Play Therapy Series: Play Therapy with Adults

Welcome to the final blog of my play therapy blog series! The series goes over how play therapy works with children, teens, and adults. Don’t forget to check out my previous posts on play therapy with children and teens!

Play therapy with adults! Does that really exist? Why, yes it does. Although most adults think they have outgrown using play as a way to explore and experience the world, adults already engage in play on a daily basis. Do you dress up for themed parties? Or play sports? Sing along to music? Maybe even a game of poker? Play is always a part of our lives and it is a way for us relieve stress.

There is actually a significant amount of research behind the neuroscience of play. Not only is play a helpful way to help adults learn and improve their overall well-being, play can help therapists get through to the deeper issues. I find that my clients tend to open up more when they are relaxed and can have fun while putting aside their rational and objective “adult” selves.

In my practice, I use play therapy with adults to treat issues such as grief and loss, trauma, emotional development issues, social communication, and mood disorders. Some examples of play therapy activities I use with my adult clients are:

• Role playing a dialogue
• Creating a ceremony of “letting go” of something that isn’t useful
• Making up a mantra for yourself
• Using metaphors to uncover deeper rooted issues or to process emotional wounds
• Using sandtray to process trauma
• Drawing or painting
• Poetry

Like any other treatment methods, the most important thing about using play therapy is to be sure that it fits the client. These techniques are just examples of how I’ve used play with some of my adult clients. At Thrive, we always match our interventions and techniques to our client’s unique needs and goals.