This book addresses a key need for child therapists–how to actively involve parents in treatment and give them tools to support their child’s healthy development. Known for her innovative, creative therapeutic approach, Paris Goodyear-Brown weaves together knowledge about play therapy, trauma, attachment theory, and neurobiology. She presents step-by-step strategies to help parents understand their child’s needs, reflect on their own emotional triggers, set healthy boundaries, make time together more fun, and respond effectively to challenging behaviour. Filled with rich clinical illustrations, the volume features 45 reproducible handouts and worksheets. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials in a convenient 8 1/2″ x 11″ size.

Contents:

• 1. Helping Parents Grow: Gently Shifting Paradigms
• 2. Helping Parents Set the Bar to Support Bottom-Up Brain Development
• 3. Helping Parents Become Safe Bosses: Attachment and the Cascade of Care
• 4. Helping Parents Understand Themselves to Understand Their Children
• 5. Helping Parents SOOTHE: A Deep Dive into Co-Regulation Strategies
• 6. Helping Parents Be Fun and Fully Present
• 7. Helping Parents Train the Triune Brain
• 8. Helping Parents Set Boundaries and Deal with Big Behaviours
• 9. Helping Parents Become Stronger Storykeepers References Index

Author Bio:

Paris Goodyear-Brown, LCSW, RPT-S, is the founder and clinical director of Nurture House, a treatment centre serving families in middle Tennessee, and the creator of TraumaPlayTM, a flexibly sequential play therapy model targeted to help children heal from trauma. She is an adjunct instructor of psychiatric mental health at Vanderbilt University, trains and consults for organizations around the world, and is the author of multiple books, chapters, and articles on child therapy.

Review:

This heartfelt book is a significant addition to play therapy and child therapy. Based on my own experience and a long time as a consultant and trainer for other clinicians, I can relate to the complex issue of how to involve parents in a meaningful way in their child’s therapy. This book honours the need to relate to parents in an attached way, but it’s also very practical with access to many printable activities to do with the parents. More evidence that Paris is a genius when it comes to play therapy!