Mary Griffiths

Certified Play Therapist

about Play Therapy

The play therapy room provides your child with an engaging, sensory and highly relational experience through the safe containment, attunement and co-regulation that the therapist provides. The symbolic nature of play makes it a safe way to address issues that may be impacting on your child’s life and develop the essential life skills that potentiates your child’s future

Kinds of Issues That Can Be Addressed Through Play Therapy

Children experiencing weak self-regulation control displaying behavioural issues such as impulsivity, poor self-control, indecisiveness, easy frustration; anger outbursts and meltdowns; inability to engage in school work; weak friendship building skills;

ADHD	Divorce / Seperation
Abuse of any type	Sensory Processing Disintegration
Anxiety	Physical Disabilities
Attachment Issues	Bereavement
Autism Spectrum Disorders	Social Exclusion
Communication Problems	Trauma Implicit / Explicit
Delayed Development	Social Withdrawal

Services

I see children from ages three to fourteen years on a one-on-one basis with each session lasting fifty minutes.

From time-to-time group sessions will be offered to cater for children of similar age and presenting issue.

Referrals can be made by parents by contacting me by phone or email.

Covid-19 compliant with government guidelines

Experience

Blended experience of therapeutic education through my work with children in special needs education especially neurodiverse conditions such as Sensory Processing Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorders from early years through to sixth class

Working as an Early Years Educator I was adept at identifying early signs of aberrant childhood development and seamlessly implement strategies to obviate downstream childhood problems through fun neuro-motor activities; therapeutic stories and communicating with parents and work colleagues.

Voluntary experience setting up social respite play groups for parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and toy and educational resource library

Having qualified as a Registered General Nurse and Registered Midwife I have extensive experience in the public and private health services in Ireland, England and Australia.

Working as a community health nurse I was part of a multidisciplinary team working collaboratively in a variety of community specialist settings; schools, palliative and oncology care, bereavement and neuro rehabilitation.

The Therapeutic Toolkit

Neurobiology informs us that traumatic experiences can alter the neural connections in the brain leading to poor self-regulation. For a child, PLAY is key to targeting these stress related neural networks seamlessly and effortlessly and positively activates a therapeutic response through engaging sensory, motor, emotional and cognitive systems.

The Therapeutic Toolkit comprises a range of resources that enable the child to engage with these transformative processes PLUS the presence of trusting therapeutic relationship :

Messy play clay; slime; play dough; water; sludge	Arts and crafts
Puppetry	Sand tray play
Socio dramatic role play	Music
Dance	Masks
Games	Sensory toys
Therapeutic stories	Blocks/construction eg LEGO™
Creative visualisation	Talking

Qualifications

Post Graduate Diploma Practice Based Play Therapy NUIG

Trained Facilitator in ‘Friends for Life’ social skills and resiliency programme

Post Graduate Diploma in Community Nursing from Sydney University

Major Award Level 6 in Early Education and Care from Early Childhood Ireland

Kinesiology Touch for Health Modules 1, 2 and 3

Advocate and Peer Support Worker in community mental health from DCU

Qualified Integrative Special Education Support Worker

Registered General Nurse and Registered Midwife

Mary Griffiths

about Play Therapy

Kinds of Issues That Can Be Addressed Through Play Therapy

Services

Experience

The Therapeutic Toolkit

Qualifications

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