Rainbow Path Therapy
Helping children and families connect their heads to their heart
Hello! I'm Emily and I'm a fully qualified Play Therapist and Filial Therapist working privately and in schools around Lancashire. I gained a Distinction in PG Diploma in Play Therapy through PTUK and APAC, and qualified as a Filial Therapist (Level 1) through the Rise VanFleet programme.
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My passion for children and their mental well-being shines through in my work, and I always strive to help families as well as the individuals I work with. My aim is to help you feel settled and comfortable as soon as possible by creating a safe, non-judgemental, caring environment for everyone who enters the playroom.
Emily Bernardis
Play Therapy : Filial Therapist
What is Filial Therapy?
Filial Therapy is a highly effective intervention, integrating family therapy and play therapy to address child and family problems. Parents learn skills to conduct their own special non-directive play sessions with their children under the guidance and supervision of their therapist. It is an approach designed to resolve presenting problems while over time, strengthening family relationships.
Parents/carers work closely with the therapist to develop and nurture their skills of understanding their childs often non-verbal cues of their emotions and needs. With the new skills acquired, they will begin to feel more connected and attuned with their child, and in turn, will be able to better respond to their needs. Due to this new understanding, over time, dysregulation and the behaviours that a child shows will reduce as the child feels heard and understood by their parent/carer.
Who is Filial Therapy For?
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Filial Therapy has been used successfully with many child and family problems:
- Oppositional behaviours
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Abuse/neglect
- Single parenting
- Attachment
- Adoption
- Foster care
- Relationship problems
- Divorce
- Family substance abuse
- Chronic illness
- Traumatic events
- And many others.
What is play therapy?
Play Therapy is a form of therapy designed to help children with a range of issues -
from regulating their emotions and building emotional literacy, to healing trauma.
Using the child’s natural form of communication, play, it encourages them to explore
their thoughts and feelings, allowing children to process their own emotions and
articulate problems without the need for words.
During the play therapy sessions, children explore their own creativity and express
themselves using media such as: drawing and painting, water play and sand,
miniatures and puppets, guided imagery and relaxation techniques, and movement
and music. While this may look or sound like playtime, therapeutic play is much more
than that.
Who is Play Therapy For?
Play therapy is beneficial for the mental health and well-being of all children between the ages of 3 and 13. Play Therapy may be helpful in a variety of circumstances, such as:
- Low self esteem/confidence
- Family relationship issues
- Anger/emotional regulation
- Adoption
- Foster Care
- Friendship issues
- Anxiety
- Sleep issues
- ADHD
- Poor school attendance
- Attachment Issues
- Bereavement/Loss
- Divorce/Parent separation
- Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Sexual/physical/emotional abuse
- Behaviour Issues
- Bereavement/Loss
- Affected by homicide
- Bullied/Bully
- Communication issues
- Delayed Development
- Emotional Literacy
- And SO MUCH MORE
1:1 Play Therapy Sessions
1:1 Play Therapy sessions offer children from aged 3-12 the opportunity to freely explore their emotions and to begin the process of understanding themselves. Children will be able to explore potentially triggering scenarios in a safe and non-judgemental space, as well as learning self regulation techniques.Â
A minimum of 12 sessions will be required, with two meetings with the class teachers and two meetings with the parents/carers, pre therapy and towards the end of therapy.