2023 Author: Jake Johnson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 23:11
Sometimes, it is very difficult to practice conventional therapy. Whether due to the type of disorder or the type of patient, we often resort to other ways of reaching the person, both for the application of the treatment and to reach adiagnosis clear.
In this context, we refer today to play therapy. It is a type of therapy that uses the game as the main resource. Although a priori the target audience is children, it is also very effective in adult therapy and in the geriatric setting.
The play therapy helps the patient to express what is inside him. It is a very effective venting technique, tremendously useful to promote a communication space where the patient feels freer and safer.
The sensory stimulation produced by the game favors creativity and the projection of the emotional interior that can be expressed through language while playing play the game. On many occasions, it is easier to express yourself in a playful environment than in a usual therapy session.
A comfortable space will be sought, where an environment of trust will be created that will favor the patient's emotional openness.
The central nervous system will also be stimulated with this technique which will cause a decrease instress because of the emotional discharge.
No need special toys. Products such as plasticine, rag or plastic dolls, construction pieces, buckets, shovels, etc. are available to all. In the same way, we can always use everyday utensils that we can give a playful use to, such as wooden cooking shovels, Tupperware, empty plastic bottles or straws.
The type of game will depend on the age of the patient and the goal we want to achieve. If we are looking for sensory stimulation of some kind, we can make noise by putting two objects in contact or putting it without color contrast, etc. If we are looking for the expression of a latent emotion, then it will be more appropriate to establish a kind of dialogue between two dolls so that the patient does not have to expose their fears in the first person but through a character created by the doll.
It is therefore a very dynamic and personalized environment so the therapist must be properly trained to be able to adapt the therapy to each patient and to be able to get the most out of it. You will have to master the use of toys, taking into account the properties of each one for the proper application of the therapy.
Play by definition produces fun, and fun produces psycho-emotional and physical improvements. Therefore, we should not underestimate the power of the game as the main element in terms of participating in the well-being of a person, either as a cause itself or as a component thattrigger another process. It has been proven that learning through play is more meaningful. Let's take care never to lose the child we carry inside. Let's make it a transversal experience that accompanies us throughout life.
