FAQ

In Play Therapy, your child will come into the playroom while you wait in the waiting room (if possible). You may hear banging, laughing, yelling and singing - or it may be silent. Most of the time your child will leave regulated, but sometimes the session is hard for the child so they may need extra cuddles and affection from you. Your child may exit with a special gem which we call a 'transitional object' to help the transition from the therapy space to the home space. Your child may want to tell you everything that happened, or may want to keep it to themselves - both are acceptable.

Try to avoid discussing your child in front of them before or after the session. Play Therapy is a safe space for your child and we try to minimise conversations about your child in front of them. If you have time sensitive questions or concerns, email your child’s therapist directly. Alternatively, wait for the parent update sessions which we schedule every 4-5 child sessions. In the updates, we share progress, check in with each other and ask questions, all without your child present.

Play Therapy is designed to create a confidential and safe space for the child and that means having their parent/carer wait in the waiting room. However, we always strive to ensure that the child is comfortable and if that means having you in session with them, then we will accommodate that, usually with a slow, gentle separation over multiple sessions. Coming into session on their own can be a milestone for children and increase their independence and confidence. We also offer filial sessions such as Theraplay if this is a concern.

Play therapy is an important time for children to ‘just be’ without expectations or pressure to talk about their sessions. Try to resist asking your child questions such as “What did you play with?” Or “Did you have fun?”. Instead, a statement such as “all done, it’s time to go home now ” reduces any pressure to share. If your child does initiate sharing about what they did in their sessions, that’s absolutely fine!

Sometimes children's behavioural or emotional challenges can become worse before they get better while they are in therapy. This is because the process can bring up feelings, anxieties or hurts that may have previously been repressed. This is part of the process, and over time your child will develop resilience and coping strategies to deal with these challenges.

Weekly sessions are ideal as Play Therapy is based on the therapeutic relationship, this grows week to week and is built upon with each visit. We find that when children go too long between sessions this relationship doesn't progress and change is slow and stalls. We only offer fortnightly sessions in very rare circumstances. We encourage you to talk to your therapist for further information.

This is a common misconception. We won't teach your child how to play as we know that how your child plays is the right way for them. If we tried to teach them to play, that would mean that our way is the 'right' way and theirs is the 'wrong' way. Instead, we follow your child's lead completely, we learn how they express themselves and 'talk play' in their language. This is why play therapy works, children feel heard, understood and respected.

We also hear this a lot, and try to highlight the word 'therapy' in what we do. Just like how you speak at home but also see a Speech Pathologist or have a sensory swing at home but still see an Occupational Therapist. Play therapy supports what you already do whilst adding the psychological element of therapy and the communication of play to make it truly impactful.

Play therapy does not require any words from your child to see change and make a difference to their life. We have experienced many children not utter a word for 20 sessions, yet progress and reach goals outside of the session. This is due to the unconditional positive regard we show each and every child. Accepting them the way they are in the moment and not expecting them to change for us. Note: The child does need a level of receptive language.

Definitely, we are proudly neurodivergent affirming! This means that no matter your child's neurotype, they are welcome in session with us. This also means that we will not try to change/fix/cure your child - no way! We will embrace your child, celebrate them and show them each and every session how amazing we think they are - just as they are.

Yes, we can accept self and plan managed NDIS participants.

You will be able to talk to your therapist about this in the parent/carer updates. It is likely you won’t see any changes in the first 4-6 sessions as the child is still building trust in the therapist and space. After that, it could be things like a reduction in meltdown occurrences, increased tolerance of others, increased emotional regulation (e.g they recover from a negative experience faster). Sooo many things!

If there is no court order in place then only one parent needs to consent, however we do prefer for both parents to know about the sessions and give permission. We are happy to have 2 separate intakes, updates and communications. If there is a court order in place, we cannot provide therapy unless it is inline with the order.

Step 1: Contact your caseworker to discuss accessing Play Therapy to help your child to process their trauma, help with behaviour/emotional regulation etc. Step 2: Once they agree, email admin@playtherapysa.com.au with the caseworkers name and email address. Admin will send a quote to be accepted. Step 3: Wait for the admin to call you to book in the carer intake. *If step 2 doesn’t go ahead, you may need to advocate for your child further, let us know how we can help.