Healing Trauma in Children with Play Therapy
When: Thursday, January 30 - 10:30 AM
Duration: 1 hours 30 minutes
Location: Zoom
Event Details:
Play is an integral part of the human experience which allows children to explore their surroundings and develop new skills and relationships. For children who have experienced trauma, play therapy techniques can be used to help them process the adverse event(s) and learn to regulate their emotions through the natural form of play. It’s a type of therapy that is less invasive as it relies on a child’s instinctual way to communicate and express themselves, as opposed to other more formal types of therapy that could be quite scary for a young child.
To support clinicians working with children, this webinar on trauma-responsive play therapy presents an integrative approach to therapeutic work. This training will delve into the application of established psychological models such as the Tri-Phasic Model, the Three R’s Model, and various play therapy techniques including directive, non-directive, and cognitive-behavioral approaches. Participants will learn how to utilize play as a powerful diagnostic and healing tool, enabling them to effectively support children in expressing, processing, and understanding their emotions and experiences. The use of sensory, somatic, and narrative techniques to foster safety, stabilization, and healing will also be covered. Furthermore, clinicians will gain insights into customizing therapeutic approaches to the individual needs of children, enhancing their ability to facilitate recovery and resilience.
After attending this offering, participants will be able to:
- Apply the Tri-Phasic Model, the Three R’s Model by Perry, and other trauma-informed strategies into their play therapy practice to enhance emotional and psychological safety for child clients
- Identify various play therapy techniques to help children articulate their experiences and feelings in a supportive environment
- Apply sensory and somatic interventions to aid children in better self-regulation and emotional control
About the Presenter
Dr. Ritchie Rubio is currently the Director of Practice Improvement and Analytics of the Children, Youth, and Families System of Care at the San Francisco Department of Public Health in California. In that role, he plans and coordinates a clinical practice improvement and evaluation program focused on identifying best trauma-informed and diversity-responsive practices; and utilizing implementation science to design and strengthen clinical assessment and interventions. Dr. Rubio’s clinical work is primarily with immigrant and multicultural children/youth and their families. He mostly integrates psychodynamic, attachment, family systems, multicultural, expressive arts, play therapy, and CBT orientations. He is also an adjunct professor at the Counseling Psychology programs of the University of San Francisco, Pepperdine University, and the Wright Institute in Berkeley.
Dr. Rubio has worked as a clinical child psychologist, systems leader, researcher-storyteller, program evaluator, statistical consultant, national telehealth expert consultant, and associate professor/lecturer in a variety of clinical and academic settings including public health systems, universities, pediatric hospitals, community mental health settings, schools, and research institutes in three countries: the Philippines, U.S.A., and New Zealand. He obtained his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University San Francisco and his MS in Psychology from Saint Louis University.
