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As research on the brain progresses, my understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is expanding, providing insights I didn’t have before. This evolving knowledge helps me tailor therapeutic approaches to meet the needs of children with ASD, allowing them to thrive in a world that is largely designed for neurotypical individuals. Receiving an ASD diagnosis for your child can be overwhelming. There’s no right or wrong way to respond, and any thoughts or emotions you experi

How Play Therapy Helps Children Like Liam Express and Regulate Emotions I have always been asked how play therapy works and how it creates change. I found it hard to explain this without being too technical and clinical. I realized I could effectively explain it by providing tangible examples to show why and how play therapy is effective. Therefore, I decided to create a series of blogs retelling the stories of my cases to explain how play therapy works. This will be my first

Navigating the therapy process can be challenging for both you and your child. As a parent, your involvement and support are crucial in fostering a positive therapeutic experience. Here are some suggestions you can take to help your child feel comfortable and supported throughout their therapy journey. Prepare Your Child: Explain what play therapy is in simple terms. You might say, "You are going to see Golnaz for a special playtime. She has lots of toys, and you can play wit

The more I learn about ADHD, the more I become aware of the importance of mindfulness practice. Let's explore why mindfulness is crucial for children with ADHD: 1. Mindfulness Helps with Attention Regulation While the term "attention deficit" in ADHD suggests a lack of attention, ADHD is more about an inability to regulate attention. Mindfulness practice is like going to soccer or basketball practice. Just as sports strengthen physical muscles, mindfulness strengthens parts o

A few months after graduating from university, I began working at a community health centre in the northern part of Melbourne. In this first month, I was assigned to a child who was described as being unable to speak around certain people or in specific settings. At home, they were known as a "motor mouth," but at kindergarten and with extended family and friends, they were silent. This behaviour started when they were four years old. By the age of six, they were diagnosed wi

I am often asked if play therapy is effective and whether it is based on evidence. For those of us who are a bit nerdy like me, I will summarise meta-analysis studies in two different posts. This one will be the first. Firstly, let me explain what meta-analysis research is. Meta-analysis combines the results of multiple studies on the same topic to provide a more comprehensive and reliable conclusion. This type of research is very reliable in giving us answers on a topic. In