02/03/2026
Day 3 of International Play Therapy Week!
Here’s a story from one of our owners, Savannah, on why she became a play therapist:
“I remember being little and thinking something was wrong with me. I remember trying to talk to myself when I was calm and telling myself not to feel too big. But then it would happen and I couldn’t control it. My emotions felt too big for my body. When I was anxious, I didn’t just feel anxious, I was FROZEN. When I was angry, I didn’t just feel angry, I saw RED. My words wouldn’t work. At least not the way calm me wanted them to. My brain switched to survival mode and my feelings came out of me like fire, burning the people who were trying to help but didn’t know what I needed.
I also remember the frustration I felt at being a child in general. It felt like no one really listened to me. They said they were listening, but I could tell they were only pretend listening. Only listening to me long enough to tell me I was wrong or what to do. I couldn’t wait to grow up, because I believed being an adult meant people would finally listen.
And I remember the moments of connection. When it was just me and my mom playing house together. When my dad let me pretend to be anything I wanted and didn’t tell me it was ‘childish.’ When my granny gave me, my cousins, and sister heaps of dress up clothes and watched us perform.
When the counselor my mom took me to crouched down to talk to me, looked in my eyes, treated me with respect, and helped me play out my struggles.
Today, I see my same story walk into the playroom. Children with emotions too big for their bodies. Parents who are exhausted and desperate, feeling like they’ve tried everything. Play therapy gave me a way to meet those children where they are. Not by telling them what to do, but by honoring their developmental language. By helping their bodies regulate and giving their feelings a safe place to land.”
Through play therapy, we help kids express themselves in ways that make sense for them. We help families learn how to support each other differently. And we teach our supervisees how to do the same, so fewer children grow up believing their emotions are “too much.”
