Trauma & Play Therapy: Holding Hard Stories | Paris Goodyear-Brown, MSSW, LCSW, RPTS | TEDxNashville
TLDRThe speaker, a play therapist, shares insights into the profound impact of play therapy on traumatized children. She emphasizes that play is the primary language for children, especially those who have experienced trauma, as it allows them to express their experiences when words fail. Through various case studies, she illustrates how play can act as a medium for children to communicate their trauma, such as through the use of toys and creative play. The therapist also discusses the neurobiological aspects of trauma and how play can help metabolize traumatic experiences by promoting the release of joy hormones like oxytocin and dopamine, which counteract the effects of stress hormones like cortisol. She concludes by encouraging the audience to consider the stories they are meant to hold and how they can bring a playful presence to those around them, highlighting the transformative power of play in healing and understanding.
Takeaways
- 🧩 Play therapy is a powerful tool for children, especially those who have experienced trauma, as it allows them to express their experiences non-verbally through toys and play.
- 👶 Traumatized children often lack the vocabulary to describe their experiences, making play a crucial medium for them to communicate their feelings and experiences.
- 🎨 Children can convey deeply emotional and traumatic experiences through play, such as art and sand play, which can serve as a window into their experiences.
- 🧠 The way trauma is stored in the brain, often in the right hemisphere and somatically, means that children may not have words to describe their experiences, emphasizing the importance of play as a form of expression.
- 🏠 The speaker created a nurturing environment called 'Nurture House' to provide a safe and loving space where children feel secure and can begin to heal from trauma.
- 🧘 Maslow's hierarchy of needs is important in trauma therapy; ensuring basic needs are met before delving into traumatic experiences.
- 🎵 Music and other creative expressions can be used in play therapy to help children articulate their feelings and experiences, as demonstrated by the young girl who created a song on a child guitar.
- 🧠 The amygdala's role in processing emotional experiences and memories is significant in trauma, as it can trigger strong responses to reminders of past traumatic events.
- 🤸♂️ Play can help metabolize trauma by allowing children to process their experiences in a safe and supportive environment, bit by bit.
- 🧬 The neurobiology of play and trauma intersect in ways that can promote healing, with play acting as a catalyst for the release of joy hormones that counteract the effects of stress hormones like cortisol.
- 💖 The importance of sharing and holding the stories of trauma cannot be understated, as it helps to mitigate the toxicity of unspoken experiences and is a critical part of the healing process.
Q & A
What did the speaker study in graduate school for clinical social work?
-The speaker studied differential diagnosis, suicide risk assessment, and traditional talk therapy with regulated adults.
What did the speaker learn about working with traumatized children from their graduate program?
-The speaker did not learn specific techniques for working with traumatized children, such as how to handle a three-year-old trying to urinate on them or a six-year-old attempting to stab them with scissors.
How does the speaker describe the role of play in the therapeutic process for traumatized children?
-The speaker describes play as the primary language of children, particularly traumatized children, where play is their talk and toys are their words.
What is an example of how a child can communicate their trauma through play?
-A child who was sexually abused used a baby doll and a doctor's kit in the playroom to simulate the abuse and then placed a spider on the doll's private parts, asking the therapist to take a picture, thus expressing his experience without words.
What is the significance of the exercise where the speaker asks the audience to share an embarrassing experience?
-The exercise illustrates the discomfort and difficulty adults may feel in sharing personal and sensitive experiences, highlighting the challenge children face when asked to articulate their traumatic experiences.
How does the speaker address the needs of a child who came to school wearing the same clothes and appeared highly unusual?
-The speaker first ensures the child has a good meal and a chance to rest in a quiet, darkened room before engaging in play therapy, adhering to Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
What is the role of the amygdala in the context of trauma?
-The amygdala is a cluster of cells in the midbrain that processes somatosensory memories related to heightened emotional experiences. It can trigger strong responses to stimuli associated with past traumatic events.
How does play therapy help children articulate their experiences of trauma?
-Play therapy provides a medium for children to express and explore their traumatic experiences through play, art, and other non-verbal means, which can be more accessible and less threatening than verbal communication.
What is the significance of the child creating a song using a child guitar in the playroom?
-The song creation is a form of emotional expression that allows the child to process and communicate her feelings about her traumatic experience in a way that is natural and comfortable for her.
How does the speaker describe the process of trauma recovery through play?
-The speaker describes it as a bit-by-bit process that occurs in the presence of another person, where play acts as a digestive enzyme that metabolizes trauma, allowing the child to tell their story and have it heard and held.
What is the purpose of Nurturer House, the trauma treatment center mentioned by the speaker?
-Nurturer House is designed to provide a safe and nurturing environment that answers the basic brain region questions of safety and love, using the principles of play therapy and current understandings of the neurobiology of trauma.
How does the speaker use the concept of 'post traumatic play' in therapy?
-The speaker uses 'post traumatic play' to describe the cleansing rituals and symbolic actions children engage in during play therapy, which can help them process and communicate their traumatic experiences.
Outlines
🎉 The Power of Play Therapy for Traumatized Children
The speaker, a play therapist, emphasizes the importance of play in understanding and treating traumatized children. They recount their journey through graduate school, where they learned traditional therapeutic methods but felt ill-equipped to handle the unique challenges of working with young children who had experienced trauma. This led them to play therapy, which they discovered at a conference hosted by the Association for Play Therapy. The speaker shares a powerful example of a child who used play to communicate their experience of sexual abuse, highlighting how play can serve as a language for children to express their trauma. They also discuss the importance of creating a safe and nurturing environment for children to explore and express their experiences through play.
🧩 Play as a Medium for Expressing Traumatic Experiences
The speaker delves into how play therapy can help children who have experienced trauma, particularly those who struggle to articulate their experiences in words. They explain the challenges of trauma storage, which is often more iconic and somatic, meaning it's stored in images and the body. The speaker shares the story of Johnny, a child who witnessed his mother's brutal attack and used drawing and play to communicate his experience. They also discuss the role of the amygdala in trauma, explaining how it processes emotional experiences and can trigger intense responses to reminders of traumatic events. The concept of post-traumatic play is introduced, illustrating how children can communicate their trauma through play, allowing therapists to better understand and support them.
🧸 The Role of Play in Trauma Recovery and Brain Development
The speaker explores the neurobiological aspects of play in trauma recovery, focusing on how play can help answer fundamental brain questions regarding safety and love. They describe the triune brain model and how play can engage the reptilian brain stem and limbic system to create a sense of safety and love, thereby activating the thinking brain. The speaker shares the story of Bobby, a child who engaged in 'cleansing rituals' through play to process his traumatic experience. They also discuss the importance of play in allowing children to express complex experiences, such as the domestic violence cycle, in a way that words often cannot. The speaker emphasizes the transformative power of play in helping children feel safe, loved, and capable of learning from their experiences.
🤗 The Impact of Play on Neurochemical Balance and Healing
The speaker concludes with a discussion on how play can influence neurochemical balance in the context of trauma recovery. They describe the effects of cortisol, the stress hormone, and how excessive levels can be harmful. In contrast, they highlight the positive role of oxytocin, the bonding hormone, and dopamine, which are enhanced through play and contribute to feelings of joy and mastery. The speaker shares the story of Danny, a child who used play to reveal a humiliating experience from his past. They emphasize the importance of play as a 'digestive enzyme' that metabolizes trauma, allowing children to process their experiences in a safe and supportive environment. The speaker invites the audience to consider whose stories they are meant to hold and to bring a playful presence to those around them, leaving them with a sense of the profound impact they can have.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Play therapy
💡Trauma
💡Differential diagnosis
💡Amygdala
💡Cortisol
💡Oxytocin
💡Neurobiology
💡Nurture House
💡Post-traumatic play
💡Trauma recovery
💡Unspoken stories
Highlights
The importance of play in therapy for traumatized children, as play is their primary language and toys are their words.
The challenges faced when working with young traumatized children who may exhibit aggressive or unusual behaviors.
The transformative experience of attending a play therapy conference and the profound impact it had on the therapist's approach to treatment.
An illustrative example of how a child used play to communicate a traumatic experience of sexual abuse.
The concept that children's limited experiences and vocabularies make it difficult for them to express traumatic experiences through traditional talk therapy.
The use of play creation as a means for children to express and process their trauma, as seen in the child's play with the baby doll and doctor's kit.
The role of Maslow's hierarchy of needs in addressing the immediate physical and emotional needs of a child before delving into trauma work.
A child's ability to use play tools to create a song that expressed her feelings of hurt, showcasing the depth of emotional expression possible through play.
The storage of trauma in the right hemisphere of the brain and the iconic and somatic nature of trauma, which play therapy can help access.
Johnny's use of drawing and play-doh to communicate his traumatic experience of witnessing his mother's assault, illustrating the power of non-verbal expression.
The amygdala's role in processing emotional experiences and its impact on the body's stress response, as well as how play can help regulate this response.
The example of an army man to explain the amygdala's function and the concept of 'fight or flight' in response to perceived threats.
Bobby's use of red finger paint and play-doh to represent and process his traumatic experience of his father's suicide, highlighting cleansing rituals in trauma play.
The significance of the domestic violence cycle in a child's play, as demonstrated by the child choosing multiple toys to represent different aspects of his father.
The power of play in allowing children to express complex experiences, such as the domestic violence cycle, without the need for verbal language.
Danny's disclosure of abuse through the act of washing a baby doll, demonstrating how play can mitigate the approach to discussing trauma.
The neurobiological basis for the effectiveness of play in trauma recovery, including the roles of the reptilian brain stem, limbic system, and neocortex.
The design of Nurtue House, a trauma treatment center, based on current understandings of the neurobiology of play and trauma, and its impact on creating a safe and loving environment.
The role of cortisol and oxytocin in the body's stress and bonding responses, and how play can help regulate these hormones to support trauma recovery.
The importance of sharing and holding the untold stories of trauma, and the role of the therapist as 'the other' in this process.
The call to action for individuals to consider whose stories they are meant to hold and how they can bring their playful presence to those around them.
Transcripts
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