Service Description

Presented by: Eliana Gil, Ph.D, LMFT, RPT-S, ATR and Marshall Lyles, LPC-S, LMFT-S, RPT-S, EMDRIA Approved Consultant This day-long experiential workshop will explore the person of the play therapist, how to establish and maintain a healthy and rewarding work environment, how to describe what you do to parents and others, how to evaluate treatment outcomes as well as job satisfaction, how to diversify in order to prevent burn-out, and how to continue to grow and develop your professional skills as a play therapist. Most especially, we will talk about the unique challenges of being a contemporary play therapist, watching your child clients develop and grow, negotiating children’s needs for play, affection, and physical contact, and discerning among all the approaches and models of play therapy. Based on Gil’s recent focus on the role of love in play therapy, the presenters will also talk about myriad issues related to our feelings about our clients and encourage critical thinking and preparation. Objectives- Participants will: 1. Define person of the play therapist 2. List three reasons for becoming a play therapist 3. List two ways to describe what you do as a play therapist to parents of clients 4. Name two burn-out prevention play therapy strategies 5. Name a primary way of selecting play therapy approaches 6. List two ways you learned about the benefits of play when you were a child (that influenced your interest in becoming a play therapist) 7. List two alternative ways of responding to children who want physical connection 8. Specify two ways of preventing burn-out as a play therapist