Center for Change & Growth PLC offers a wide range of counseling and psychological services enabling us to assist children and families with a wide variety of concerns.  Healing begins with a meeting with the primary caregivers, taking a thorough family history, child developmental history, and etiology of the current circumstances.  This interview is followed with several assessment sessions with the child (or other family members for family therapy) to understand the situation from their point of view and to learn about the child from the child.  Assessment concludes with another meeting with the parent(s) (i.e. primary caregivers) to review observations, diagnostic impressions, and recommendations for treatment.  From this gathering, we move into therapeutic healing following the treatment plan:

• Children’s Services:
  • Trauma depersonalization and resolution, from single-event experiences (dog bites, auto accidents, house fires) to chronic on-going circumstances (domestic violence, sexual abuse, parental emotional and physical neglect.)
  • Learning difficulties – testing and differential diagnosis, with recommendations and school-based support.
  • Adjustment problems due to changes in school and family situations (divorce, remarriage, moving, new siblings, grief and loss, bullying and teasing)
  • Anxiety Disorder in Childhood – Chronic Shyness, Selective Mutism, Irrational Phobias
  • Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder – Identification and Treatment
  • Asperger’s Syndrome; High Functioning Autism; Non-verbal Learning Disabilities – differential diagnosis, social skills training, school advocacy.
  • Depression in Childhood – Diagnosis and Treatment of low self-esteem, confusion, motivation, irritability, anger and aggression.
  • Attachment and Adoption Difficulties
• Adolescents:    All of the above services, and
  • Identity and belonging issues
  • Self-esteem and maturity problems
  • Substance abuse and eating disorders
  • Career and College Choices
  • Separation Anxiety
• Adults:  Men's and Women’s Life Transition Problems
  • Unresolved childhood trauma
  • Anxiety and panic attacks
  • Stress management
  • Depression
  • Losses in life (death, relationship, divorce, job loss, moving, empty nest, retirement etc.)
  • Anger and domestic violence
  • Career changes
  • Menopause coping strategies (male and female)

Families and Couples:  Working together to resolve mutual concerns is often best.  At times all members would be present, sometimes only one or two family members would work on family issues.  Some of the topics of recent concern are:

• Parenting
• Single parent issues
• Marriage problems
• Divorce Counseling
• Step-family adjustment
• Child management
• Adoption Attachment Therapy

Why Play?

Play is a natural and spontaneous part of people’s lives. Play is fun, creative, and critical to healthy development. During play, children learn about their physical surroundings, their own capabilities, and limitations, social rules and the difference between fantasy and reality. In play, children interact with toys and other people as they enter new experiences and rehearse new skills. In addition, play is one way children learn to communicate. In play, they can show others things that are too complicated to say.

Why Play in Therapy?

Therapists use play in therapy for many reasons. Play promotes healthy development. Play helps build a positive relationship between the therapist and the client. Play is fun and helps to engage the child in the therapy session. And, children can often communicate their difficulties more effectively through play than they can through language.

What is Play Therapy?

Play Therapy refers to a large number of treatment methods, all of which make use of one or more of the natural benefits of play. All Play Therapy differs from regular play in that the therapist helps children systematically address and resolve their own problems. Since play is fun, it makes it easier for children to confront what is bothering them. Play allows them a safe psychological distance from their problems and allows them to express their true thoughts and feelings in ways best suited to their developmental level. Once children have expressed and addressed their problems through play, the therapist will be better able to help them find solutions to their problems in life.

Current Research in Play Therapy

Play therapy, as an effective, short-term therapy approach (20 sessions or less) has been documented in several current studies, for many courses of care. In a relatively brief period, children can learn:
• To take responsibility for their behavior and apply more successful behaviors;
• To develop new and creative solutions to problems;
• To develop respect and acceptance of themselves and others;
• To learn to experience and express a wider range of emotions;
• To be empathic to the thoughts and feelings of others;
• To control their anger and anxiety;
• To resolve the reactions to trauma;
• To learn new social and coping skills.

(As is true for all treatment approaches, more serious or ongoing problems may take longer to resolve.)

Benefits of Play Therapy

Play Therapy is supported as being effective with children experiencing a variety of social, emotional, behavioral, and learning problems. These include, but are not limited to: post-traumatic stress, conduct disorder, aggression and rage, anxiety/phobias, depression, ADHD, impulsivity, low self-esteem, academic difficulties, parent-child relationships, and social withdrawal. Play Therapy has been used successfully with children experiencing divorce, death, relocation, hospitalization, chronic illness, physical, sexual, or emotional abuse, domestic violence, and natural disasters.

Association for Play Therapy, "Why Play Therapy," 2005.