Full Description
Taking an occupational therapy perspective, this book provides a resource for practitioners from many disciplines working with children who have experienced complex trauma. Readers are reminded of the damage which has happened to these children and the challenges faced by professionals when communicating with them. Play is one way in, and the overriding message is that children's play needs to be taken very seriously both for healthy development and as a therapeutic medium to support children's wellbeing.
Written in accessible language and supported throughout by examples of children's play and artwork, chapters provide a bedrock of well‑explained theory with links to practice. Topics explored include:
Recognising and understanding complex trauma
Using play as a means of communication
Child‑led assessment and play based occupational therapy
Exploration about what happens in the therapy room
Occupational therapists as part of the multidisciplinary team
The necessary support structures for therapists
An essential text for any therapist working in the field of children's mental health, this book provides readers with an effective approach in their clinical work with children and their families, bringing together an understanding of trauma, psychodynamic theory and play.
Contents
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction and Chapter Outlines
Chapter 1 Understanding Complex Trauma
Chapter 2 Additional Vulnerabilities to Trauma
Chapter 3 Play as Communication and as a Child's Natural Occupation
Chapter 4 What happens in the Playroom?
Chapter 5 Assessment, Review and Planning
Chapter 6 Theoretical Underpinning of Play Based Occupational Therapy
Chapter 7: The Therapeutic Process
Chapter 8 Working with the Multidisciplinary Team
Chapter 9 Supervision and support
Final thoughts
Index
