"Masked" Grief
As we begin to settle into the new school year, I often find myself wondering how it's been almost two years since the start of the pandemic. In some ways, it feels like it's been an eternity whereas other days it seems as though it was just yesterday when the world came to a stop. And while more recently things are starting to feel like the “new normal,” and I feel like I’m able to navigate the world as I once did, I can’t help but acknowledge the universal grief that is all around us. Grief both in death and in the loss of what once was.
The 3 R’s: Relationship, Relationship, Relationship
The back-to-school transition can often bring up a lot of emotions. A typical school day is filled with a multitude of stressors for a child including numerous social interactions, transitioning between activities & classrooms, various adults telling them what to do, sensory sensitivities, and academic struggles to name a few. While some children express themselves in the moment as new conflicts arise, other children are successful at “holding it together” during the school day only to come home and let it all out with you. Our first instinct might be to think, “Why are they doing this to me?” but in reality this is the first sign that you have developed a safe and secure attachment with your child.
From the Therapist's Chair: Kaylyn Evans on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Leah Gilbert on Bibliotherapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Kate Curran Mire on Solution-Focused Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Ben Kinsey on Strengths-Based Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Sheila Wessels on Child Parent Relationship Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Dakota Becker on Expressive Arts
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Colleen Maher on Trust-Based Relational Intervention
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Rebekah Hess on Trauma-Informed Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
From the Therapist's Chair: Jaclyn Sepp on Person-Centered Therapy
At Ensemble Therapy, we care deeply about the “why” behind our practice of counseling. We believe there is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach to counseling; each therapist views the counseling process and their clients through a unique lens formed from years of education and experience. This means that as a client, you can choose the counselor who is the best fit for you or your child. While this freedom to choose the best-fit may sound nice at first, it can be difficult to know how to choose when there seem to be so many ways to do therapy. Not only are there lots of theories on how to practice counseling, often the language behind counseling theories is difficult to understand and apply without any previous background knowledge.
Why We Play
It can be daunting to find the right therapist. There is a lack of literature out there to educate parents on which therapeutic approaches may work best for their kids and their family. Until a more detailed resource is available, here is a quick primer on why we emphasize Play Therapy at Ensemble Therapy.
Making Time to Play: Connecting with Your Child During Covid and Beyond
As parents during a pandemic, we have been tasked with many new roles. We have been teachers, therapists, bakers, gardeners, tech support, and emotional regulators — and that was all before noon. This list doesn’t include what our “typical” role looked like before the pandemic all the while trying to make the safest decision for our kids that balances their social and emotional well-being. As we finally approach the end of the year, we may have begun establishing a rhythm, getting used to the “new normal” and finding things a little bit more familiar. And yet, the world around us continues to change, and we are constantly having to adapt along the way. Many of us are feeling exhausted, burnt out, and ready for a break. The skills and routines that were once more easily accessible for us have since been much harder to implement.
Playing in the Sand: The Powerful Tool of Sandtray Therapy
There’s something magical about being near the ocean. Between the calming waves splashing against one another to the soft sand beneath my toes, the ocean has always provided me a calming and healing experience. However, it’s more than a cliche as sand has been proven to calm your nervous system and relax your body, which is exactly why sand makes for a great healing modality.
