Send us a text

Do children who’ve experienced trauma prior to developing language have the capacity to remember what happened to them?

Does the traumatic experience go away on its own?

I’ve often heard people, including child serving professionals, dismiss the possibility of the negative impact of neglect and early trauma on infants and young children.

Especially the trauma caused by invasive medical procedures on infants and children even though the procedures are necessary.

I find it perplexing that professionals in the mental health community and social services community would dismiss the impact of early traumatic experiences on children.

That’s usually when I go back to what research tells us about trauma.

Research tells us, especially the groundbreaking work of Bessel Van der Kolk,  that traumatic experiences are stored somatically in the body.

How can mental health professionals help these young children to overcome the negative impact of preverbal trauma?

Yep, you guessed it - Play Therapy!

Spiel, Lombardi, and DeRubeis-Byrne (2019) provide a case study using psychoanalytic play therapy to facilitate healing for a three-year old client.

It’s a fascinating case study with excerpts from sessions and a discussion of the clinical insights gained using psychoanalytic play therapy.

Interested in learning how play therapy can facilitate healing for young children who experienced pre-verbal trauma?

Join me for this free weekly podcast, I’ll provide an overview of the case study and discuss how play therapists can help traumatized young children to heal.

If you’re interested in reading the study, here’s the citation:

Spiel, S., Lombardi, K., and DeRebeis-Byrne, L. (2019). Treating traumatized children: Somatic memories and play therapy. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy, 18(1), 1-12. doi.10.1080/15289168.2019.1566974

Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground.

Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work.

I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts.

Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills