Healing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. Article features an interview with a therapist about their playrooms and therapy background.
This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on Robin Pucci who practices in Bradford, Ontario

Fraser, Theresa

Healing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. Article features an interview with a therapist about their playrooms and therapy background.
This edition of Healing Spaces features Donna Starling, MSW, RSW, CPT. She owns a private practice called: Wonder. Play and Talk Therapy for Children and Adolescents which is in Fergus, Ontario, Canada

SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence

Sheridan CollegeSOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate ResearchCreative ExcellenceFaculty Publications and Scholarship School of Community StudiesFall 2015Healing SpacesTheresa FraserSheridan College, theresa.fraser@sheridancollege.caFollow this and additional works at: http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publPart of the Social and Behavioral Sciences CommonsThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Community Studies at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output UndergraduateResearch Creative Excellence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Scholarship by an authorized administrator of SOURCE:Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence. For more information, please contact source@sheridancollege.ca.SOURCE CitationFraser, Theresa, "Healing Spaces" (2015). Faculty Publications and Scholarship. Paper 16.http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publ/16Playground  •  Fall/Winter 201512by Theresa Fraser CYW, M.A., C.P.T. Healing SpacesHealing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. If you would like your playroom featured please contact theresafraser@rogers.com or lorie.walton@hotmail.com. Donna Starling, MSW, RSW, CPT is the featured therapist for this edition. She owns a private practice called: Wonder. Play and Talk Therapy for Children and Adolescents which is in Fergus, Ontario, Canada. You may connect with her at donnastarling@bell.net.1How long have you been practising play therapy?I graduated with an MSW in 1997 and began working at a residential treatment centre for boys. I quickly realized that, to engage the children and teens, talk therapy was not going to be as effective as other, more creative options. My first degree is in English, so I combined what I knew about poetry and therapy to run a “music listening group” – the boys (mostly 16 years old) would present the lyrics of songs that they felt represented their experience. Using the songs, they would share their own stories. We would then “jam” on guitars during the break. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was using therapeutic play out of necessity. I later moved to Detroit for five years to work with children and teens in a program that combined mentoring and activity with therapy. Again, much of the interventions were in the realm of play therapy. It was in Detroit that I learned of two brief introductory trainings in play therapy and took these courses. I realized then that much of what I was doing was therapeutic play. However, in order to ensure that I was using interventions correctly and effectively, I decided, when the time was right, to start down the road to become a certified play therapist. I started the CACPT program in 2009. In 2013, I became certified through CACPT as a play therapist.2What drew you to the field of Play Therapy?I grew up at a rural boarding school, where my parents worked. We were surrounded by fields, a lake, forests – so much space to play and learn. With the other staff children, I played and learned – it was wonderful. I worked on the same campus in the summers as a camp counselor, working on the waterfront, coordinating collaborative games and teaching the CIT program– again, more playing and learning. I truly believe in the value and need to process, develop and negotiate relationships by playing. 3What is your primary theoretical orientation and how did you evolve in to that orientation?Because I am a social worker as well as a play therapist, I always have the influences of the child’s family and social system forefront in my mind. When I trained as a social worker, I completed a placement at the Douglas Hospital Centre for Eating Disorders outside of Montreal. There, the www.cacpt.com13program was a carefully chosen combination of CBT and psychodynamic approaches. This approach has remained with me – I typically begin a session with a directive activity to target the stated goals. The second portion is then child-centred in approach, to allow for the child to direct to what it is they need to process, while I follow and observe aloud.However, I do believe in being flexible based on the needs of the child and their system. If the issue for a child is attachment, I will draw upon Theraplay. If the issue for a child is anxiety without other complex issues, I will almost solely use play-based CBT. For issues of complex trauma, I will use a child-centred approach. With factors such as the very individual differences of a child’s personality, their experiences, their family dynamics as well as the reality of funding issues, just one theoretical orientation is not ideal in practice.4 What is your favourite technique  and why?I really love anything that involves storytelling. The manner in which the metaphors within stories can be used to safely represent a child or teen’s experience, provide such potential for hope and possibility for emotional resolution. To prompt and engage children in stories, I use the sand tray, puppets, art, and story cards. One of my favourite storytelling interventions is to ask a child to choose a few puppets that we could tell a story about together. I ask them to tell me about each character they have chosen and, using questions, establish a general story line. The child goes behind the puppet theatre and enacts the story while I begin to tell it. However, as I tell the story, it is based on their answers to questions I whisper to them as the puppeteer. For example, I might whisper, “Tell me what that feels like for him?”, “Who do you think might come and help?” or “What do you think might happen next?” It is useful for both assessment and intervention purposes. The added sense of safety the child feels behind the puppet theatre and speaking through the puppets is helpful.5What is your play therapy environment like?My play therapy office is large and open. I like to have all the available toys visible for children to see and use, based on what they feel is best for them to express. As I work with teens and young adults as well, I have a sitting area for talking and art. My favourite part of my play therapy room is my sand tray table. My father is a retired teacher but is quite gifted at carpentry. He built it for me one year as a Christmas present. I think he took some joy in telling people he was building a “sand box” for his adult daughter! I must admit that I did feel like a kid again when I came down Christmas morning to find it under the tree!6What was your Play Therapy training and supervision experience like and what would you recommend to new play therapist about it?The CACPT training was incredibly fun, enlightening and overwhelming. I completed one level per year over three years. This allowed me to practice the skills and become familiar with the theory between each level. I would recommend, to therapists starting down the play therapy road, spreading out the training in this way. Playground  •  Fall/Winter 201514The variety in skill sets and theoretical orientation of all of the professors truly gave us permission to reflect on our own individuality, strengths and theoretical orientations. Based on this reflection, I chose to begin supervision with Greg Lubimiv, due to his expertise in storytelling. I then completed my supervision with Lorie Walton. Lorie’s knowledge of attachment and Theraplay was and remains instrumental to my ongoing learning. I am extremely fortunate to work with her one day each week in Bradford. I would strongly recommend choosing supervisors based on theoretical orientation and not out of convenience. I quit my job to work with and be supervised by Lorie and, while I am fortunate to have been able to do this, it was one of the best professional decisions I have made.7What do you do to practice self-care?I run, sometimes just my dog and I and sometimes with my wonderful friends. I do contemporary dance. I have a teacher who really understands the connection between dance and personal expression. I find I cannot think of anything else while dancing – it forces a person to be in the moment. I also like the occasional NetFlix binge!8What do you envision your practice will be like in the next 10-15 years? Will you be doing the same thing? Or something different?Most of what I do now is individual work and I would like to be running more groups. A past colleague, Cindy Carter, and I created and ran for a few years, a self-reflection group for teenaged girls. I miss the collaborative work that comes with groups and the insight from the members. I learned a great deal from these girls.I am working towards certification as a play therapy supervisor. I would really like to teach in the future, either in the realm of play therapy or a course in child development/therapy at a university or college. I am a guest speaker each year in the course of a friend who is a social work professor – I always enjoy this day, as the excitement of the students about the use of play in therapy is contagious. Through them, I am reminded of why I do the job I do.Kalffian Sandplay Therapy Training “CAST trainings provide complete fulfillment of theoretical training hours required for certification with both CAST and the International Society for Sandplay Therapy”Ongoing training available in the following cities: Montreal (Quebec)Toronto (Ontario) Vancouver (British Columbia)Spruce Grove (Alberta)For more information please consult our website:  sandplaycanada.ca jeudesable.ca

Healing Spaces

Healing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. Article features an interview with a therapist about their playrooms and therapy background.
This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on The Northern Aurora Counselling Centre in Leduc, Alberta

Sheridan CollegeSOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate ResearchCreative ExcellenceFaculty Publications and Scholarship School of Community StudiesWinter 2014Healing SpacesTheresa FraserSheridan College, theresa.fraser@sheridancollege.caFollow this and additional works at: http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publPart of the Social and Behavioral Sciences CommonsThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Community Studies at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output UndergraduateResearch Creative Excellence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Scholarship by an authorized administrator of SOURCE:Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence. For more information, please contact source@sheridancollege.ca.SOURCE CitationFraser, Theresa, "Healing Spaces" (2014). Faculty Publications and Scholarship. Paper 15.http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publ/15Playground  •  Winter 201414The Northern Aurora Counselling Centre in Leduc Alberta provides clients with Play Therapy, Attachment based interventions, family counselling and group counselling. There are six clinicians who share the two Play therapy rooms one of which is an observation one way mirror. Three colleagues are Registered Psychologists, one a Provisional Psychologist one a Clinical Counsellor and a Masters of Counselling student. All utilize playful approaches to support the healing process of their clients. Therapist Tanya Johnson states that,“ healing, laughter, tears, growth create new perspectives and all are experienced within the warmth and safety of a beautiful play therapy room that contains puppets, a sandtray, a dollhouse, an art center and much, much more! I cannot think of another career path that would be so incredibly rewarding, not to mention fun.”Tanya, who grew up in South Africa, received her first level training at Rocky Mountain Play Therapy Institute but had also participated in other introductory workshops. While completing her graduate degree she worked with clients from the Cancer Treatment Centers of America. She also has training in Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Art Therapy and Traumatology to name a few.She suggests that new clinicians volunteer in therapy centres so they make connections with other therapists and can gain supervision and experience. Tanya and her colleagues agree that working with the child’s family is pivotal to their work so they meet with families/caregivers approximately every 3-5 sessions. Tanya supports many children who have grief and loss issues. If needed, she will invite different family members into the therapeutic process in order “to optimize and nurture growth and development”.Tanya identifies that she utilizes Client Centred approaches as well as Narrative and Mindfulness based approaches. The centre’s sandplay tools are well used. She states that “children tend to love the sandtray figurines which sometimes are used in the sandtray, and sometimes used as part of elaborative play that encompasses the large carpeted area in the play room. Her colleague, Tammy Schamuhn, By Theresa Fraser CYW, MA, CPT-S Healing SpacesHealing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. If you would like your playroom featured please contact theresafraser@rogers.com. Theresa is particularly interested in hearing from therapists from other provinces. Thus far therapists from Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, British Columbia and the North West Territories have been featured in Playground. This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on The Northern Aurora Counselling Centre in Leduc Alberta.www.cacpt.com15also shares the belief that children find the sandtray healing given “when a psychological injury has occurred, the use of sandplay creates a platform for healing and increased consciousness. Sandplay provides an opportunity to make abstract psychological processes more concrete and allow a space for client’s move towards a place of healing and resolution”. Tammy also shared that as her family work has increased she is “adding blankets and pillows as a place for children to seek comfort and to expand the play space to utilize aspects of Filial Play Therapy and Theraplay activities.”Tammy trained at Rocky Mountain Play Therapy Institute (Calgary) with Lorri Yasenik and Ken Gardner - both CACPT and APT Supervisors. Ken is Tammy’s current Play Therapy Supervisor. Tammy identifies that supervision is key to clinician growth. She recommends that Play Therapy Interns get a supervisor they can trust and connect with for Supervision and Case Consultation. She also recommends recording sessions to use in supervison so you increase and enhance your Play Therapy skills. Director Aspen Gowers did all three levels of the Canadian Association for Child and Play Therapy Play Therapy Certificate Program in Ontario in 2009. She has also completed all of her theoretical training to become a Sandplay Therapist through the Canadian Association for Child and Play Therapy. She is preparing to be certified with both organizations having Dr. Amanda Bell (CPT-S) provide supervision as well as Bea Donald (CAST). Aspen is the centre’s founder and feels that the team is able to share the therapeutic space because they “understand how sacred it is.” Though Aspen shared that Sandplay work is the main focus of her therapeutic work, she identified it really depends on where the client’s psyche takes them during each session. The “clients participating in Play/Sandplay Therapy tend to become very familiar with the collection and tend to notice if something has been moved or changed”. Agreeing with what colleagues have shared she suggests to therapists beginning their practices that they can be mindful to choose warm colors and calm lighting when creating healing spaces so clients feel welcome and not overwhelmed or over-stimulated. All staff at the Northern Aurora Counselling Centre agrees that in order to effectively share a healing space, clinicians need to work “collaboratively to be very respectful of the space and of one another’s needs within the space. Realistic issues like scheduling time, adding new toys, taking away toys, and maintaining a clean, beautiful space need to be addressed in a manner which honors the integrity and healing energy of the play therapy room”. With this in mind the Northern Aurora centre offers support to their clients in many issues including attachment challenges, parent-teen conflict, divorce/separation, grief and loss, anxiety/depression, identity issues and relationship issues.If you are interesting in visiting the centre go to: http://auroracounsellingservices.com/

Healing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. Article features an interview with a therapist about their playrooms and therapy background.
This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on Donna Cuthbertson who practices in the Whitby/ Oshawa area of Ontario. Donna has several recommendations for new interns

Sheridan CollegeSOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate ResearchCreative ExcellenceFaculty Publications and Scholarship School of Community StudiesSpring 2013Healing SpacesTheresa FraserSheridan College, theresa.fraser@sheridancollege.caFollow this and additional works at: http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publPart of the Social and Behavioral Sciences CommonsThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Community Studies at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output UndergraduateResearch Creative Excellence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Scholarship by an authorized administrator of SOURCE:Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence. For more information, please contact source@sheridancollege.ca.SOURCE CitationFraser, Theresa, "Healing Spaces" (2013). Faculty Publications and Scholarship. Paper 18.http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publ/18Playground  •  Spring/Summer 201314As a little girl, Donna Cuthbertson knew that she wanted to work with children. She grew up in the Durham region and has developed a well-respected Play Therapy practice in the Whitby/Oshawa area of Ontario. Donna began her journey as a Child and Youth Worker and has worked in school systems, consulted in early intervention programs, mental health programs and pediatric hospital programs all over the past 36 years. Donna specializes in working with children who have exceptional needs. Donna gained her initial training at the University  of North Texas in 1993 from her primary mentor  Dr. Gary Landreth as part of his extensive supervision group. She also remembers Dr. Marie Dhase whom she describes as easily recognizable for her warmth and passion. Dr. Eliana Gil’s work has also influenced Donna’s style of work as well as Dr. Rise Van Fleet who Donna trained with at her Filial Therapy Enhancement Centre in Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania in the 90’s. Donna also trained with Dr. Gisela Schubach De Domenico in 5 levels of Sandtray-Worldplay and has done extensive training and supervision with Dr. Dan Hughes in Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy. In addition to all of these formalized training programs she has attended many international Play Therapy conferences. Donna emphasized that the understanding of neuroscience research and the effect of trauma on the brain has been instrumental in the supportive and educational work she does with families. She identified that Dr. Bruce Perry’s research and training has been influential to her work in this field.  She believes that Play Therapists should learn from highly skilled clinicians in order to subsequently develop a theoretical style and method of presentation that works best with their personality. Donna’s relationship with CACPT goes way back to the early days. She was the Membership Chair for CACPT in the 1990’s. She, along with Dr. Betty Bedard-Bidwell, Bridget Revel and Greg Lubimiv, were part of the committee which determined CACPT’s initial certification qualifications. Donna later co-authored, Hand in Hand and contributed Chapter by Theresa Fraser CYW, MA, CPT-S Healing SpacesHealing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. If you would like your playroom featured please contact theresafraser@rogers.com. Theresa is particularly interested in hearing from therapists from other provinces. Thus far therapists from Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, British Columbia and the North West Territories have been featured in Playground. This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on Donna Cuthbertson who practices in the Whitby/Oshawa area of Ontario.www.cacpt.com1510, Implementation of Play and Art Therapy Programs in Schools. Donna later shared her wisdom in the first Play Therapy certificate programs held at Kings College in London, Ontario. In 1995 Donna became a Certified Child Psychotherapist and Play Therapist. Donna will be forever grateful to Lilia Day, her CACPT supervisor, who brought her together with Brian Nichols, Hannah Sun Reid and Sandra Webb whom she has developed great friendships with and continues to get together with for peer supervision. Lorie Walton is also a mentor she is grateful for. Donna has a Certificate in Infant Mental Health from York University as well as certification as a Trauma Specialist. Since 1995 Donna has maintained a private practice in Play Therapy as well as agency work. In 2009 Donna did a mission in St. Petersburg Russia with 3 Play Therapist colleagues; Hannah Sun Reid, Sandra Webb and Brian Nichols to provide a week of training at Raoul Wallenberg University about Play Therapy and to consult at an Orphanage. Donna’s presentation was called ‘The Therapeutic Relationship: Heart Work’. In 2010 Donna traveled to China with Hannah Sun Reid and Sandra Webb to vacation and to visit orphanages. Donna chose to retire in 2010 from agency work and to maintain her private practice part time, allowing more time for her 2 young grandchildren.Donna’s play therapy has evolved over the years into an eclectic theoretical approach depending on the needs of her clients. Donna utilizes her skills in Theraplay, Filial Therapy, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Directive and Non-Directive therapy, Puppetry, Sandtray, and other various Expressive Art modalities. In the past 6 years Donna has increased her knowledge and experience in working with Bereaved families. In her practice, now located at Hearth Place Cancer Support Centre in Oshawa, Ontario she receives increased referrals for children experiencing many types of grief. In addition to individual support Donna facilitates groups for children living with a loved one with cancer or who have lost a loved one to cancer. In addition to contract work with Hearth Place Donna receives referrals from families and agencies for children with anxiety disorders, depression, anger, trauma, high conflict divorces, grief and other related issues affecting day to day function. Donna works with children with dual diagnosis and has found the therapeutic relationship along with play therapy to be effective. Donna also runs peer support groups for siblings of children with special needs. Donna is a member of Bereavement Ontario and in October 2012 presented at their provincial conference and in October 2012 she was requested to participate as part of an expert panel at Hospital For Sick Children’s annual Palliative Care conference. Over the past 17 years since certification, Donna has worked in a variety of therapy environments. Regardless of the space though, Donna identifies that the materials, and more importantly the ‘self’, impact clients the most. For example, when Donna worked for 10 years with a school board as a Counsellor between 1990 and 2000 she recalls turning over a garbage can on a gym stage for a puppet show and on other occasions traveling to schools with a portable sand tray and miniatures. Though having the miniatures in an orderly fashion set out on many shelves may be ideal, a qualified therapist should utilize the healing resources at hand. Donna noted that though many people want to be generous in donating materials, it is important to be selective and know why each item is present in your healing space, so that it facilitates a child’s freedom of expression. Given she trained with Dr. Gary Landreth, it is not surprising that she believes that materials need to be “selected” and not “collected”. That said, she believes that the therapist’s heart plays a larger role than tools/materials, as so eloquently stated in Landreth’s book: Playground  •  Spring/Summer 201316“This kind of relating, of truly experiencing being with a child with the permission of the child to know the child’s inner world, is not learned by training or by sharpening our intellect. It is a learning open only to the heart.”The importance of responding out of one’s heart in a relationship with a child was described by the Tin Woodman in his conversation with the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz.“I didn’t know enough.” Replied the Scarecrow cheerfully. “My head is stuffed with straw, you know, and that is why I am going to Oz to ask him for some brains.”“O, I see” said the Tin Woodman. “But, after all, brains are not the best things in the world…Have you any?” inquired the scarecrow. “No, my head is quite empty” answered the Woodman “but once I had brains, and a heart also: so having tried them both, I should much rather have a heart.” Donna recommends that new interns should have a solid understanding of child development, the effects of trauma, family systems, and therapeutic approaches for related issues that impact families who are referred for therapy. There are many courses, resources and/or conferences to gain this knowledge. Belonging to organizations such as Association for Treatment & Training in the Attachment of Children (ATTACh), The Theraplay Institute, Infant Mental Health (IMP), Association for Play Therapy (APT) and CACPT offer many opportunities for training and literature. One of the most economical ways to receive supervision would be to work or volunteer for an agency that provides clinical supervision approved by CACPT or to participate in group supervision approved by CACPT.In regards to professional development within Canada there is so much more available now than 10 years ago. To be economical in professional development there are opportunities to volunteer at registration or elsewhere at conferences and get free registration to attend workshops. Donna finds networking with others is a way of gaining knowledge and building on resources. She recommends that before developing a private practice it would be beneficial to have a variety of experiences within systems you may need to work with later. Developing a reputable relationship within the community you hope to set up your practice in will further enhance the success of your referral base.Being in private practice requires much self-motivation and an awareness of ongoing research and continued learning. Ongoing individual or peer supervision and the capacity for self-reflection are crucial to the integrity of the Play Therapists work. Donna states “I will always remember a valuable magical word I learned many years ago from Greg Lubimiv at his workshop about “how to get unstuck when you are feeling stuck in therapy”. The magic word was ‘BELIEVE’.” kkk ANNOUNCING kkkCaCpt Research award for active Research in play therapyApproved By An Ethics Board - to be granted in 2013award amount: $500.00Submit Inquiries and Interest to  nrbowers@aol.com (Research Chair)

Sheridan CollegeSOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate ResearchCreative ExcellenceFaculty Publications and Scholarship School of Community StudiesSpring 2012Healing SpacesTheresa FraserSheridan College, theresa.fraser@sheridancollege.caFollow this and additional works at: http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publPart of the Social and Behavioral Sciences CommonsThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Community Studies at SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output UndergraduateResearch Creative Excellence. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Scholarship by an authorized administrator of SOURCE:Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence. For more information, please contact source@sheridancollege.ca.SOURCE CitationFraser, Theresa, "Healing Spaces" (2012). Faculty Publications and Scholarship. Paper 17.http://source.sheridancollege.ca/fahcs_comm_publ/17Playground  •  Spring 201222When Robin Pucci was a high school student at Holy Trinity High School in Bradford Ontario – an inspiring Play Therapist was invited to speak to her Introduction to Psychology class on Play Therapy and the career of a Child Psychotherapist Play Therapist. This presentation inspired Robin to learn as much as she could about the role that a Play Therapist plays in the life of children and families whose lives have been touched by trauma or attachment disruptions. Robin identified that she was instantly captivated by what seemed to be the best job in the world. She decided then and there to become a Child Psychotherapist Play Therapist. Seven years later, after graduating from her undergraduate degree in psychology, Robin contacted that same Play Therapist to inquire about future steps. The first recommendation was to enroll in the CACPT certificate program which Ms. Pucci promptly did while pursing her Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology.The inspiring Play Therapist was CACPT Past President Lorie Walton (who owns and operates Family First Play Therapy Centre Inc in Bradford Ontario). Lorie explained the certification process to Robin and then later interviewed Robin for an Internship position. Robin has enjoyed learning different approaches to play therapy and how to use techniques with children who have various issues. She stated that after attending Level One of the Certificate program she has met “inspiring instructors who are engaging and have an extensive knowledge in the field”. Robin has also participated in Introductory Theraplay training given Theraplay is a big part of the work that is done at Family First. It helps to create nurturing relationships between children with attachment issues and their parents as well as support in the regulating of the child’s emotionally dysregulated presentation. by Theresa Fraser CYW, M.A., C.P.T. Healing SpacesHealing Spaces is an ongoing article in Playground. If you would like your playroom featured please contact theresafraser@rogers.com. Theresa is particularly interested in hearing from therapists from other provinces. Thus far therapists from Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba and the North West Territories have been featured in Playground. This edition of Healing Spaces is focused on Robin Pucci  who practices in Bradford, Ontario.Robin in the playroom.www.cacpt.com23Robin is gaining her clinical hours and supervision hours from working at Family First under the supervision of Lorie Walton. She also identified feeling very fortunate to be working in her chosen field in her home community. This Intern’s supervised practice includes clients who are between the ages of infants to 16 years of age. These children are referred for a variety of reasons, such as, attachment issues (pre or post adoption or foster care) neglect, physical abuse, ADHD, anxiety, depression, sexual abuse, PTSD, autism, medical or developmental issues . Consequently therapists at Family First are trained and certified to use evidence-based models such as: Cognitive Behavioural Play Therapy (CBT), Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), Theraplay, Sandtray, Filial Therapy and client centered (non-directive) to name a few. Parent counselling and psycho-educational support is also provided along with incorporating the caregiver/parent into sessions is a main practice. Family first has several play therapy rooms as well as a Theraplay room utilized by a team of clinicians. When using a therapy room, Ms. Pucci stated that she has been trained about the importance of keeping the therapy room tidy and clean. Each therapist is trained to put away anything that was used during the session, such as refilling paint containers, cleaning paint brushes, and making sure all items are placed on the shelves where they belong so that the room is ready for the next therapist and client. One of the philosophy’s at Family First is that if the clinicians show respect for the therapy rooms and the items in them, then the child clients will model that respect as well….because ‘all things and people are ‘safe’ and are taken care of at Family First.’Robin finds that the female client’s who attend Family First tend to gravitate towards the dollhouse. She has observed that the dollhouse helps children express and play out their perception of their family’s experience. She has many male clients who tend to gravitate towards the sandtray, where they most often engage in fantasy play. Ms. Pucci is working on her Masters of Counselling Psychology degree (MA) through Yorkville University and is happy to be practicing Play Therapy at the Family First Play Therapy Centre Inc while working on her dream of becoming certified as a Child Psychotherapist and Play Therapist. Robin wants other CACPT Interns to know that getting started can be scary which can sometimes mean aspiring Play Therapists doubt their capabilities. Her mentor, Lorie Walton, has told her that it takes experience to be a confident therapist but you will get there if your intentions are good and your goal is to help children and families. She has found it easy to find mentors because she has found CACPT members and supervisors to be helpful and supportive. She also identified that she has found that while learning how to help others, it is amazing how much you learn about yourself in the process. When Robin was asked which resources she likes to refer to in her practice she shared articles and books by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, Dr. Bruce Perry, Paris Goodyear-Brown and Garry Landreth. She has found that these authors/therapists/scientists offer important direction to the aspiring Play Therapist about supporting the healing process of the children who often attend Play Therapy.If you wish to contact Robin Pucci to dialogue further in regards to her journey in becoming a Certified Child Psychotherapist, you may contact her at: r.pucci@rogers.comRobin with Mentor Lorie Walton from Family First Play Therapy Centre.

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Healing Spaces

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SOURCE: Sheridan Scholarly Output Undergraduate Research Creative Excellence