Lisa is back with another episode of the Little Lessons Series, where she answers your insightful questions about the complexities of working in the playroom. In this episode, Lisa dives deep into the theme of authenticity and how it plays a critical role in the therapist-client dynamic.

Tune in as Lisa responds to 3 thought-provoking listener questions, exploring how to stay genuine and present when navigating imaginative play, emotional congruence, and handling personal questions from clients.

In this episode, you'll hear:

Carolyn’s question: “When doing imagination play and a client assigns you a role, how do you play that role? I'm often asked to be a child and the client is the adult. I find I respond as the "child" in ways that either surprise my client or I'm given the exact lines and actions to portray. My version of the authentic child when I'm improvising without lines isn't always what the client expects, nor is it always the ideal example because I usually play what I would have felt/said/done as a child and wait for guidance from my client. Hmmm?”

Lisa breaks down how to stay in the moment and respond from a place of genuineness and presence while allowing the child to lead.

An anonymous listener asks: Please elaborate on the statement you (Lisa) made: "I have never seen a child damaged because the therapist was real. However, I have seen children who never deeply connected to their therapist and didn't go as deep as they could have gone because their therapist was too scared to share and express their authentic experience congruently."

Lisa discusses how emotional congruence builds trust and safety, and why being authentic helps children connect more deeply in therapy.

Patricia’s question: “How do you handle personal questions from a child in session?”

Lisa explains how to navigate personal inquiries while staying attuned to the therapeutic goals and the child’s unique needs.

Join Lisa for a rich, reflective conversation that offers practical insights for therapists looking to deepen their authenticity and connection in the playroom.

*We love hearing from you! Have a question or scenario for Lisa to discuss? Send your questions to info@synergeticplaytherapy.com or submit an audio clip. Your questions inspire meaningful growth and learning for all of us.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Original air date: April 24, 2017

Setting boundaries in the playroom can be a complex process! When to set them? How to set them? Why to set them? Is it important to set them? In this archived episode, Lisa Dion dives deep into these crucial questions, offering new insights on setting boundaries with children in ways you might not have considered before.

Join Lisa as she explores:

• The fundamental reasons for setting boundaries and how they benefit the therapeutic process.
• How to set boundaries with children effectively and in a manner you may not have tried before.
• The timing of establishing boundaries in the playroom (hint: it may not be when you think).
• Strategies for setting boundaries in ways that do not disrupt play or induce shame.
• Practical advice and real-life examples to refine your boundary-setting skills.
• How to handle ruptures in the therapeutic relationship when boundaries are set, including strategies for repair and reconnection.

Revisit this crucial topic to gain valuable insights into supporting your clients' therapeutic journeys, navigating boundaries, and fostering a sense of safety in your play therapy sessions.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Lisa welcomes back the remarkable Marie José Dhaese, a trailblazer in the field of play therapy and the original creator of expressive play therapies. Building on their previous conversation about Holistic Expressive Play Therapy, Lisa and Marie José dive even deeper into the profound journey of healing, attachment, and reconnecting to one's true nature. With over 50 years of experience as a registered clinical counselor, art therapist, and play therapy supervisor, Marie José shares her deep wisdom and heartfelt reflections on what it takes to create a therapeutic environment where children can reconnect to themselves and thrive.

In this episode, you will explore:

• The metaphor of the "white dot": Discover how this symbol represents our core essence or true nature, and why nurturing this inner light is central to healing.
• Attachment and true nature: Understand how early attachment experiences shape a child’s development, and how caregivers and therapists can reflect the child’s true self back to them.
• The role of trauma in disconnection: Learn how attachment disruptions and trauma sever a child’s connection to their true self, and how therapy can help repair these ruptures.
• The therapist’s own journey: Hear how Marie José emphasizes the importance of therapists being on an ongoing journey of self-discovery and healing, and how this inner work allows them to hold space for others.
• Creating an environment for transformation: Explore the significance of designing therapeutic spaces that invite safety, creativity, and how nature and expressive therapies play a vital role in transformation.
• The importance of closure in therapy: Discover why creating a clear beginning, middle, and end in therapy sessions is essential for healing, and how a lack of closure can impact therapeutic outcomes.
• Navigating the complexities of healing: Gain insight into the delicate balance therapists must maintain between structure and spontaneity, allowing children to explore, express, and reconnect with their true selves at their own pace.
• Tending to your own "dot": Lisa and Marie José discuss the ethical imperative for therapists to engage in self-care, self-reflection, and self-compassion to remain present and attuned to their clients’ needs.

Join Lisa and Marie José for a thought-provoking and heartfelt conversation that will inspire therapists to reflect on their own journey, deepen their connection to their clients, and create spaces where true healing can unfold. This episode is filled with wisdom for those seeking to support children on their path to self-discovery and resilience.

As mentioned in the podcast, explore Marie José’s play sanctuary for children here: 💛 https://youtu.be/Lb20F3jF2nA?si=HSKWeTLQcrwlDtQn

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Original air date: May 24, 2022

In this special episode of Lessons from the Playroom, Lisa Dion welcomes the amazing Dr. Bonnie Goldstein, a faculty member at Pat Ogden’s Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute. Dr. Goldstein has uniquely applied Sensorimotor Psychotherapy to children, making her a pioneer in this field.

Hear the delightful story of how Bonnie and Lisa met at the Australian Childhood Foundation's trauma conference in Melbourne in 2019, instantly connecting over dinner and sparking a meaningful professional relationship.

Join Bonnie and Lisa as they discuss how to integrate the body into therapy practice to empower child clients, covering:

• Utilizing your own sense of self in client work through embedded relational mindfulness techniques.
• Understanding how the body influences the mind and combining mindfulness and body awareness to shift a client's narrative.
• Incorporating collaborative curiosity in therapeutic work with children.
• Techniques for helping clients reconnect with their bodies after trauma, including the "choo-choo train" activity.
• Reading the client's story through the aliveness of the body.
• Attuning to your own body to better attune to your client's body, recognizing the therapist's body as the most important "toy" in the room.

You'll also hear numerous client stories illustrating how to incorporate sensorimotor work into your practice and get introduced to Bonnie's unique co-therapist who assists in her sessions.

About Dr. Bonnie Goldstein: Dr. Goldstein is dedicated to fostering and healing relationships through attachment theory, somatic and mindful awareness, and group psychotherapy. She is the founder/director of the Lifespan Psychological Center and a faculty member at the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute. With several publications to her name, she is currently co-authoring a book on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy with Children with Pat Ogden, soon to be published by Norton Publishing.

Tune in for an inspiring episode filled with practical insights and heartwarming stories that highlight the transformative power of sensorimotor psychotherapy in play therapy.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Lisa is back to answer more of your burning questions! And this time, we’re diving deep into the world of teens, one of the most complex and rewarding populations to work with in the playroom.

In this episode, Lisa addresses 3 thought-provoking questions submitted by listeners, shedding light on adolescents' nuanced and sometimes perplexing behaviors.

Karen asks: "What do you do when a teen doesn’t want to engage or say anything?"

Lisa explores multiple angles to approach this challenge and offers insights into how to keep the relational connection alive, even when words are few.

Sorina wonders: "How do you handle it when tweens repeatedly ask when the session can be done or if they can be done with therapy (parent wants them in therapy)?"

Lisa explores how to respond to these moments and how to create a space that aligns with a teen's unique needs and interests, even when those interests clash with their parents’.

Mary asks: "What do you say when a 17-year-old autistic teen is showing you their video game. You don’t understand something and you ask them a question. Their response is, 'That is the dumbest question anyone could ever ask'?"

Lisa shares how to handle these tricky situations and turn them into opportunities for deeper understanding and connection, using key concepts from Synergetic Play Therapy.

Join us for a rich discussion filled with insights, strategies, and reminders on how to connect with and support teens in a meaningful way.

*We appreciate your questions and encourage you to keep them coming! If you have a question or a scenario you’d like Lisa to discuss, email us at info@synergeticplaytherapy.com, or better yet, send an audio clip of your question. Your questions help us all grow and learn together in this beautiful journey of play therapy.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Original air date: February 28, 2023

We're resharing this episode in which Lisa revisits a frequently asked question: how to support parents and caregivers in regulating themselves and ultimately co-regulating with their child when the child is dysregulated. Offering co-regulatory moments to parents can repattern their nervous systems, empowering them to become their child’s external regulator.

Join Lisa as she covers:

• Recognizing and addressing dysregulation in parents/caregivers during the therapy process.
• Utilizing the Synergetic Play Therapy concept of “The Set Up” or “Offering” to gain a deeper understanding of the parent.
• Emphasizing the importance of acknowledging our own felt sense and activation before acting as an external regulator for parents.
• Teaching parents/caregivers to become external regulators and developing regulatory templates for their relationship with their child.
• Identifying key factors when helping parents/caregivers create new regulation templates.
• Shifting parents/caregivers' perceptions of their child’s behavior to foster spaciousness and connection.

Consider this important question with Lisa: Are we willing to do what we can to create new templates for parents and caregivers, and based on our therapeutic approach, how might we do that? This episode is essential for therapists seeking to enhance their work with families by fostering co-regulation and deeper connections.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

In this insightful episode, Lisa welcomes back the incredible Liliana Baylon, a bilingual English and Spanish multicultural therapist and cultural ambassador for the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute. Building on their previous conversation about the experiences of immigrants and refugees, Lisa and Liliana delve into the evolving language and understanding around newcomers, which includes migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

Liliana, who has over a decade of clinical experience primarily treating LatinX community members, shares her expertise on the complexities newcomers face beyond migration trauma, such as post-migration trauma, acculturation stress, and assimilation challenges. They discuss the misconceptions and biases that therapists might hold, the multi-faceted traumas newcomers endure, and the importance of creating a culturally aware and curious therapeutic environment.

In this episode, you will learn about:

• The shift from using terms like "migrants" to "newcomers" and the significance behind this change.
• The global nature of issues faced by newcomers and common misconceptions.
• The extensive range of traumas experienced by newcomers, including generational, cultural, racial, and educational traumas.
• The impact of racism and bias on newcomers and how therapists can address these in their practice.
• The concept of acculturation stress and its effects on mental health.
• How to support newcomers by fostering curiosity and understanding their unique identities and experiences.
• Practical tips for intake processes that honor the experiences and identities of newcomers.
• The importance of relationship-building and staying curious as a part of the healing process.
• Liliana's powerful TedEx talk about her personal experiences with assimilation and cultural identity.

Join Lisa and Liliana for a heartfelt and educational conversation that will deepen your understanding and enhance your therapeutic practice with newcomers. Don’t miss out on Liliana’s wisdom and practical advice for creating a supportive and culturally aware therapeutic environment.

“Beyond simple labels, such as Latina or Immigrant, our individual and collective identities encompass a range of experiences, aptitudes, and viewpoints that add to a complex and nuanced understanding of our shared humanity” - Liliana Baylon

Find Liliana’s powerful TedEx talk about her personal experiences of assimilation and cultural identity on her website at lilianabaylon.com.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.

Original air date: January 24, 2019

Child's play is serious business, and games like Peek-a-Boo and Hide-and-Seek are no exception. In this episode, Lisa Dion explores how these seemingly simple games serve as powerful platforms for children to process their emotions. Inspired by her insight, "Games are platforms to help kids process their emotions. Sometimes peek-a-boo and hide-and-go-seek are just about wanting to be seen," we dive deep into the emotional underpinnings of these play activities.

Lisa discusses:

• The emotional significance of Peek-a-Boo and Hide-and-Seek in a child's development.
• How these games reveal a child's desire to be seen and found.
• Practical applications for integrating these games into play therapy to support emotional processing.

Join us as we uncover the deeper meanings behind these common childhood games and learn how to use them effectively in therapeutic settings to help children express and navigate their emotions.

Podcast Resources:

• Synergetic Play Therapy Institute
• Synergetic Play Therapy Learning Website
• FREE Resources to support you on your play therapy journey
• Aggression in Play Therapy: A Neurobiological Approach to Integrating Intensity

* If you enjoy this podcast, please give us a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcast, subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and invite your friends/fellow colleagues to join us.