Dec 19, 2017 | Family, Parenting, Play Therapy, Teens, Uncategorized
Connecting with adolescents and building a therapeutic alliance can be daunting for even a seasoned therapist. How can trust be established and a relationship built when an adolescent is reluctant to engage with a therapist? Play therapy is the answer! Play gives us...
Dec 19, 2017 | Divorce, Parenting, Uncategorized
While research regarding the benefits of custody evaluation is limited, we do know that the conflict and instability are harmful to a child’s wellbeing. Typically, custody evaluations are used when a solution can’t be reached and the child’s best interest is to have...
Dec 19, 2017 | Divorce, Family, Parenting, Uncategorized
The greatest predictor of maladjustment, behavior issues, depression and anxiety in children is the level of conflict between their parents they are exposed to. Many times the conflict children experience between their parents is during and after a divorce. In our...
Dec 19, 2017 | Current Events, Uncategorized
In the United States, slavery is not a matter of the past but continues in the modern day and is all around us. While most of us know and acknowledge that sex trafficking exists in other countries, many remain unaware that women, men, and children are being sold for...
Dec 19, 2017 | Children, Parenting, Play Therapy, Uncategorized
Do you ever wonder if the behaviors you see in your preschooler are normal or a cause for concern? Do you sometimes question your parenting strategies and wonder if there’s a better way to respond to your child? As three to five year olds become more independent...
Dec 19, 2017 | Anxiety, Uncategorized
We live in a culture of speed and instant fixes. Anyone or anything that gets in our way is considered a problem in our thinking. We do not tolerate discomfort and if pain or distress occurs, surely a professional will take care of the issue. Even though our bodies...
Dec 19, 2017 | Children, Family, Parenting, Play Therapy, Trauma, Uncategorized
Research is ongoing, but many studies have shown that play therapy helps increase engagement, process trauma in safe space, and reduce manipulative cognitions. Primarily, Release Play Therapy and Structured Play Therapy have been used in the treatment of trauma...
Dec 19, 2017 | PTSD, Trauma, Uncategorized
According to the National Center for PTSD, as many as 7-8% of people in the United States will suffer from PTSD at some point in their lives. This number jumps to 11-20% when looking at veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and/or Operation Enduring...
Dec 19, 2017 | Family, Parenting, Uncategorized, Women
Good morning! Well, truthfully it has not been a good morning. It’s been a mom morning. You know the kind where there doesn’t seem to be enough coffee in the house. Oh wait, and the ‘out of creamer’ kind of morning. The kind of morning where not one child is dressed...
Dec 19, 2017 | Children, Family, Parenting, Product Reviews, Uncategorized
Wild About You is a children’s book written by Judy Sierra with pictures by Marc Brown. This book illustrates many themes, such as the struggle of wanting to start a family via adoption and how sometimes it takes a village to raise children. One important theme shown...
Dec 19, 2017 | Children, Parenting, Product Reviews, Uncategorized
One day, as Duncan was getting ready to color in class, he opened his box of crayons only to find a stack of written letters. One by one he opens the letters and begins to read. To his surprise the letters are from the crayons! Letter after letter, color after color,...
Dec 19, 2017 | Play Therapy, Uncategorized
More and more counselors are turning to play therapy in their practices. At Garrett Counseling, we are experts in play therapy and utilize the method regularly. What is Play Therapy? Play therapy is defined by the Association for Play Therapy as “the systematic use of...