Next Level Play Therapy: A Podcast for Play Therapy Excellence
Join me on Next Level Play Therapy, a podcast for child and adolescent therapists seeking to elevate your play therapy services. Hosted by Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S, at Renewing Hearts Play Therapy Training.
Each episode delves into the nuances of play therapy, exploring innovative techniques, evidence-based practices, and practical strategies for providing exceptional therapeutic experiences. These engaging discussions cover a wide range of topics, including building rapport with children, how to make sure you get great outcomes for clients, therapeutic toys and tools and strategies to use in sessions, addressing trauma and attachment issues, engaging parents, promoting emotional regulation, and nurturing resilience for children and their families.
Whether you're an experienced therapist looking to refine your skills or a novice clinician venturing into the world of play therapy, the Next Level Play Therapy podcast equips you with the knowledge and insights to enhance your play therapy practice. With interviews featuring experts in play therapy, exploration of best practices, discussion of game-changing principles and strategies, this podcast equips you with the tools to unlock the amazing power of play therapy to transform the lives of children, adolescents, and families.
Tune in to Next Level Play Therapy and take a journey towards becoming an exceptional play therapist as we navigate the next level strategies that lead to profound healing and growth for children and their families.
Episodes
113 episodes
Play Therapy with Adolescents: Why Teen Symptoms Are Easy to Misread
What do you do when a 16-year-old walks into your office, shrugs, and says, “I don’t care”?Low motivation. Failing grades. Emotional shutdown. Estrangement from a parent after divorce. On the surface, it can look like depression, defianc...
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Episode 113
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43:40
Sand Tray Therapy with Teens: How to Use It Effectively in Play Therapy
Can you really use sand tray therapy with adolescents?Absolutely—and when you understand how to adapt it developmentally, sand tray becomes one of the most powerful expressive arts tools to use with teens.In ...
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Episode 112
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46:58
How to Use Poetry with Teens in Play Therapy for Self-Expression
This week I’m sharing one of my favorite ways to help teens access the therapeutic powers of play using poetry.Yes - poetry!If you’re rolling your eyes and remembering your high school English class feeling tortured by reading poe...
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Episode 111
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46:43
Best Strategies to Use Play Therapy with Teens
Play therapy isn’t for adolescents. It’s just for little kids.There’s a misbelief in the mental health community that play therapy is only for little kids.Maybe you’ve wondered that yourself....
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Episode 110
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50:02
Can Play Therapy Work with Teens?
Ever sit across from a teen in session, clock ticking, silence screaming… and your nervous system quietly panicking?Yeah. This episode is for that moment.In this week’s podcast, we’re naming the thi...
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Episode 109
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39:08
What’s the Difference Between Play Therapy and Using Play in Therapy?
Happy International Play Therapy Week! 🎉What is play therapy—and how is it different from simply using games and activities in therapy sessions?This is a common and critical question for mental health professionals working ...
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Episode 108
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41:45
How to Increase Play Therapy Impact & Reduce Burnout
More Impact. Less Burnout. isn’t a cute slogan. It’s a line in the sand.Because here’s the truth most play therapists won’t say out loud:Burnout doesn’t come from caring too much.It comes from doing this work
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Episode 107
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40:43
How to Get Better Results in Play Therapy Without Doing More
What if better results in play therapy didn’t come from more play therapy activities, more games, or more play therapy training — but from clearer thinking?In this week’s free livestream episode, I’m pulling back the...
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Episode 106
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43:03
How Does Consultation Improve Play Therapist Growth?
If you’re a mental health professional, including play therapy, we’ve all heard this said and probably even said it ourselves:consultation is a clinical and ethical part of providing effective play therapy (and therapy in gene...
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Episode 105
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34:58
If Being a Play Therapist Feels Lonely, This Is for You
A New Year Is a Chance to Stop Doing Play Therapy Alone.A new year begins… and for many play therapists, your caseloads are already full.Same questions about what you shou...
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Episode 104
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37:07
How to Use AutPlay Therapy with Neurodivergent Kids
Helping Neurodivergent Kids Thrive in the Playroom: A Conversation with Dr. Robert Jason GrantEvery month inside Play Therapy Academy and the Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE, I hear the same heart-wide-open question:<...
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Episode 103
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40:42
What is Case Conceptualization in Play Therapy?
🎁 Pulled from the Vault: An Oldie but GoodieI’m officially taking a break this holiday season — slowing down, soaking up family time, and sipping something warm by the tree. ✨But I didn’t want to leave you hanging! So I dug into...
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Episode 102
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35:29
What Are Best Practices in Play Therapy for Clinical Decision-Making?
Happy holidays!! I’ve decided to take two weeks off to spend the holiday season focusing on my family.So – I went back into my livestream vault and found this oldie but goodie!Check out...
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Episode 101
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36:49
Music Therapy for Healing Trauma & Grief in Play Therapy
🎶 This Week’s Podcast: How Music Helps Kids Heal — A Heartfelt Conversation with Crystal Luk-WorrallIf you’ve ever watched a child hum softly during play…tap a rhythm while they’re telling a story…...
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Episode 100
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44:50
Basic Skills Using Sand Tray Effectively in Play Therapy
If you’ve ever wondered how to set up a sand tray during play therapy sessions in a way that feels intentional, grounded, and supportive of your client’s nervous system, this episode is your new BFF.We’re diving into the essent...
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Episode 99
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43:26
How to Write Meaningful Play Therapy Treatment Plans
If I say play therapy treatment plans, what’s the first thing that pops into your brain?“Aaaaagh! I hate writing treatment plans! They’re just more paperwork to make insurance happy.”“Ugh, they’re so...
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Episode 98
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36:22
How Does the Sand Tray Help Clients in Play Therapy?
When kids can’t find the words, the sand tray speaks for them in play therapy sessions.In this week’s podcast episode, we’ll look at how sand tray therapy taps into the implicit...
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Episode 97
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41:01
How to Use Sand Tray in Play Therapy
Sand Tray Therapy vs. Sandplay Therapy: What’s the Difference—And Why It Matters for Play TherapistsEver find yourself wondering, “Wait… am I doing sandplay therapy or sand tray therapy?” 👀...
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Episode 96
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41:52
4 Sand Tray Activities for Family Play Therapy Sessions
I love love love using sand tray therapy in family play therapy sessions!Watching how families approach and complete the activities provides a wealth of information about interaction patterns and how each family memb...
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Episode 95
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46:49
How to Use Sand Tray in Family Play Therapy Sessions?
🌪️ Family Play Therapy + Sand Tray = Chaos or Connection?Ever had a family play therapy session turn into a sand-flinging circus? 🙃 One minute it feels like magic, the next like total mayhem....
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40:11
3 Common Mistakes Using Family Play Therapy (And What to Do Instead)
3 Hidden Mistakes Sabotaging Your Family Play Therapy Sessions“Let’s invite the parents in…”Sounds simple, right? But if you’ve ever had a family play therapy se...
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Episode 93
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45:30
Why Parent Updates Alone Can’t Fix Stalled Play Therapy Progress
🚨 The Big Miss in Traditional Play Therapy (And Why It’s Holding Back Progress)We talk a lot about helping kids heal using play therapy…But here’s the truth no one wants to say out loud:...
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Episode 92
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44:43
Play Therapy with Parents | 5 Essential Tips for Family Play Therapy Sessions
🚨 5 Signs You Might Be Accidentally Sabotaging Your Play Therapy Progress (and What to Do Instead)If you’re a play therapist who’s tired of getting those frantic mid-week parent calls, texts, or emails saying “nothin...
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Episode 91
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41:10
Is Individual Play Therapy Better Than Family Play Therapy?
The norm in play therapy, and the mental health profession in general, is to meet with a child or teen every week for individual counseling sessions and meet with parents as an adjunct to treatment.This format has be...
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Episode 90
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43:58
