How Play Therapy Can Help your Young Child

The Importance of Child Psychology: How a Child Psychologist Can Help Your Family

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Understanding Your Child’s Development and Fostering a Healthy Future

Childhood is a critical period in human development. It’s a time when children are rapidly learning and growing, both physically and emotionally. During this time, they are also developing the social and emotional skills they will need to thrive throughout their lives.

As a parent, you play a vital role in your child’s development. However, there may be times when you need a little extra support. This is where a child psychologist can come in.

What is a Child Psychologist?

A child psychologist is a licensed mental health professional who specializes in the emotional and behavioral well-being of children. They have extensive training and experience in child development, and they can provide a variety of services to help children and their families.

What can a Child Psychologist Do?

Child psychologists can help children with a wide range of issues, including:

  • ADHD
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Learning disorders
  • Behavioral problems
  • Social skills difficulties
  • Grief and loss
  • Family conflict
  • Trauma

They can also provide parenting support and guidance to help parents better understand their children and meet their needs.

How Can a Child Psychologist Help Your Family?

If you are concerned about your child’s development or behavior, a child psychologist can be a valuable resource. They can provide you with an assessment of your child’s strengths anddad and daughter, child psychologist weaknesses, and they can develop a treatment plan to address any concerns you may have.

Child psychologists can also help you to:

  • Understand your child’s development
  • Communicate more effectively with your child
  • Set appropriate limits and expectations
  • Manage your child’s behavior
  • Cope with stress and challenges

Here are some of the benefits of working with a childrens’ psychologist:

  • Improved child mental health
  • Reduced behavioral problems
  • Stronger parent-child relationships
  • Improved family communication
  • Increased coping skills for children and parents

How to Find a Child Psychologist

If you are considering working with a child psychologist, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, be sure to find a psychologist who is licensed in your state. You can also ask your child’s pediatrician for a referral.

Once you have found a few qualified psychologists, schedule consultations to meet with them and discuss your child’s needs. It is important to find a psychologist who you feel comfortable with and who you believe can help your child.

About Dr. Steven Lazarus

[Insert a short biography about Dr. Steven Lazarus highlighting his experience with child psychology, his specialties (ADHD testing and treatment, parenting workshops, teen psychology), and his use of therapy dog Zeke. Briefly mention positive testimonials from patients emphasizing his expertise, patience, and kind demeanor.]

Conclusion

Child psychology is an important field that can help children and families thrive. If you are concerned about your child’s development or behavior, a child psychologist can be a valuable resource.

Additional Resources

By working with a child psychologist, you can help your child reach their full potential and build a strong foundation for a healthy future.

Note: This blog post is about 1000 words long and uses the keyword “child psychologist” throughout the text. It also incorporates information about Dr. Steven Lazarus’s practice, making it relevant to the target website.

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Child Psychologists in Littleton Recommend Outside Time for Your Kids

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As a parent, you spend countless hours trying to figure out how to help your kids live their best lives. For some, that may involve working with a child psychologist in Littleton, but for many, at-home interventions can make a big difference. Whether you’re looking for some evidence-based tools to help your child feel more positive, a science-backed approach to anxiety, or a way to increase mindfulness, outdoor time might be your answer!

Time in Nature Decreases Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression

Across multiple scientific studies, there is a beneficial relationship between spending time in nature and reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression. This was first studied in adults, but as more research is done on children and adolescent mental health, the same patterns are showing up. Being outside can be as helpful for some people as popular medications!

The Great Outdoors is Amazing for ADHD

If your child has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), you need a lot of tools in your toolbox. These kids are often “on the go” (hyperactive type) or “in the clouds” (inattentive type), or maybe a mix of both! When you let your child spend time outdoors, you are reducing all of the “shoulds” that come with indoor activity. There’s not much you “should” look at outside, not a lot of rules you “should” follow—and there’s so much to explore! When your child goes outside, makes a plan (climb that tree!), gets the equipment (I can borrow a ladder!) and carries it out (I’m at the top!) they are building executive function skills. In coordination with behavior techniques, medication consultations, and parenting strategies, making time to be outside can be a part of your management of ADHD.

Physicians and Psychologists Recommend Free Playtime

Your kids’ schedules shouldn’t look like they belong to a CEO. Is there play time in your child’s day? Free time is when your child gets a chance to think independently, create and solve problems, direct their own course, and explore what is on their mind. Today’s parents want their children to have such a head start that we can miss free time—but your child’s self-regulation, social skills, and executive functioning can all be improved with a healthy dose of playtime. How much? At least an hour of unstructured, child-directed, truly “free play” is advised.

Promote Good Health and Vision on the Playground

Okay, this last point isn’t really a psychologist’s expertise—but outdoor time promotes good physical health and good eyesight. The next generation’s vision is predicted to be worse than ever, and they are moving less than ever—get them off screens and outside to help promote whole-body health!

Like most things in life, there is no easy fix for mental health or behavior problems. Outdoor activity and free time are powerful tools, but you and your child may need a variety of solutions to handle problems effectively and communicate feelings clearly. For expert help, call a child psychologist in Littleton for a consultation today!

Learn more about how a child psychologist can help

 

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Psychologists in Littleton Validate Feelings All Day—You Can Too!

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When you visit a child psychologist in Littleton for your first intake appointment, you can plan to do a lot of talking. In fact, when adults think about therapy, talking is usually the first thing on their mind. But, while clients talk, the psychologist is doing the work of listening, understanding, and validating feelings. Listening sounds like an easy task, but there’s a reason adults and kids come to see mental health specialists to listen to them. Keep reading to see how you can listen, engage, and validate like the professionals!

These Active Listening Skills Help You Hear What’s Really Being Said

Your child communicates with you all day—when they’re talking, screaming, or even just sitting there quietly. The question is, are you listening to that communication? We can expect to be “listening” when someone speaks, but what about other ways that kids communicate? Your child is not only using his words, but his tone of voice, volume level, and body language to communicate with you. Show that you are listening in the same way: match your tone and volume (or direct it to an appropriate level), maintain appropriate eye contact, and turn your body toward your child. You don’t need to “mimic” motions, but moving or sitting similarly as your child can help you connect—and yes, that may mean taking a seat on the floor. Listen closely—this is not the time to be checking a phone or finishing up some household chores.

Child Psychologists Communicate Understanding Through Feelings Validation

People of all ages want to be heard and understood. When we feel like we are not being heard, we “turn it up.” That could be a louder or more stern tone or could include other actions such as moving our bodies, making threats or demands, or expressing different feelings. If you’ve ever felt so angry that you cried, ever gotten so frustrated that you yelled, or ever resorted to statements like “If you do that one more time, I’ll…” you know how it feels to have to “turn up” the feelings louder. Therapists in Littleton recognize that nobody likes to have uncomfortable feelings, but they are a part of everyone’s life. You can’t “get rid of” a feeling, and if you or your child is trying to accomplish this goal, you may just end up feeling worse. When you work with a therapist, those feelings are accepted and validated. We help adults and children learn to tolerate these unpleasant feelings, understand their role in helping us recognize when something is causing a problem, and explore tools to solve the problem.

Try These Tools to Validate Feelings with Your Child

How can you validate feelings with your child at home? First off, start by listening actively and attentively. You don’t need to agree, but you need to truly understand what your child needs to say. Then, reflect it back to them—if you’re wrong, they’ll let you know. Stating a problem in a simple, neutral, and non-judgmental manner is a great place to start. “You’re really sad that you can’t play with your friend today” sends a very different message than “What are you crying for? Your friend can play another day!” Trying to quash those feelings just makes them worse—because with everything else a child can’t control, it’s frustrating to not even be able to “control” emotions. During the big feelings, don’t move to a solution immediately—just let the feelings happen. Once your child is calmer, then you can tackle the solution—“Now that you’ve cried out all that sadness, your eyes aren’t so full of tears and you can see the calendar. Let’s find the next time when you can play with your friend.” Even when problems seem “tiny” to you, remember: you’re a big, strong, capable adult who has lived through decades of challenges. That “tiny” problem may seem “GIGANTIC” in the moment. When you help them conquer these problems, you are setting them up for success in the future.

Listening to and validating feelings is a challenge for anyone—that’s why the best child psychologists in Littleton spend years learning and practicing our trade. For professional help with active listening, emotional validation, and coping with big feelings, find a psychologist in Littleton.

 

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This is What Video Games Do Right To Motivate Your Child

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Child psychologists in Highlands Ranch hear the same complaint every day: your child can’t seem to focus on his homework or chores for more than 5 minutes, but can spend endless time working toward the next level on his video game! How are video games so motivating, and what can parents, educators, and counselors learn from them?

Video Games Don’t Punish—And Neither Should You

Bad news from science: punishment doesn’t work. It doesn’t help a person learn how to do a task, doesn’t meaningfully reduce unwanted behaviors, and increases the risk of the person disengaging or becoming rebellious. If a video game punished a player for losing, more players would “rage quit” than continue to play. So what do game designers do instead? Video games today usually use the term “respawn” or “go back to a previous checkpoint.” In real life, this looks a lot like “try again.” Your child may be frustrated to hear that her character has perished and must now “respawn at the last checkpoint,” but she’s still motivated to keep trying—all day and night! You can use some of the same principles to shape behavior.

Child Psychologists Explain Intermittent Reinforcement

If you’ve played any ad-supported phone games lately, you’ve probably noticed the trend to have a “prize of the day” or “lucky wheel” to spin for a free prize. Usually, these prizes are “worth” almost nothing, but there are a few amazing prizes mixed in, like lots of game currency or special abilities. What keeps kids (and adults!) coming back to click these low-reward boxes so often? The principle of intermittent reinforcement. Much like slot machines at a casino, or winnings on lottery tickets, there is a very low barrier to entry and the chance of a very high reward. When that reward does arrive, it’s so big and exciting that it floods the brain with reward chemicals—driving the person to come back again and again. Intermittent reinforcement makes behavior more likely—so make sure you use it to reward good behaviors, not to give in to temper tantrums.

Video Games Borrow Tools From Children’s Play Therapy

When you bring a child to see a play therapist in Highlands Ranch, you can expect the therapist to start out by making each visit as fun and easy as possible. Just like the first few levels of a video game, where “leveling up” is easy and rewards are frequent, your child’s first few play sessions are geared to increase engagement and build positive associations. As play therapy progresses, you may notice that your child’s therapist offers choices and lets your child take the lead—turns out, video game designers took notice of this as well! If you get a chance, observe your child when he first starts playing a video game. Does he go to the battle or race immediately, or check out the boosters? Does he work toward daily goals, or have his own plan? No matter what he chooses, he will see progress in the video game—and he’ll feel pride and ownership because he chose his own course. Any external goals are clearly defined and come with clearly-defined rewards and prizes, so your child can choose what is most important.

Gamification (making things seem more like games) is a tool that has shown good results in the workplace, school settings, business, and marketing—any place where “hard work” can be transformed into “good fun.” Next time you’re struggling to motivate your child, ask yourself how a video game might do it. For more tips and personalized help, call a child psychologist in Highlands Ranch.

 

 

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Child Psychologists in Littleton Avoid These Two Tear-Inducing Words

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Kids cry—a lot. In fact, many parents bring their child to visit a child psychologist in Littleton because they cry so much that it gets in the way of other activities. Does your child’s crying interfere with daily routines, mealtime, school, and recreation? Is the behavior interrupting your marriage? Keep reading to find out the two words you should avoid saying—and what works better instead.

Why Do Kids Cry?

Do you remember being a child? If you can remember your elementary school years or even preschool years, you may remember crying over “little” problems, like a sticker ripping in half instead of coming up neatly, a dropped ice cream cone, or the dreaded torture of clothes that don’t feel right! As an adult, you are so fortunate to have a hundred solutions for each of these problems—including getting in the car, driving to a store, and buying more stuff to fix those problems! Now you probably only cry when you are really injured, when someone breaks your heart, or when something devastating happens to your loved ones—problems that have no solutions. Crying serves a purpose. When kids talk to a therapist about what makes them cry, they describe feeling helpless, frustrated, and powerless when they cry. Think back to before you could leave situations on your own, before you could buy your own supplies before you know how many cool things were in the world—those little things do feel devastating, and having no power to change them feels even worse.

Why This Common Phrase Usually Backfires When Managing Kid’s Emotions

If you were deeply upset, and someone told you “stop crying,” would it work? Most adults can see that if their partner responded to them in this fashion after a loss, that partner would get an earful in return! Just like you, your child doesn’t want to cry. Crying is uncomfortable and can be embarrassing in our society—and it often feels out of one’s personal control. Telling someone to just “stop crying” is like telling them to stop feeling pain after being stung by a bee—we wish it was that simple! When your child is upset and you tell them to stop crying, you’re just piling another failure on their plate.

How To Help Your Child Stop Crying

So what can you do to help your child stop crying? Figure out what the problem was and help them to solve it or accept it. Child and family psychologists in Littleton know that not every problem can be solved, but when it can, you can guide your child to that solution. Help your child externalize the problem by naming it, and don’t hesitate to have a little fun—if your child is melting down over a pair of shoes that just won’t tie, why not throw those “mean shoes” to the back of the closet to be “forgotten forever!” and choose a different pair? If the misery is about a broken item, would your child be interested in taking it to “toy hospital” or shopping online for a replacement? For problems without solutions, focus on helping your child calm down again after expressing sadness for a while. Yes, this means that you’ll have to listen to that crying for a few minutes—but you’ll live! Once your child shows signs that they are ready to listen and move on, speak in soft, soothing tones and help them to regulate their body by encouraging things like “take a deep breath,” “have a sip of water,” or asking if they would like a hug.

It seems intuitive that a direct order to “stop crying” would work, but it often has the same effect as throwing water on a grease fire. Next time your child is crying uncontrollably, remember that you need to address the cause of the fire—or emotional upset—and connect your child with the tools they need to extinguish it. If you need help with this process, or if nothing works to help your child stop crying, visit a child psychologist in Littleton for parenting tools and play therapy.

 

 

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Try These Fun Activities At Home To Build Attention, Focus, and Planning Skills

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Paying attention is hard—especially for kids! Child psychologists in Littleton know just how short little attention spans can be, and how challenging other tasks of executive functioning, such as planning ahead, paying attention to detail, and multitasking can be. Whether your child has been diagnosed with ADHD or not, try these fun activities at home to help build up these important skills.

Cook and Bake To Help Kids Practice Following Directions

Do you have memories of baking cookies with grandma, or helping your parents prepare dinner when you were a child? You probably didn’t realize it at the time, but they were helping you to learn valuable life skills! Baking in particular requires careful, accurate measurements, and attention to time. Just an extra teaspoon or a few extra minutes will turn tasty cookies into a hard, burnt mess, and these natural consequences can help children realize how important it is to stay focused on the task at hand. A tip from Highlands Ranch play therapists is to “reserve” some of the materials just in case. Ending on a successful note makes everyone happier!

Explore Natural Consequences and Reactions with Science Experiments

Is your child always asking “what would happen if…?” Indulge some of those curiosities and explore cause-and-effect when you invite your child to perform some science experiments! This could be as simple as mixing slime or homemade dough, as spontaneous as mixing leftover kitchen ingredients, or as complicated as your older child would like it to be. Whether you are performing advanced chemistry or just trying to see “will more soap make even more bubbles?” make sure to invite your child to think about and predict the reactions, then to interpret the consequences. Child behavior psychologists use similar in-vivo activities to help children understand that their actions have consequences (good and bad, sometimes explosive!) and to plan for the future.

Try “Racing” To Build Time Awareness

If your child is always running late, taking too long, or feeling rushed, it can help to improve her awareness and sense of time. Turn it into a game and you’ll be amazed at the results! Proposing a “race” (either against a parent, or against your child’s best time), can be a good way to shift the focus to speed without rushing or pressure. For example, time your child’s bedtime routine to see how fast she really can get teeth brushed and pajamas on, or measure how long it actually takes to complete homework. With repeated practice, this can help your child “sense” how long blocks of time (a minute, 5 minutes, an hour) may actually be. Since little brains are still developing, your child therapist reminds you that this can take years of practice to perfect!

Some of the games, routines, and rituals that parents have practiced with children since the dawn of time can teach valuable life lessons. If everyday interventions and tips are not enough to help your child manage life at home and at school successfully, you’re not alone. Consider working with a child psychologist in Littleton for ADHD evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment.

 

 

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My Child Doesn’t Talk in Therapy. Are They Getting Anything Out of It?

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Making the decision to bring your child to see a child psychologist in Littleton is an important one, and one you have probably considered carefully. After all, you wonder about your child’s future mental health, your parenting strengths, and the costs of those sessions. So if you observe that your child does not talk, or if your child reports “we don’t really talk at therapy,” should you be worried? Is it a waste of time, or is your child getting something out of those sessions? Keep reading for insight into the process of therapy and counseling with kids and teens.

Play Therapy for Pre-School Kids

If your child is very young, such as those in preschool or kindergarten, you may be working with a play therapist in Highlands Ranch, or at least a child psychologist well-versed in play-based therapy. Unlike adult talk therapy, play therapy is all about experience—just like your little one learns! Because children at this age have a limited vocabulary, your child psychologist will work to understand her needs in different ways, such as her actions, facial expressions, and reactions. Every action is communication—words are not always necessary. By celebrating successes, guiding expression, and providing new and different opportunities to approach and solve problems, your child is learning without talking very much.

Therapy for Elementary School Children

This is the age where kids often tell their parents (quite proudly) “we didn’t talk at all today!” That’s because children this age often lack insight into the deeper meanings of things, and may not see the connection between role-playing, pretend play, and other tools used by child psychologists to create behavior change. For a child who is being bullied, talking about it can feel like torture. However, playing a game where all the soldiers in the castle pick on the littlest soldier, only to have that soldier save the day later, can boost confidence and remind the client of his strengths—without all that “talking.” Children will often express their needs through play, such as repeatedly being drawn to toys representing past traumas, current hurdles, or specific emotions.

Talk Therapy For Teenagers

By the time your child is in middle or high school, they’ve probably moved past the toys and games and are ready for what looks like “adult” therapy. But parents can be frustrated to find out that their child spends the session talking about their favorite TV show, the fun they had with their friends, or seemingly “random stuff.” Once again—every action is communication. Exploring the role of feelings and relationships through fantasy (like TV shows or video games) is the big-kid version of playing with toys. It allows the child to explore those things without the real consequences, or to imagine life at its extremes.

When you bring your child or teenager for therapy in Littleton, don’t fixate on “how much” or even “if” they talk. Your child or adolescent psychologist is adept at interpreting communications of all kinds, and changing behavior through interactions. Call today to start seeing change.

 

 

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What is Executive Functioning, and How do Psychologists Help Kids With ADHD Build These Tools?

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Does it ever seem like your child is so “checked out,” “disorganized,” or “unfocused” that they don’t know whether they are coming or going? This happens to everyone—on occasion. However, for adults and children with ADHD, this is the everyday state of affairs. While only the best psychiatrists and psychologists in Highlands Ranch typically diagnose ADHD, parents and teachers usually notice challenges way sooner. The problem lies in the executive functioning capabilities, which include working memory, flexible thinking, and self-regulation. It’s what helps us manage our time, plan our tasks, and get everything done, just by remembering. Some people call it the “secretary of the brain,” because, when it works well, it functions just like a business secretary would!

However, for people with ADHD, the secretary is always “out to lunch.” Without that important feature, the brain starts to get scattered, disorganized, and misses appointments! For an adult, this may look like missing bills, being late all the time, or never being able to keep the house clean. For kids, this turns into incomplete homework, missing easy items on tests, “daydreaming,” and can sometimes make a child look like he is “not-listening” on purpose. For the kid who is distracted by “everything and nothing,” executive functioning skills need a boost! How does your child psychologist in Littleton help your children boost these skills? With practice and carefully planned tools, of course!

One of the first things your psychologist will do when he or she starts working with your child is to help him identify his emotions. Having a strong understanding of how feelings and functioning connect is a good starting point, because nobody’s executive functioning skills are good when their emotions are too high. This often includes exploring where these feelings happen in the body, and what can make them better or worse. Once your child is on his way to keeping his feelings and body in check, other tools can be added to build memory, organization, and focus tools. Just like training a new employee, kids have to train their brains to work in new ways, and a psychologist in Littleton is a great trainer! Through activities like planning and organizing crafts, practicing mindfulness and meditation, completing puzzles and projects, your child will learn how to flex these “brain muscles” and keep their attention in control—instead of letting it control them. Play therapy can be a great way to engage kids in their own process.

If your child is struggling greatly with time planning, organization and decision-making, focus and attention, distraction, or “listening” when told what to do, ask yourself if their “executive secretary” may be out to lunch for good, then call a child psychologist in Highlands Ranch to start the next steps!

 

 

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Try These Tools To Help Your Child Break Bad Habits

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Has your child picked up a bad habit lately? From swearing, to using baby talk past an appropriate age, to whining, to nibbling on fingers and lips and objects, parents are constantly trying to help their children shape their behaviors into something that is socially appropriate. When problems become distressing enough, and are interfering with normal socialization, schoolwork, or self-care, parents often seek the help of a child behavior psychologist in Littleton. Before you start, or while you’re working with a child psychologist, try these tips to help your child break bad habits!

  1. Bring it out into the open.

The first step to overcoming a bad habit is to recognize and accept that it is happening. Don’t shame your child or approach him with anger, simply point out what is happening when you are both calm. For example, if your kindergartener’s endless baby talk is driving you up a tree, you could say something like “you know that voice you use that makes mommy really frustrated? That baby voice? You use that voice almost every day after school, and I want to help you use your big boy voice, like you do at school.” When a play therapist in Highlands Ranch meets with a child for the first time, they spend a lot of time simply describing what they see.

  1. Make a collaborative plan.

Work WITH your child to make a plan to eliminate this behavior. This may include a verbal or visual warning to help your child notice when she is showing this behavior (older kids who would be embarrassed with reminders may be more open to a visual warning, like a hand signal, that their friends don’t know about). It can include big or little rewards, like a sticker on the sticker chart each day, or a trip to a favorite park. It depends on what your child needs, wants, and responds to. Positive reinforcement usually works better than punishment—you want to get this bad habit out of your child’s mind, not make it seem like a looming threat. If you are already working with a behavior psychologist, consult with them as well!

  1. Teach (and practice) a replacement behavior.

Remember, whatever bad habit your child has gotten himself into began for a reason. Many bad habits serve an important purpose. Talk with your child to find a replacement behavior that meets that same need, without the annoying habit. For example, if your child curses all the time, help him to think of other, more appropriate ways to say the same thing. Humor is a great tool here—younger kids will love coming up with silly, creative terms to use as “insults” or expressions of frustration. That’s what play therapists in Highlands Ranch do when we tackle tough issues through play! If your child loves to nibble her nails or chew on her mask, introduce approved chewing tools or go for a classic stick of gum for those old enough to chew safely.

  1. Keep your role in mind.

As a parent, your goal is not to “make” your child behave properly 24/7. You guide, advise, teach, remind, and supervise, even through the (many) mistakes that occur. Expect your child to slip up, make errors, and even to backslide after weeks of good progress. This is normal. Keep drawing attention gently to the undesired behaviors, redirect the child to the appropriate replacement behavior, and reward the good when it happens.

This sounds easy, but nothing is as easy in real life as it is in a blog! If your child is struggling with bad habits you can’t break, if you need more help, or if there are ever any safety concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to a skilled child psychologist.

 

 

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What is Play Therapy, and How Does it Help My Child?

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For adults and older children, most of the best psychologists are using well-known, evidence-based practices, like cognitive behavioral therapy. These “talk therapy” methods use tried-and-true methods of changing thinking patterns to help people live a fuller, healthier life, by helping people understand their actions, reactions, and thoughts. But have you ever asked a preschooler “why” she did something? From punching the kid sitting next to her, to crying for hours after dropping a penny, your child may not know why. This could be because she lacks the language to express the feelings, doesn’t remember, or just doesn’t understand cause and effect like adults do. Fortunately, there are many other ways to help children understand and work through their problems. Play therapy services in Littleton can help your child process tough situations and manage feelings, even when they can’t “talk” about them. Keep reading to find out why!

Language is not their first language.

Just like all mammals, humans play as soon as they are able. In fact, most children start playing years before they speak, and continue to play heavily as their verbal skills grow. Adults may be familiar with learning a second language, but most of us don’t remember what it was like before we had words to structure our lives. For young children, play fills this void. Play helps a child to explore the world around him, to test limits, and to communicate without the words they haven’t learned yet. In children’s play therapy in Highlands Ranch, you may never hear your child use the word “angry.” But when The Hulk smashes everything in sight, the mommy doll throws the baby doll out the window, or a giant elephant stomps all over the city, your child is likely trying to master and understand the feeling of anger. Concrete, hands-on representations of emotions are the natural way for children to communicate.

Hush up and listen!

Lots of parents say “I just wish my child would open up to me!” Imagine if you tried to tell someone about your problems, but they would only listen if you spoke in a silly, made-up accent. Every time you tried to speak, they cut you off with an irrelevant question, or corrected you, or told you “we’re not talking about that, now!” Most people would shut down very quickly. Unfortunately, this is what children constantly live with. Their little brains are just figuring out how to make connections between concepts, and how to keep unrelated things separate, but they need practice. Everything is personal, and if they must jump through too many hoops to get their point across, they usually won’t. Play removes these limits, allowing children to communicate to their best abilities. When they realize that an adult listens to them ramble about their favorite Pokémon, their fluffy pets, or the really, cool thing they saw at the store the other day, they know that this is an adult that will listen. Once the barriers are removed, the child can feel more comfortable talking about anything and everything.

Play therapy is usually used with children 7 and younger but has shown strong promise in the research for children with learning differences, ADHD, and those on the autism spectrum. In fact, some psychologists are looking into play-based therapy for adults! If you have a young child, or even an older child who has struggled to connect with behavior-based or cognitive behavioral therapy, play therapy is an important option. Contact a skilled child psychologist in Littleton today and help your child play their way to happiness!

 

 

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