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Healing Young Hearts: Using Play Therapy to Assess and Treat Loss Throughout the Grief Continuum

February 5th, 2021

Presenters’ Bios

Mary Ruth Cross, MFT, NCC, RPT-S is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, a National Board Certified Counselor and a Registered Play Therapist – Supervisor.  She has been in the field of mental health for almost 30 years.   Mary Ruth is the CEO/Owner of Treehouse Family Counseling Services in San Ramon, CA where she and her clinical staff work together using play therapy to address the problems of children, teens and their families.  Mary Ruth is also the owner of Academy for Play Therapy Training where she provides clinical training in play therapy.  Mary Ruth also supports the play therapy community through Cross Play Therapy Consulting where her tailor- made program supports clinicians working towards full credentialing as a play therapist through the Association for Play Therapy.  Mary Ruth has been the President of the California Association for Play Therapy (CALAPT) as well as the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of CALAPT.  She also serves on the Conference Committee for APT.  Mary Ruth is co-author of a children’s book called “Snug and Rug and the No Good Very Bad Thing”.  A story of soothing and calming after a traumatic event.  

Leslie Baker, MFT, NCC, RPT-S is a licensed a Marriage and Family Therapist with over 30 years of experience in mental health. She is the owner/director of Therapy2Thrive® Marriage and Family Counseling Center, Inc. where she provides clinical services and supervision.  She is a Certified Gottman Therapist. Leslie is author of Healing Feelings: A Healing Story for Children Coping with an Adult’s Mental Illness and co-author of Snug and Rug and the ‘No Good Very Bad Thing’ A story of coping, calming and courage for children. She is a guest author of ‘Therapy in the Digital Age’ in Integrating Technology into Modern Therapies: A Clinician’s Guide to Developments and Interventions edited by Jessica Stone, PhD.  She is a local, national, and international speaker.

Program Description

This 6-hour workshop explores the theories of traumatic loss and grief in youth and how to use play therapy-based interventions to work with them in treatment. Using Perry’s “bottom up” model, which explains how the brain reacts to and is affected by trauma, this highly experiential workshop will explore how to process traumatic loss in a brain-wise manner. When the brain is regulated from the “bottom up,” for instance, strategies are geared to start with the brain stem and then calm and soothe other parts of the brain, resulting in more effective treatment and resolution of traumatic grief- and loss-related issues.  This workshop will integrate client-centered, directive and attachment based play therapy to apply effective interventions through a developmental lens. We will begin by identifying the differences between traumatic grief/loss and more general grief/loss dynamics. Then we will introduce and discuss play therapy theory and interventions that are specifically tailored to each type of situation. Further, we will explore the three-stage developmental model of grief that has been identified through research to be typical for most youth working through grief and loss. Key interventions that are suitable for each developmental stage of the grieving process will be examined and practiced by the group with experiential play therapy interventions.

Please Note: This workshop may be emotional due to the content and process.

This workshop will include PPT, video review, group discussion and experiential activities to enhance learning for all participants.

Objectives:

  1. Identify at least 3 factors and warning signs that indicate traumatic bereavement in youth in play therapy.
  2. Define and describe the three stages of the developmental model of grief and play therapy focus for each stage in working with Youth.
  3. Articulate and apply 3 play-based interventions to address grief for youth who are survivors of loss.
  4. Identify and apply at least one play -based intervention for play therapists managing possible countertransference from the treatment of traumatic grief and loss in play therapy.
  5. Identify at least 3 types of loss on the grief continuum.
  6. Identify at least 2 of the main components of the Engagement Sequence by Dr. Bruce Perry.
  • Dates: February 5, 2021 (6 hours)
  • Location: Live Webinar Via Zoom
  • Time: The training will run from 10:00 AM EST until 4:45 PM EST (There will be a 45 minute lunch break at 1:00 PM EST)
  • Cost: $125.00
  • Cancellation Policy can be viewed here.
  • Continuing Education:
    • Due to COVID-19 health concerns, this one-time online event has been approved by APT for (6 hrs.) CONTACT CE Hours. (APT Approved Provider # 18-544–Mary Ruth Cross, MFT)
    • Brighter Futures Counseling, PLLC has been approved by NBCC as an approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7035. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Brighter Futures Counseling, PLLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.