• Partnering with Parents in Play Therapy (Affiliate Course)

    "The neuroscience behind this training will blow your mind!" - Keri Sawyer "I used to struggle with explaining how play therapy "works" to fathers who were more "left brain" (e.g., Lawyers, accountants, Google employees, etc). But that's not an issue for me anymore. Lisa taught me how to work with resistant fathers so they can confidently "buy" into the play therapy process!" - Susan Stutzman

    In this thought-provoking yet practical workshop, participants will explore what it really takes to partner with parents. They will have the opportunity to understand how to have a successful intake session setting the stage for a higher level of investment and commitment, how to communicate to parents so that they understand what play therapy is and how it works, how to translate what is happening in the playroom so that parents understand how the goals are being worked on, what to do with resistant parents and what to do when parents just want to drop their child off to be "fixed".

    Through new skills, insights and a framework rooted in relationship theory, therapists are guaranteed to leave feeling inspired to work with parents.

    This course helps play therapists strengthen their work with parents so they can: 

    • Get More Clients
    • Understand the Parent's Brain
    • Be More Authentic with Parents
    • Have Successful Parent Intakes
    • Level-Up Their Parent Coaching Skills
    Please see course details below. For a list of all available products, please go here.
  • "Although I have been utilizing mindfulness for years in the therapy room, this training opened my eyes to the opportunities and benefits that I was overlooking. I am able to more intentionally track the content AND processes occurring in session, leading to more richness and depth in the work." -Dr. Alana Roth

    Neuroscience is revealing that mindfulness is a key component for integration, so what is it, what is it not and how to incorporate it into the playroom are important questions to consider as a play therapist.  If you are curious about understanding mindfulness and developing a more mindful approach to your work,  join Lisa Dion in an interactive workshop on becoming a mindful play therapist.

    In this course, you will explore some of the neuroscience behind mindfulness as you learn how to cultivate it within yourself and within your child clients. You will also learn the importance of bringing mindfulness into the playroom as a way to avoid compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma, and burnout.  This course is applicable to all play therapy theories.

    https://youtu.be/jwCo52TKE2I This course helps play therapists to:
    • Connect mindfulness and trauma integration
    • Reduce compassion fatigue
    • Help children cultivate mindfulness
    • Understand the neuroscience behind cultivating mindfulness
    See course details below. For a list of all available products, please go here.
  • "This was the most significant sand tray training which help me better understand the ways sand can assist in helping regulate/co-regulate our nervous systems. I highly recommend this training to anyone who works with children and adults." -Helen Wilson "Although I consider myself a seasoned play and sand tray therapist I learned so much in just one hour of this course. Highly recommended!" - Marina Keukens Terrell Have you ever wondered how to help children facilitate their processing in your playroom through the use of sand in a nontraditional way?  If so, this workshop is for you! The sand tray is a common fixture in play therapy. But thinking outside the “sandbox” allows therapists to use sand in a nontraditional way, fostering regulation. In this engaging workshop the play therapist will learn the 5 toys needed to turn a sand tray into a regulation tool, gain an understanding of how a child can use the sand and the activation in their nervous system as well as be exposed to various ways to bring regulation into the sand tray to help deepen the child’s experience. Join us as we explore the link between sand and the nervous system and discover how the proper tools can deepen both the child’s experience and their healing. https://youtu.be/x4Z4xlOANwU Please see course details below. For a list of all available products, please go here.   By clicking "Buy Product" you will be redirected to a payment link provided by Kid Matters Counseling. All payment or course-related questions should be redirected to the affiliate organization, Kid Matters Counseling. Synergetic Play Therapy Institute does not process payment directly for this course.
  • "This was very helpful in allowing to learn ways to integrate neuroscience and transitions to help promote regulation for the child!" - Fernando Gonzalez III "This class was so informative with great concrete tools. Awesome class!" -Lauri Levitt Transitions are everywhere, in the expected and the unexpected. As a play therapist, it's important to be prepared to help our clients with transitions - such as divorce, death, a move, new sibling, or sensory challenges - that often bring them to our playroom. In this course, Lisa Dion and Susan Stutzman explore how to navigate transitions and change in the play therapy setting.  Participants will walk away having gained an understanding of current neurobiological research that supports an understanding of how transitions can trigger a threat response in the brain causing activation of the autonomic nervous system. From a neurobiological lens, the therapist will gain knowledge of how to best navigate the challenges of transitions that bring clients to play therapy and learn ways to navigate change and transition that happens during the therapeutic play process itself. Clinical applications for working through transitioning within professional working relationships will be touched on. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGUlmjyn2Js This course is for you, if you want to:
    • Help children through divorce
    • Process death & loss
    • Help a child transition to a new school
    • Help children learn emotional balance and regulation
    • Help kids with sensory challenges
    For course details and objectives, see below. For a list of all available products, please go here.
  • "I could watch Lisa talk about play therapy all day. This workshop gives you really helpful, crystallized ideas and nuggets about the play therapy process and how it allows children to heal. Definitely worth a watch when you're maybe feeling stuck with a specific client, or running out of metaphors to communicate the efficacy of play therapy with colleagues or parents." -Malia Segal Lisa unlocks the therapeutic powers of play in this foundational neuroscience-rich training .... In a profession that is fighting for recognition and to be taken seriously, not fully understanding exactly how play therapy transformation takes place is a void. Without really understanding how attuned play works to bring about lasting change, therapists are left feeling uncertain and missing the language to effectively talk to parents, teachers and other influential people in children’s lives. The therapist's ability to influence other professions to see the value in play therapy is also impacted. This presentation is designed to fill in gaps in the play therapist’s understanding by addressing the answer to this very important question- how exactly does play therapy work? Through presentation and discussion, participants will be taken into the minds and biology of children for an inside look at what goes on that leads to their transformation and healing. With the help of neuroscience, brain development, and interpersonal neurobiology, the “how” will be answered allowing participants to truly understand the process and what exactly is going on in the playroom. This dynamic, eye-opening and thought provoking presentation will empower therapists to begin to move beyond their current framework. This course is for you if you want to ...
    • Integrate the neuroscience behind the therapeutic powers of play therapy
    • Better articulate to parents why play therapy works
    • How children use toys to understand themselves
    For course details and objectives, see below. For a list of all available products, please go here.
  • "Clear, to the point information on how to set up play therapy in a home, how to set boundaries (literally and figuratively speaking), and how to work with parents." -Marina Keukens Terrell "Love the ideas and talking about setting up a space for boundaries if it is a shared space within a home!" -Carly Schrimpl Take the guesswork out of doing play therapy in the home! .... Are you an in-home play therapist finding yourself confused and even overwhelmed about how to bring play therapy into the home? Do you ever wonder where boundaries are? What toys to bring? How to structure your time? What to do with the parents when they are also there? How to talk to the parents about what you are doing? In this training you'll explore how to make your time in the home the most therapeutic experience possible while bringing clarity and certainty to your role. https://youtu.be/jP0W4Rs3AMk This course is for you if ...
    • Struggle with setting boundaries and structure your time for in-home play therapy sessions.
    • Lost on what toys to bring with you into the home.
    • Confused on how to explain play therapy sessions to parents.
    • Practice in places like hospitals & schools
    For course details and objectives, see below. For a list of all available products, please go here.
  • CLARIFYING! ENERGIZING! EYE-OPENING! INSPIRING! AMAZING!!!! 

    These are just a few words students have used to describe this course!

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Back by popular demand - revised, energized, and with an in-person and virtual option, join us November 9th-11th, 2023, for the next The Business of Therapy course! Custom designed for therapists, coaches, helpers and healers like yourself, who are deeply committed to making an impact and want to be of greater service - whether it's one-on-one in private practice, launching a product or program, or running a company - Elevate and take your entrepreneurial dream to new heights! This course teaches you the steps involved in building a dream, as well as helps you understand the why behind them so you can think like a business entrepreneur. Plus, for 2.5 days, Lisa Dion, creator of Synergetic Play Therapy®, President of the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute and co-founder of the Synergetic Education Institute, will give you the key ingredients she's learned and discovered along her own entrepreneurial journey.  "This weekend was one of the best investments in myself I have ever made." - Bianca Kisselburg This course is for you, if you:
    • Have a business idea and don't know where to start
    • Have a successful business and want to take it to the next level
    • Have launched a dream and can't seem to get traction
    • Feel overwhelmed by the many to-dos and responsibilities of your business
    • Feel alone, confused and filled with self doubt as you think about building and growing your dream
    • Keep finding yourself in-debt and/or not able to grow your finances
    • Keep finding that your fears and limiting beliefs are stopping your growth 
    • Want to become more efficient with the business you have (no matter the size of your business) so that your business is working for you, not you having to keep working your business
    And this year's event will be held at the gorgeous Renaissance Denver Downtown City Center Hotel, housed in the former Colorado National Bank building! This building's historic allure is just one of the reasons The Denver Post coined it as the "most beautiful room in Denver"! Located in Denver's financial district, this area is buzzing with individuals ready to get down to business just like you! We chose this location for you as a symbol of your worth and the possibility of your goals - because you are worth it! And you deserve to dream BIG!  

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Keep scrolling to learn more about this course and the In-Person Experience! If you know that you would like to attend the course online, click here!
  • CLARIFYING! ENERGIZING! EYE-OPENING! INSPIRING! AMAZING!!!! 

    These are just a few words students have used to describe this course!

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Back by popular demand - revised, energized, and with an in-person and virtual option, join us November 9th-11th, 2023, for the next The Business of Therapy course! Custom designed for therapists, coaches, helpers and healers like yourself, who are deeply committed to making an impact and want to be of greater service - whether it's one-on-one in private practice, launching a product or program, or running a company - Elevate and take your entrepreneurial dream to new heights! This course teaches you the steps involved in building a dream, as well as helps you understand the why behind them so you can think like a business entrepreneur. Plus, for 2.5 days, Lisa Dion, creator of Synergetic Play Therapy®, President of the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute and co-founder of the Synergetic Education Institute, will give you the key ingredients she's learned and discovered along her own entrepreneurial journey.  "This weekend was one of the best investments in myself I have ever made." - Bianca Kisselburg This course is for you, if you:
    • Have a business idea and don't know where to start
    • Have a successful business and want to take it to the next level
    • Have launched a dream and can't seem to get traction
    • Feel overwhelmed by the many to-dos and responsibilities of your business
    • Feel alone, confused and filled with self doubt as you think about building and growing your dream
    • Keep finding yourself in-debt and/or not able to grow your finances
    • Keep finding that your fears and limiting beliefs are stopping your growth 
    • Want to become more efficient with the business you have (no matter the size of your business) so that your business is working for you, not you having to keep working your business
    And this year's event will be held at the gorgeous Renaissance Denver Downtown City Center Hotel, housed in the former Colorado National Bank building! This building's historic allure is just one of the reasons The Denver Post coined it as the "most beautiful room in Denver"! Located in Denver's financial district, this area is buzzing with individuals ready to get down to business just like you! We chose this location for you as a symbol of your worth and the possibility of your goals - because you are worth it! And you deserve to dream BIG!  

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Keep scrolling to learn more about this course and the In-Person Experience! If you know that you would like to attend the course online, click here!
  • CLARIFYING! ENERGIZING! EYE-OPENING! INSPIRING! AMAZING!!!! 

    These are just a few words students have used to describe this course!

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Back by popular demand - revised, energized, and with an in-person and virtual option, join us November 9th-11th, 2023, for the next The Business of Therapy course! Custom designed for therapists, coaches, helpers and healers like yourself, who are deeply committed to making an impact and want to be of greater service - whether it's one-on-one in private practice, launching a product or program, or running a company - Elevate and take your entrepreneurial dream to new heights! This course teaches you the steps involved in building a dream, as well as helps you understand the why behind them so you can think like a business entrepreneur. Plus, for 2.5 days, Lisa Dion, creator of Synergetic Play Therapy®, President of the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute and co-founder of the Synergetic Education Institute, will give you the key ingredients she's learned and discovered along her own entrepreneurial journey.  "This weekend was one of the best investments in myself I have ever made." - Bianca Kisselburg This course is for you, if you:
    • Have a business idea and don't know where to start
    • Have a successful business and want to take it to the next level
    • Have launched a dream and can't seem to get traction
    • Feel overwhelmed by the many to-dos and responsibilities of your business
    • Feel alone, confused and filled with self doubt as you think about building and growing your dream
    • Keep finding yourself in-debt and/or not able to grow your finances
    • Keep finding that your fears and limiting beliefs are stopping your growth 
    • Want to become more efficient with the business you have (no matter the size of your business) so that your business is working for you, not you having to keep working your business
    And this year's event will be held at the gorgeous Renaissance Denver Downtown City Center Hotel, housed in the former Colorado National Bank building! This building's historic allure is just one of the reasons The Denver Post coined it as the "most beautiful room in Denver"! Located in Denver's financial district, this area is buzzing with individuals ready to get down to business just like you! We chose this location for you as a symbol of your worth and the possibility of your goals - because you are worth it! And you deserve to dream BIG!  

    CLICK HERE FOR MORE COURSE DETAILS!!

    Keep scrolling to learn more about this course and the In-Person Experience! If you know that you would like to attend the course online, click here!
  • This program is for you if you work IN SCHOOLS (as a school counselor, social worker or psychologist, or a school-based mental health professional) or if you COLLABORATE WITH educators or schools!

    **For all program details and dates of when this program is offered, please visit the Synergetic Education Institute's website**

    A Synergetic Approach to Education (formerly One Foot in Education: Exploring Education Through an SPT Lens) offered by our sister institute, the Synergetic Education Institute, is a distinct and transformative approach to learning and teaching, working at the intersection of education and mental health! Synergetic educators recognize that the collaborative efforts of educators, students, classrooms, and educational systems produce a more substantial impact than individual contributions. This approach spans the landscape of working with students and perceived challenges and barriers, considering all aspects of learners and the learning environment. It incorporates neuroscience and nervous system regulation research with empowerment practices to create positive change within the immediate environment while maintaining a broader perspective using integrated and differentiated approaches. You will delve into strategies designed for educational settings that promote trauma-informed, social-emotional support within schools. You'll learn to implement these strategies as well as understand the neuroscience behind them, empowering you to support others in deepening their knowledge and awareness. You will also learn how to...
    • Implement approaches based on neuroscience that support the development of self-regulation skills, including critical skills that are often missing from SEL programming.
    • Support educators in understanding how to prepare brains and bodies to learn, including articulating the links between neurophysiological states and classroom behaviors
    • Identify the dynamics behind complex student-adult relationships and how to shift these challenging interactions.
    • Increase feelings of safety and belonging for students and adults
    • Implement small shifts in daily routines that include explicitly teaching critical skills using both "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches.
    • Reframe “resistance” to meeting educators at their level of readiness.
    • Embody Synergetic Play Therapy® principles and collaborate with teachers to empower them and shift their perceptions of students
    "This course has been life-changing for me personally and for so many of the clients and families I work with! I love that your class applies to clinical practice as well! Judith has a brilliant mind and it was an honor to learn from her. I am so grateful. There are moments in your life that are pivotal and I know my Synergetic Play Therapy (SPT) and SPT in schools are one of those pivotal moments for me as a professional and a mom." - Chey Cochran, LPC Check out the clip below for a sample of what you can expect during live webinars!
    Program Prerequisites: This program requires that you have taken a Level 1 Introduction to Synergetic Play Therapy® program. This includes the completion of one of the following: If you have not yet completed one of the above programs, you now have the opportunity to meet the prerequisites for A Synergetic Approach to Education by taking the new Fundamentals Course through the Synergetic Education Institute!* *The Fundamentals Course has been created specifically for individuals who wish to take a Synergetic Approach to Education but have not yet completed a Level 1 Introduction to Synergetic Play Therapy® program. This course will take you through key Synergetic Play Therapy® principles, creating a foundation on which to build. Please note: This course has been paired down to focus on specific concepts to prepare students for A Synergetic Approach to Education, and, therefore, is not a full replacement for the Level 1 Introduction to Synergetic Play Therapy® program.  Should your goal be to apply for the Synergetic Play Therapy Certification program, you must complete the entire Introduction program.
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