Synergetic Play Therapy

I am a Certified Synergetic Play Therapist Supervisor.  When I started working as a Registered Clinical Counsellor, I found that traditional modalities did not explain what I experienced with folx in session and did not provide a framework for working with folx with neurodiversity and/or complex trauma. 

I started to do an in-depth study of neuroscience, interpersonal neurobiology, attachment theory, mindfulness, expressive arts and somatic-based therapies.  That is when I was introduced to Synergetic Play Therapy. 

Synergetics (a term coined by physicist Buckminster Fuller) is studying systems in transformation, emphasizing total system behaviour.  Synergetic Play Therapy™ (SPT) is a researched-informed play therapy model combining the therapeutic powers of play with nervous system regulation, interpersonal neurobiology, physics, attachment, mindfulness, and therapist authenticity.

Play is the primary language of children.  Through the play therapy process, children create a play that resembles the emotional experiences they are struggling with internally.  These experiences usually cannot be expressed verbally.    

When facilitated by a trained Synergetic Play Therapist™, the play becomes focused on emotional healing purposes.  This leads to a reduction of symptoms (i.e. acting out and aggressive behaviours, somatic complaints, withdrawal or regression, etc.) and the reestablishment of balance in the child’s sense of well-being.  A Synergetic Play Therapist™ also works towards helping a child strengthen their regulatory capacity and re-pattern their nervous system to help facilitate a child's integration of the challenging experiences in their lives. 

Though it is called a play therapy, SPT is so much more than that and works with children as young as two years old, youth, and adults.  As it does not rely on language to process trauma, it is especially effective for individuals with a language based disability such as FASD.  

Synergetic Play Therapy honours both the therapeutic powers of movement, the science that governs the relationship, and the therapist's development. It recognizes that the interplay between these three systems that support deep transformation for both therapist and client is ultimately the interplay.