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therapists Archives – Foundations Counseling

October 5, 2018
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Benefits Of Sandplay Therapy

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Sandplay therapy is a nonverbal therapeutic intervention that can be used for children, including children diagnosed with autism. Instead of trying to talk to the child, the therapist will make use of a sandbox where the child can find toys to create something that the child wants. This is a great way for the therapist to see the child’s inner thoughts or feelings. This can be another form of talk therapy while utilizing the sandbox figures as alternate communication tools.

The Benefits of Sandplay Therapy for Kids with Autism

Sandplay therapy allows the child with autism to express their feelings. It can give the therapist an idea of a trauma that the child may have or what kind of things the child finds interesting. It allows the child to show the therapist their creative side and what makes them happy. Introducing different items to the child can be a way of introducing different characters to the child’s setting. This will in turn have a significant effect when it comes to the child’s social skills.

When a child’s hands and mind wander to their happy place, they are often prone to communication. This gives the therapist an opening to interact with the child while he or she is playing. Establishing communication is always the first objective a therapist is looking for in sandplay therapy. It allows the therapist to know if the child is responding and making progress.

Sandplay therapy uses little to no words which makes it easier for the child to have his or her own personal space. This allows the child to create what bothers him or her most and make use of the sand tray as their boundaries. The therapist will be there to evaluate everything the child is building and thinking of new things to introduce to the child in order to improve their feeling toward their imagination.

Choosing a Sandplay Therapist

Some play therapists have taken additional trainings in sandplay therapy. Look for licensed therapists that have experience in sandplay therapy if you think that this therapy will benefit your child. In addition, you should also look for a therapist that has the appropriate tools and education background about the benefits and key elements of this therapy.

Doing your own research on qualified therapists in your area is another great way to find a therapist. Nowadays, therapists have their own website and usually have testimonials from previous clients on their work. Use this information to get an idea on how well the therapist might interact with your child. When finally choosing your therapist, you should make sure that you are comfortable leaving your child in their care.

September 3, 2018
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How Can Therapists Help With Depression?

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Depression is a serious condition that is currently affecting many people. It causes people to feel sad and empty, and it can also alter their thinking patterns as well as their health. Depression’s symptoms can vary; the most common ones are anxiety, anger, and sadness. As someone experiences these common symptoms, it makes it difficult for them to live normally and it may even lead people to consider suicide.

What Causes Depression?

Depression can be caused by changes in a person’s brain. Serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine are neurotransmitters that provide our brain with feelings of happiness and pleasure. People suffering with depression can alter these neurotransmitters which will negate these feelings, and enable the person to feel sadness more often instead.

Depression may also be caused by current situations they may be in, such as having debt they can’t think of ways to pay, a recent divorce, a loss of a loved one, or being bullied. These situations can be stressful and traumatic which can trigger depression.

Depression is often diagnosed more in woman than in men. These statistics may be skewed, however, because men are less likely to seek treatment. Men with depression are often shown anger rather than sadness. Although anger is dominant in men, some studies have found that men that are depressed with sadness are more likely to attempt suicide. However, depression in women can lead to more suicide attempts. They may experience a form of depression like premenstrual dysphoria. This is where they may experience depression before their period, and during their period, the symptoms may only get worse.

How Can Therapists Help?

There are many helpful therapies one with depression can take. Depending on the counselor they seek help from, each have their own ways to help with depression. The most common therapies counselors will often advise those with depression to take are talk therapy and cognitive behavior therapy.

Talk therapy allows a person to give the therapist all their thoughts and basically allow them to let out all their thoughts. The therapist will then work with that person toward a solution to the cause of their depression. Cognitive behavior therapy helps a person recognize thoughts that lead to their negative emotions. The therapist will then see which thoughts may be the cause of their depression and try to change them.

Other forms of therapy are dialectical behavior therapy and Interpersonal therapy. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is another form of cognitive behavior therapy where the therapist recognizes what the person is feeling and tells them that what they are feeling is understandable. They will then try to alter those negative habits or disruptive behavior. Interpersonal therapy focuses on what is currently happening and attempts to help the person change. Therapists will often try to teach skills that may help lessen their symptoms.

There are many more therapies used to treat depression. Therapists that treat depression are all experts in diagnosing what a specific person needs to help cure their symptoms. This is why if you think you have a friend or relative that may be experiencing symptoms of depression, then you should encourage them to seek aid immediately.