  The other person looks away.  When all 5 are buried, the other person re-engages and looks for the items by digging in the sand.  Once all 5 items are found, the person then tells a story about the items.  This is then repeated by the next person and so forth.  The number of items can be altered, especially for younger children, as needed and appropriate per the client’s needs. Advanced VSA Storytelling includes changing the liquid layer and/or skybox to add an additional mood element for the person to incorporate into the story. 

Have fun!

References

Kasza, L. (2020). What is Sandstory therapy? https://www.larakasza.com/sandstory-therapy

Lyons, J. (2019, July). One person, one story, one CANS/ANSA. https://tcomconversations.org/2019/07/17/one-person-one-story-one-cans-ansa/

Wikipedia (2020, December). Storytelling.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storytelling

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            One of the powerful benefits of using the Virtual Sandtray App (VSA) is the ability for multi-level, multi-dimensional depiction of one’s world. As we know, sand therapy was created by Dr. Margaret Lowenfeld to provide “a way to allow children to share their inner worlds” (Homeyer, 2020).  The World Technique was born, and with it, Projective Play Therapy formed (Lowenfeld, 2007; Homeyer, 2020). Numerous adaptations followed and this creative, expressive, projective technique used to work with clients of all ages is a mainstay for therapists many different theoretical foundations and approaches. 

            The Virtual Sandtray App allows the client to customize a number of components within the tray to allow for a greater level of expression and creation.  Sandtray is not merely about putting items in the sand or having a representation of an item placed on a sand-like field; sandtray is a series of processes which culminate in a mind-body connection and expression of one’s inner world, experiences, and how one sees themselves within multiple layers of being. To create a tray, the process must be intentional and immersive. Miniatures, items, figurines, symbols, models…  whatever you call them, must be selected ~ a process by which the mind and body feels a connection to the  depiction and how it will assist the person in expressing what is needed. A mindful process of scrolling through items, placing them one by one with one’s fingers, customizing the item individually to be “just right”, moving the sand with one’s fingers; these are all part of the process of intentional, immersive, projective creation ~ as intended by what we know from Dr. Lowenfeld’s writings and teachings. All of these critical features have been incorporated into the Virtual Sandtray.

            Additionally, when one ponders the components of intentional, immersive, creative projections (IICP), it would be natural to wonder what new mediums and platforms can provide.  Given the absence of many limitations in the traditional sandtray process, what might expand this IICP process? Here at Virtual Sandtray we believe the ability for multi-level, multi-dimensional depiction is a key portion of this process. Therefore, we developed features such as a liquid layer, skybox, and the ability to have 3 different layers to one’s world:  the base tray world, the sky world, and the VSA Underworld^TM.

            The VSA Underworld is created by removing sand from the tray, placing items in the liquid layer (think of a layer similar to the classic blue-bottom tray), changing the liquid layer to the desired color and texture, and then burying the items under the sand. Then, when the tray is tilted downward and the user zooms in, a world beneath the sand is revealed.  When the tray is tilted back to a level position, the Underworld disappears, tilt back down and it reappears.  A common use is to have the sand level be what the client shows to their world – what their friends, partners, families, peers, co-workers, etc. see and are allowed to know, while the Underworld is that which energy is expelled to hide. It could also be two visible but distinct portions of oneself or one’s world.  The possibilities are virtually endless!

            To learn more about this technique – play around with the Virtual Sandtray! Bury items, tilt all the way down, and zoooooooooooom in.  Keep zooming until you achieve the desired amount of the Underworld being shown.  Rotate around in the tray to reveal different items and portions of the depiction.  Take photos and videos of each and all. These IICP depictions allow for such ownership and investment in the creation; the meaning to the person, the process, the therapy, and the movement toward the therapeutic goals is priceless.  Enjoy!

Lowenfeld, M. (2007). Understanding children’s sandplay: Lowenfeld’s World Technique. Sussex Academic Press.

Homeyer, L. (2020). History of sand therapy. https://worldsandtherapy.org/history-of-sand-therapy

To learn more about the VSA Underworld technique (and more), please take the Level III VSA course, offered in 2021 through this website (under trainings).

To learn more about Dr. Lowenfeld, please read her books and visit The Lowenfeld Trust website: http://lowenfeld.org/

For more information about the Virtual Sandtray®© App, please visit: https://sandtrayplay.com/newsite/

Dr. Jessica Stone, PhD is a psychologist, international speaker, sought after clinical supervisor, and renowned play therapist.  She is the co-creator of The Virtual Sandtray®©, a best-selling author, and developer of Digital Play Therapy. Dr. Stone has been featured for her work throughout the virtual world as an innovator, ambassador of play, and stalwart advocate for the use of digital technology in the field of psychology.

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Pulling Themes and Metaphors from Play Using Technology to Instill Self-Worth, Create Coping Skills, and Create Perspective-Taking, Part 3/3

Kevin Hull, Ph.D., RPT

Gregory and his play therapist have been playing Minecraft over several sessions.  Gregory is diagnosed with ASD and struggles with feeling good about himself and often feels that he “isn’t good enough.” Gregory struggles in social situations and gets upset if he can’t be in control when he is in a group of peers.  When adults try to correct him or peers reject him, he gets upset and has “meltdowns” because he has difficulty seeing situations from other’s viewpoints.

            One of the key components for ASD clients is not feeling safe if they are not in control.  The firing of the sympathetic nervous system (Fight/Flight/Freeze) signals danger and disrupts the person’s ability to deal with negative emotions and take perspective, which often results in reactive behaviors in an attempt to regain control over a situation.  When a person is in sympathetic nervous system activation, there is little room for learning or building relationship.  By allowing Gregory to use his IPad and play a game like Minecraft with which he is familiar, the play therapist has established a sense of safety and control for Gregory.  Because Gregory feels safe and in control, there is “space” for a relationship to form between he and the play therapist.

            Themes are elements in electronic play directly reflect the challenges that life presents on a daily basis.  Examples of themes are: overcoming challenges, making choices, developing attributes, gathering resources, and asking for help.  Gregory is gradually gaining insight into the world around him because many of the challenges he encounters daily are similar to how it feels to have to survive in Minecraft.  For example, he and the play therapist created a “lunchroom” in Minecraft.  For Gregory, lunchtime is a chaotic time where he feels unsafe and is often rejected. In the Minecraft version of the lunchroom, he adds several “mobs” or villains.  The play therapist plays out scenes with Gregory in the Minecraft lunchroom and together they find solutions to deal with the stress of the situation.  Gradually, Gregory is able to cope with lunchtime and by the end of the year actually enjoys it.

            Metaphors are “life applications” (Hull, 2015, p. 616) that the play therapist uses to increase the awareness of the child to what is happening in the game world with real issues that the child is facing in the “real” world.  For instance, Gregory loved to trap the play therapist’s avatar (character), acting out his desire to be in control through the game play.  The play therapist began to reflect to Gregory feelings of fear and frustration, as evidenced in the following exchange.

Gregory: Ha! I trapped you again!

P.T.: Oh no, I am scared. I don’t know where I am. I thought you were my friend and we were working together.

Gregory: Well, I’m still your friend.

P.T.: Friends don’t make friends feel unsafe. I feel unsafe when you trap me. I’m scared to be with you because I’m not sure what you’ll do.

Gregory: Oh. Well, sorry about that. I didn’t know you felt like that. I guess I could let you out.

P.T.: Oh that would be great. I need your help because I get lost.

Gregory: I’ll help ya! Hey, let’s go make that fort in the cave that we talked about earlier.

Through the play therapist’s reflection, Gregory is thinking about his behavior and seeing it in a new way. Because this exchange occurs in the frame of Minecraft, the game he loves, there is distance from the problem and play allows him to take perspective without becoming emotionally dysregulated.  The theme of control in Minecraft is the same theme in Gregory’s real world.  Instead of trying to be in control with his friends, he could work together with them and be an ally, instead of a dictator.  The play therapist skillfully uses reflection of feelings to help shift Gregory’s perspective of his own behavior and see a different outcome.  The metaphor of working together transfers from game play to the real world, and Gregory’s perspective taking increases, as well as his self-awareness. 

Kevin B. Hull, Ph.D., RPT https://drkevinhull.com/

Dr. Hull is a licensed counselor in Lakeland, Florida and his life’s passion is helping people. He is honored to represent the counseling profession as a therapist, professor, and author. Dr. Hull is a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP). One of his specialties is working with children, adolescents, and adults diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disabilities. He also helps families of all kinds overcome many types of challenges. Dr. Hull use many innovative types of therapy such as play, solution-focused, and cognitive therapies and conducts groups with children and adolescents to help them understand themselves and learn to use their amazing gifts and find their place in the world.

The post Unlocking Growth in Autism Spectrum Clients through Technology and Play – Guest Blog, Part III first appeared on Jessica Stone, PhD, RPT-S.

Kevin Hull, Ph.D., RPT

The play therapist and Gregory are playing Minecraft and Gregory has put the therapist into a trap and the therapist has to figure a way to get out. Gregory has explained to the therapist that the idea of being trapped and the feelings that go along with it are exactly how Gregory feels at school every day.

“Ha! I got you!” exclaimed Gregory.  “You’re my prisoner and you’ll have to figure your way out!” 

“Oh no,” said the therapist, “I’m feeling alone and a little scared. I wonder what I should do next.” 

“Ha,” said Gregory, “Now you know how I feel when I’m at school and all I want to do is go home.  Good luck figuring this one out, and I might as well tell you that there are traps all around so be careful, even though it won’t help cuz you’re not getting out and even if you do you’ll probably die!”

“Okay, I guess I’ll just have to figure this out” remarked the therapist. “Gosh, if this is what school is like for you every day then I can’t imagine how helpless you must feel, because I’m feeling really helpless right now.”

“You don’t even know!” Gregory exclaims and jumps up from the bean bag chair. “It’s like there’s all these mobs coming at me all the time and I have to fight them off” (he pretends to use his iPad like a shield while wielding an imaginary sword in the other). “Fight ‘em here, Fight ‘em there – Fight! Fight! Fight!”

“Wow, that must be hard,” said the therapist. “It sounds like you feel like you scared and tired.”

“Yeah,” said Gregory, “It’s enough to drive someone crazy,” as he flops back into the bean bag chair and looks back at the Minecraft game on the iPad. “Okay, let’s see how you get out of this prison!”

“I think I’m going to do it!” remarks the therapist, “I’m going to escape!” He makes his character open a door and step into another room and hears a hiss. “What is that noise?” asks the therapist.

“Wait for it!” exclaims Gregory.

Suddenly, there is a huge explosion. “Oh no, I blew up!” The therapist looks at Gregory.

“Ha!” says Gregory, “Yep! I got you with TNT! You didn’t know there was a booby trap. Ha ha! You should have seen your face when you blew up!”

“I felt totally happy when I thought I found a way out, but then really disappointed when I blew up” said the therapist.

“Yeah, just like me at school. Even when I think it’s gonna be a good day then BAM! something bad always happens.”

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Minecraft has provided a foundation of therapeutic trust between Gregory and his therapist because it is familiar and fun for Gregory. Gregory has created a scene by trapping the therapist and putting the therapist in the position of trying to escape, which Gregory reveals is how he feels when he has to go to school each day. Early in the therapy, Minecraft was simply a fun thing to do together, but in this working stage of play therapy, Gregory is using the game to communicate how he feels and the therapist understands just how hard it is for Gregory at school. When Gregory feels trapped at school he becomes emotionally dysregulated and lashes out. But through playing Minecraft, he can simulate a situation like how he feels at school and stay emotionally regulated because it is through a game he loves, and it is played with a person (the therapist) that he trusts. As the therapist plays with Gregory and acknowledges his feelings, Gregory feels understood and safe to release more emotions and thoughts.

This process of understanding is multidimensional in several ways. First, there is a level of safety for Gregory in knowing that he has a place to release what he thinks and feels and is not judged. Feeling understood also helps increase Gregory’s sense of self-worth by showing him that his experiences are important and that he matters. Last, feeling understood gives Gregory a boost of confidence to keep expressing himself and share how he truly feels. Using Minecraft enables Gregory to show his mastery of the game and this is something that makes Gregory feel valuable and worthy. Gregory not only can show off abilities, but he can elaborately put the therapist in a situation in which the therapist feels frustrated, unsure, and finally disappointed that the therapist’s best attempt resulted in failure. On one level, Gregory can tell the therapist how he feels at school, but through the game of Minecraft the therapist actually feels what Gregory feels. This brings the therapist to a new level of empathy for Gregory and allows the therapist to be mindful of providing encouragement and increasing Gregory’s coping skills for future situations.

As therapists we often hear about how a child experiences a situation from another’s perspective. A teacher tells us about a situation like Gregory’s at school, or a parent tells us about how a kid experienced a loss or is adjusting to a shared parenting situation from a divorce. However, technology takes this to a deeper level by offering the child the opportunity to bring us into the situation provide a shared experience. I have played games like Minecraft with kids like Gregory and emerged from the session with such respect for the child because of new awareness for what they are experiencing. I communicate this to parents and teachers to provide them with a new level of awareness and empathy for the child. For children on the spectrum who can become easily emotional dysregulated and who struggle with putting thoughts and feelings into words, technology can be a wonderful tool to help them express themselves and be understood.

My next blog (Part III) will discuss how to pull themes and metaphors from play using technology to instill self-worth, create coping skills, and create perspective-taking.

Kevin B. Hull, Ph.D., RPT https://drkevinhull.com/

Dr. Hull is a licensed counselor in Lakeland, Florida and his life’s passion is helping people. He is honored to represent the counseling profession as a therapist, professor, and author. Dr. Hull is a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP). One of his specialties is working with children, adolescents, and adults diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disabilities. He also helps families of all kinds overcome many types of challenges. Dr. Hull use many innovative types of therapy such as play, solution-focused, and cognitive therapies and conducts groups with children and adolescents to help them understand themselves and learn to use their amazing gifts and find their place in the world.

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Part 1/3

Kevin B. Hull, Ph.D., RPT

Gregory enters the therapy room briskly and flops into the bean bag chair.  

“Hurry up and get your iPad” he says to the therapist, “I have a bunch of new stuff to show you!  The therapist gets his iPad and opens the Minecraft app and joins Gregory in the ‘world’ that Gregory has created.  “Wait til you see what happens when you spawn in!” Gregory shouts.  

“Remember that we can’t play our game with loud voices,” says the therapist.  

“Fine, okay, but hurry up!” says Gregory in a loud raspy whisper.  

“Whoa! Where did I go?” exclaimed the therapist as his character joined in the game.  The therapist’s character was in a dark room with no doors or windows.  “Why am I in a dark room?  How will I get out?”  

“Ha! I got you!” exclaimed Gregory.  “You’re my prisoner and you’ll have to figure your way out!”  

“Oh no,” said the therapist, “I’m feeling alone and a little scared. I wonder what I should do next.”  

“Ha,” said Gregory, “Now you know how I feel when I’m at school and all I want to do is go home.  Good luck figuring this one out, and I might as well tell you that there are traps all around so be careful, even though it won’t help cuz you’re not getting out and even if you do you’ll probably die!”

It is no secret that clients diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) love technology.  In the past 20 years, I have incorporated technology in the form of video/computer games into my counseling work.  In recent years, smart phone and tablet apps have been very useful in helping my ASD clients overcome challenges and broaden their perspectives.  While many practitioners may fear technology and be hesitant in allowing a client to bring their tablet or video game system into the therapy room, I find that it has opened new doors of communication, growth, and change particularly when working with ASD clients.

The Challenges of ASD

            Clients with ASD face immense challenges.  Developmental delays and disruptions in emotional and cognitive functioning create a myriad of difficulties relating to others and forming relationships.  The constant rapid-fire activation of the sympathetic nervous system wreaks havoc on the ability of the individual to understand and control emotional reactions, not to mention creating many physical problems like gastrointestinal problems and auto-immune disorders (Hull, 2017).  One of the main issues that arises with ASD is a lack of perspective-taking.  The activation of the sympathetic nervous system (fight/flight/freeze) results in the individual staying stuck in a state of self-preservation as a result of not feeling safe.  Thus, the individual seeks to be in an environment that he or she can control.  When this isn’t possible, the individual often adopts a series of behaviors that help ‘soothe’ the tension of feeling out of control.  The state of self-preservation creates ‘tunnel vision’ that makes the individual seem as though they lack empathy and awareness (Hull, 2011).  Certainly, this isn’t true – in fact, many ASD clients report feeling compassion for both animals and people and have strong emotional reactions but they don’t feel safe enough or know how to express these emotions.

            A second major challenge for ASD clients is the expression and understanding of emotions, both in the self and interpreting the emotions of others.  This condition, known as alexithymia, causes problems socially, as well as internally and leads to isolative behaviors make the ASD client feel misunderstood and very alone (Hull, 2011).  Not being able to control emotions or understand what others might be feeling can lead to major disruptions in forming and sustaining relationships.  For children in particular, baffling emotions create a sense of paralysis and frustration due to delays in brain development that further disrupt relationships and peers often reject the child on the spectrum.  This results in a damaged sense of self and leaves the child feeling confused and abandoned.  Other themes of ASD include problems with impulse control, obsessive behaviors and thinking, and problems with adjusting to new people/situations or unexpected changes in routine.

Benefits of Technology and ASD

            Familiarity and a sense of control are two of the main benefits of incorporating technology with ASD clients.  In the case of Gregory, it is evident that Gregory is excited about coming to therapy because it involves a game that he enjoys and knows on his personal IPad.  For many ASD clients, a portable device such as an IPad or video game console is very much like a security blanket.  Also, Gregory is in complete control of the game play which creates a sense of safety.  This sense of safety forms a foundation of trust between Gregory and the therapist, which paves the way for future work in the form of problem solving, perspective shifting, and helping Gregory develop self-representation.  As previously mentioned, forming relationships is difficult for those with ASD, as well as adjusting to new people and places which the therapy process demands.  Through using a tool that is familiar, the therapy process is not as daunting.

            Therapeutic benefits of incorporating technology include using themes and metaphors, overcoming challenges, and increasing emotional awareness and impulse control.  For example, when the therapist tells Gregory that he feels alone and afraid, Gregory responds “Now you know how I feel when I’m at school and I want to go home.”  This interaction with the therapist and the comment reveals multiple issues with Gregory.  First, his way of playing with others is to be in complete control.  Second, the emotional content related to how he feels about school is important to note and address later on in the therapy process.  Through playing with Gregory, the therapist can model responses that can provide insight for Gregory and emotional awareness, as well as gradually shaping Gregory’s tolerance of not always having to be in control.

            My future blog posts will address these therapeutic benefits in detail and demonstrate how technology is used with ASD clients. 

References

Hull, K. (2011). Play Therapy and Asperger’s Syndrome: Helping Children and Adolescents

Grow, Connect, and Heal through the Art of Play. Lanham, MD: Jason Aronson.

Hull, K. (2017). Play therapy with children with ASD and chronic illness. In L. Rubin (Ed.), Handbook of Medical Play Therapy and Child Life: Clinical Interventions for Children and Adolescents. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis. 

Kevin B. Hull, Ph.D., RPT https://drkevinhull.com/

Dr. Hull is a licensed counselor in Lakeland, Florida and his life’s passion is helping people. He is honored to represent the counseling profession as a therapist, professor, and author. Dr. Hull is a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP). One of his specialties is working with children, adolescents, and adults diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disabilities. He also helps families of all kinds overcome many types of challenges. Dr. Hull use many innovative types of therapy such as play, solution-focused, and cognitive therapies and conducts groups with children and adolescents to help them understand themselves and learn to use their amazing gifts and find their place in the world.

The post Unlocking Growth in Autism Spectrum Clients through Technology and Play – Guest Blog first appeared on Jessica Stone, PhD, RPT-S.

Leslie Baker, MFT, NCC, RPT-S

Continued from blog post #2

The client is asked to develop the bullying story that they had portrayed and to act it out with the Thera-Tool™ Figure and other props. The therapist can witness and/or participate depending on the client’s choice and may suggest video recording the drama play especially if the clinician is a part of the drama play so they can watch it as a playback to explore the experience from the 3^rd person perspective.

Technology Integrated Multimodal Play Therapy creates an opportunity for a client to calm and downregulate as they explore their bullying incident, in the beginning, from the most structured moderate exposure, drawing it on a tablet. Overtime, the client exposes themselves with self-regulation, support and witnessing to two additional opportunities for more prolonged exposure to the same bullying incident. The Virtual Sandtray App and Drama Play allow the client to gain mastery and control over their world, affecting their vision of their traumatic experience. This process aids the client to develop outcomes they choose, and they decide on. The therapist provides the relationship and technology and becomes another trusted ally in their healing.

Helpful Tips:

• Be mindful to keep the clinical tablet you use free of personal information and be cautious to delete creations after printing them for your clients file.

• Video would only be appropriate with a properly signed consent form from the youth, parents and/or client and ability to manage digital assets with proper HIPPA regulations.

• If a client becomes flooded or dissociated while exploring the trauma material, stop the intervention and offer the MUSE for downregulating as needed or offer another downregulating opportunity such as bilateral tapping.

References

Gantt, L. & Tinnin, M.D., (2009). Support for a neurobiological view of trauma with implications for art therapy. The Arts in Psychotherapy. 36(3) 148-153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2008.12.005

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J.W., (2018) Connecting Adolescent Suicide to the Severity of Bullying and Cyberbullying, Journal of School Violence, DOI: 10.1080/15388220.2018.1492417 Abstract Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15388220.2018.1492417?scroll=top&needAccess=true

Perry, B.D., (2009). Examining child maltreatment through a neurodevelopmental lens: clinical application of the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics. Journal of Loss and Trauma 14: 240-255.

Pierce, L., (2014). The Integrative power of Dance and Movement therapy: Implications for the Treatment of dissociation and developmental trauma. Arts in Psychotherapy, 41(1): 7-15. Retrieved From: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2013.10.002

The National Academies of Sciences, (2018) Preventing Bullying Through Science, Policy, and Practice Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/23482/chapter/2

Van der Kolk B., (2014). The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. New York, NY: Sage.

Leslie Baker, MFT, NCC, RPT-S: Licensed since 1991, Leslie serves couples, families, women, men and youth who are dealing with challenges in connecting to themselves, others and to their lives. Her specialties include: depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, loss and parenting issues; and she assists couples, individuals and families facing all types of life’s transitions and challenges. She provide safe and supportive, compassionate, results-oriented sessions to help reduce symptoms, increase resilience and options and facilitate well-being and happiness. 

https://gottmanreferralnetwork.com/therapists/leslie-baker

Medibang paint: https://medibangpaint.com/en/

Virtual Sandtray: http://www.sandtrayplay.com

Thera-tool: https://www.trinaswerdlow.com/thera-tool-figure/

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