Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT)

Play therapy is often used for children between ages 3–12 and is a way of being with the child that honors their unique developmental level and looks for ways of helping in the “language” of the child. Because the child’s world of play is their natural manner of communicating, the therapist enters their world to communicate with them and help them resolve challenges e.g., trauma, separation of parents, loss of a loved one, chronic illness, etc. CCPT works best when a safe relationship exists between the therapist and child, one in which the latter may freely and naturally express a full range of emotions. At Davis Behavioral Health, we operate our therapeutic playroom according to the CCPT model.