What makes working with parents and caregivers feel smooth—or challenging—in play therapy? In this insightful episode, Lisa Dion explores three distinct types of relationships that shape our interactions with parents and caregivers in the therapeutic process. Understanding these dynamics can transform your approach, helping you create deeper, more conscious relationships that honor both you as a therapist and the parents you support.

🔹 Discover the three types of relationships that influence every interaction in and beyond the playroom
🔹 Learn how these relationship dynamics shape your work with parents and caregivers
🔹 Uncover why certain parent-therapist relationships feel more challenging than others
🔹 Find out how to create a space where parents feel safe to show up authentically
🔹 Explore how these relationships impact your nervous system—and what you can do to stay regulated

By recognizing and navigating these relationship patterns, you’ll develop a new level of connection and attunement in your work with parents and caregivers.

🌟 Tune in to shift your perspective and create stronger, more supportive therapeutic relationships!

Original Air Date: January 3, 2023

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💜 Learn More About Synergetic Play Therapy:

👉 Visit our website for courses, resources, and certification opportunities – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com

📚 Explore Our Books: Aggression in Play Therapy – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com/books

🎧 Listen to Our Podcast: Lessons from the Playroom – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com/lessons-from-the-playroom/

✨ SPT Foundation: Learn more about it's mission, team and initiatives:

👉 https://synergeticplaytherapy.com/spt-foundation/

🔗 Connect with Us on Social Media:

• Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/synergeticplaytherapy/
• Like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SynergeticPlayTherapyInstitute

🎙️ She’s back! In her fourth appearance, Lisa welcomes the deeply loved and returning guest Mili Sarmiento Shoemaker—bilingual therapist, teacher, and Certified Synergetic Play Therapy Supervisor and Trainer—to introduce a brand-new topic to the podcast: Family Constellation Work.

Rooted in systemic and ancestral wisdom, this conversation explores how children’s symptoms often reflect unresolved family dynamics, not just their own inner world. Together, Mili and Lisa unpack key principles from Family Constellation theory—including the Orders of Love—and how therapists can begin using a systemic lens in the playroom, even without formal training.

In this expansive and soulful episode, you’ll discover:

• What Family Constellation Work is and why it matters in therapy
• How children may carry or express unresolved intergenerational trauma
• The three core Orders of Love (Belonging, Hierarchy, and Balance of Giving & Taking)
• How imbalance in these orders can result in symptoms like resentment, overwhelm, or soul entanglements
• The difference between taking and receiving—and why this matters in the therapy room
• How to begin integrating a systemic lens into your practice, even without formal training

✨ Whether you’re new to this work or looking to deepen your lens, this episode is filled with insight, heart, and transformative “aha” moments.

🎧 Also check out Mili’s past episodes:

• When the Aggressor is You: Therapist Activation in the Playroom
• Attachment to Self: The Cornerstone of Healing
• Why Therapists Attract the Clients That They Do

A beautiful and eye-opening conversation you won’t want to miss 💖

What makes play therapy supervision truly effective? In this first-ever Lessons from the Playroom episode on supervision, Lisa Dion is joined by Polly Douglass, Kim Buller, and Khris Rolfe—three extraordinary play therapists and top supervisors at the Synergetic Play Therapy Institute. Together, they explore the power of reflective and relational supervision and how it transforms both supervisees and their clients.

Whether you're currently in supervision or serving as a supervisor, this episode will offer invaluable insights into:

🔹 What it means to be reflective and relational in supervision
🔹 How to build a supervisor-supervisee relationship that fosters growth and trust
🔹 The role of the supervisor as an external regulator for the supervisee
🔹 How to help supervisees become more embodied in their work as play therapists
🔹 Ways to offer supervision that empowers therapists to trust themselves

This conversation weaves together a beautiful tapestry of reflection, relationship, and emotional attunement—helping play therapists feel their clients’ experiences rather than just think about them.

🌟 Tune in and discover how to create a deeply supportive and transformational supervision experience!

Original Air Date: April 25, 2023

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💜 Learn More About Synergetic Play Therapy:

👉 Visit our website for courses, resources, and certification opportunities – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com

📚 Explore Our Books: Aggression in Play Therapy – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com/books

🎧 Listen to Our Podcast: Lessons from the Playroom – www.synergeticplaytherapy.com/lessons-from-the-playroom/

✨ SPT Foundation: Learn more about it's mission, team and initiatives:

👉 https://synergeticplaytherapy.com/spt-foundation/

🔗 Connect with Us on Social Media:

• Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/synergeticplaytherapy/
• Like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SynergeticPlayTherapyInstitute