Next Level Play Therapy: A Podcast for Play Therapy Excellence

Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S
  • 3.7 (3)
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  • Updated Weekly

Join me on Next Level Play Therapy, a podcast for child and adolescent therapists seeking to elevate your play therapy services. Hosted by Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S, at Renewing Hearts Play Therapy Training.   Each episode delves into the nuances of play therapy, exploring innovative techniques, evidence-based practices, and practical strategies for providing exceptional therapeutic experiences. These engaging discussions cover a wide range of topics, including building rapport with children, how to make sure you get great outcomes for clients, therapeutic toys and tools and strategies to use in sessions, addressing trauma and attachment issues, engaging parents, promoting emotional regulation, and nurturing resilience for children and their families. Whether you're an experienced therapist looking to refine your skills or a novice clinician venturing into the world of play therapy, the Next Level Play Therapy podcast equips you with the knowledge and insights to enhance your play therapy practice. With interviews featuring experts in play therapy, exploration of best practices, discussion of game-changing principles and strategies, this podcast equips you with the tools to unlock the amazing power of play therapy to transform the lives of children, adolescents, and families. Tune in to Next Level Play Therapy and take a journey towards becoming an exceptional play therapist as we navigate the next level strategies that lead to profound healing and growth for children and their families.

  1. 5d ago

    Family Play Therapy: Why Treating Just the Child Limits Outcomes

    Send us Fan Mail If you're a play therapist or child therapist meeting with kids weekly while updating parents on the side — this episode is for you. Individual play therapy is powerful. But when the family system stays the same, even the best playroom work has a ceiling. In this free weekly podcast, we're exploring one of the most important clinical questions in play therapy: when does individual work hit its limits — and what changes when you bring the family into the room? We cover: Where individual-only play therapy runs out of roomWhen the family system stays unchanged, progress in the playroom has a ceiling — no matter how skilled you are. What changes when the family is in the roomObserve relational patterns firsthand, coach attachment-focused parenting strategies in real time, and create change where the problem actually lives — in the parent-child relationship. When family play therapy isn't the right fitFamily play therapy isn't always the right next step. We'll walk through the clinical situations where family play therapy sessions may not serve the child. Why a strategic family play therapy framework mattersInviting parents into the playroom isn't enough. A structured framework is what turns "everyone's in the room" into lasting change in outcomes. Listen to the podcast and share with a colleague! This episode connects directly to this month's Consultation Call theme: bringing caregivers into the room. Come with your questions and cases. Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Family Play Therapy: Why Treating Just the Child Limits Outcomes

  2. Oct 1

    Congruence & Co-Regulation in Play Therapy

    Send us Fan Mail Congruence & Co-Regulation in Play Therapy: How Nervous System Attunement Heals Kids What does it really mean to use "therapeutic use of self" in the playroom? In this podcast episode, we go beyond the buzzwords to explore how congruence and co-regulation actually help children build their own capacity for emotion regulation. This is part three in our series on the nervous system in play therapy — and why oversimplifying this concept can get in the way of the deep, lasting healing our clients need. In this podcast episode, we cover: 🔹 Congruence in the Playroom — What it really means to match your internal experience with what you express, and why "performing" calm or warmth isn't the same as being a regulated, authentic presence 🔹 The Coregulation Connection — How your nervous system state becomes the mechanism through which children learn their own emotions are safe, workable, and useful 🔹 Self-Awareness for Therapists — Why you have to be congruent with yourself before you can be congruent with a child, and how "resonance circuits" let your nervous system attune to theirs 🔹 Supporting Parents & Caregivers — Creating safety for caregivers so they see you as a true partner in their child's healing, and recognizing what activates your own insecurity or imposter syndrome in session 🔹 Therapist Self-Care — The "put your own oxygen mask on first" principle, and why your own therapy and a supportive play therapy community aren't optional extras — they're part of doing this work well Ray, D. C., Jayne, K. M., & Stulmaker, H. L. (2014). A way of being in the playroom: Experience-expression congruence model (EECM). International Journal of Play Therapy, 23(1), 18–30. Johnston, T. E., Gross, J. J., Chen, W., McEvoy, P., Becerra, R., & Preece, D. A. (2025). Emotion beliefs and emotion regulation strategy use. Personality and Individual Differences, 240, 113066. #PlayTherapy #TherapistSelfCare #NervousSystemRegulation #Coregulation #ChildTherapy #EmotionRegulation #TherapeuticUseOfSelf #TraumaInformedCare #PlayTherapist #ChildDevelopment Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Congruence & Co-Regulation in Play Therapy

  3. Sep 23

    Window of Tolerance in Play Therapy: Why Kids "Bail" on Deep Play

    Send us Fan Mail You're 20 minutes into a play therapy session. The child is in it — deep in the sandtray, the story, the metaphor. And then, without warning, they bail. Silliness. A different toy. A total tonal 180. If you've ever second-guessed yourself in that moment — wondered if you lost the thread, if they're avoiding, if the work "didn't land" — this episode is for you. That shift isn't resistance. It isn't disengagement. It's regulation happening in real time. A child's nervous system was never built to sustain 45 straight minutes in emotional intensity — and clinicians who miss this often misread the most important therapeutic moment in the room.  In this week's podcast for play therapists and child therapists, we're unpacking: ✅ Why the exit out of deep affect is a nervous-system-driven event, not a client "resisting the work" ✅ How to distinguish regulation-seeking behavior from true avoidance or disengagement in session ✅ What this means for pacing, containment, and how you structure session flow around a child's window of tolerance ✅ How to track these shifts clinically — and use them as data, not disruption This is a working conversation for play therapists who want to sharpen their read on nervous system cues in the playroom and stop treating natural regulatory rhythm as a problem to manage. This is also one small piece of what we go deeper on inside Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE — my community for play therapists who want ongoing case consultation, clinical skill-building, and support that goes beyond a single play therapy training.  More on that soon — for now, come learn, bring your questions, and let's dig into the work together. Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Window of Tolerance in Play Therapy: Why Kids "Bail" on Deep Play

  4. Sep 17

    Explosive Emotions in Kids: A Brain-Based Approach for Play Therapists

    Send us Fan Mail Free Podcast Training for Play Therapists: How the Brain Constructs "Explosive" Emotions in Kids Join Renewing Hearts Play Therapy Training with Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S podcast as we go beyond simple redirection strategies to explore how the brain actually constructs emotional experiences in dysregulated children and why it matters for play therapists. If you're a child and adolescent therapist working with kids who have "explosive" emotions — the "angry tornado" in your playroom, or desperate parents asking "what do I do when this happens at home?" —  This weekly podcast episode gives you a fresh clinical lens for nervous system regulation, grounded in the Theory of Constructed Emotions and Attachment Theory. In this episode, we cover: 🧠 Developmental Expectations — Why a child's developing neural circuitry matters for self-regulation (and why "just calm down" doesn't work). 🌪️ Constructed Emotions — How the brain uses interoception and environment to construct emotions that predict what needs to happen next. 🔗 Attachment as Bio-Regulation — Exploring attachment as a bioregulatory system, and the brain as a "prediction machine." 🎭 Play Therapy Application — Why emotion vocabulary is the key to building true resiliency, and how to use play therapy with intention. 👨‍👩‍👧 Caregiver Co-Regulation — How to teach parents to model regulated states so kids can borrow their calm. 💬 Drop a comment: what's the hardest "explosive" moment you've navigated in the playroom or with a caregiver? References mentioned: Dr. Pascal Vrticka (Substack article #36): The Bioenergetic Map of Social ConnectionHoemann, Xu, & Feldman Barrett (2019): Emotion Words, Emotion Concepts, and Emotional Development in ChildrenAttachment Insights #36 (https://pvrticka.com/attachment-insights/#36), and the full version on Substack is available here: https://pvrticka.substack.com/p/the-bioenergetic-map-of-social-connection.  Website: https://pvrticka.substack.com/p/attachment-and-caregiving-as-social-allostatic-inference) #PlayTherapy #ChildTherapist #NervousSystemRegulation #AttachmentTheory #EmotionRegulation Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Explosive Emotions in Kids: A Brain-Based Approach for Play Therapists

  5. Sep 10

    Stop Guessing: 3 Keys to Decode Behavior in Play Therapy

    Send us Fan Mail What do you do when your 6-year-old client is kicking things in the lobby or a 7-year-old starts using cursing in a family session? If you've ever felt like your play therapy questions are falling flat or a client’s behavior is spiraling out of control, you aren't alone.  After 30+ years as a child and adolescent psychotherapist, I’ve learned that these moments aren’t failures—they are data. In this podcast, I break down a 3-step framework to help you decode dysregulated behavior using neuroscience and attachment theory so you can move past the "acting out" and access deep healing. What you’ll learn in this episode: Behavior as Communication: Why children don't actually want to be "bad" and how to shift your mindset from "what are they doing?" to "what is activating this response?"The Role of Neuroscience: How predictive processing, beliefs, and emotions influence a child's nervous system and your treatment decisions.Mastering Co-Regulation: How to use your own regulated state to help a distressed child feel seen, safe, and organized.Your Roadmap to Success: How your play therapy model (including Integrative Play Therapy) guides your decision-making in the playroom.About Cathi Spooner: I help play therapists and mental health professionals integrate neuroscience and attachment into their practice so they can work with more confidence and help their clients achieve lasting change. Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Stop Guessing: 3 Keys to Decode Behavior in Play Therapy

  6. Sep 3

    Stop Processing Your Hardest Play Therapy Sessions Alone

    Send us Fan Mail Have you ever finished a challenging play therapy session, watched the child walk out the door, and then just sat there — processing everything alone with no one who truly understands what happened in that room? If that feels familiar, this free weekly podcast episode is for you. Most play therapists think of community — a membership, a consultation group, a peer network — as emotional support that’s optional. A nice-to-have. A place to vent. More of a luxury than a necessity But in this episode, play therapy trainer and educator Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S, makes the case that community is far more than that.  Community is a clinical tool that ensures your clients get the best support possible for healing because you get the clinical support you need.  And play therapists who practice without it aren't just lonelier — they're making harder clinical decisions, experiencing more burnout, and serving their clients at a fraction of their potential. This is the episode that connects everything — and introduces Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE, now open for enrollment through August 29, 2026 at 11:59 PM. In this episode, you'll discover: 🎯 Why community is a clinical tool — not an emotional luxury — and the specific clinical outcomes that change when play therapists practice in connection instead of isolation 🎯 What happens to your clinical thinking, decision-making, and confidence when you have play therapists around you who speak your language and understand your cases 🎯 A full inside look at Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE (PTEC) — including monthly group consultation calls, the monthly book club, weekly play therapy tips, and the community itself 🎯 The real cost of the "I'll wait" mindset — and why the growth starts the moment you're in community of like-minded play therapists, not before This episode is for you if: → You're the only play therapist in your agency — or you're in private practice navigating complex cases alone → You process your hardest cases in silence with no one who truly understands play therapy → You've been thinking about joining a play therapy community but keep putting it off → You want to know exactly what's inside Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE before enrolling → You're a child/adolescent therapist, registered play therapist, or play therapist-in-training working with children, teens, and families Play Therapy Elevation CIRCLE (PTEC) The ongoing community for play therapists who are done going it alone.M Inside PTEC, you get: ✔️ Monthly group consultation calls — bring your real cases and get real clinical support ✔️ A monthly book club — clinically relevant reading to keep your thinking fresh and sharp ✔️ Weekly play therapy tips — practical, immediately applicable tools for the playroom ✔️ A private community of play therapists who speak your language Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Stop Processing Your Hardest Play Therapy Sessions Alone

  7. Aug 26

    Stop Guessing: 3 Indicators Play Therapy is Working

    Send us Fan Mail Tired of feeling like you’re just "playing" without a clear way to track progress in play therapy? As play therapists, we often hear the same question from parents: "How is my child actually doing?"  And maybe you’re struggling to answer that question yourself, let alone explain it to parents. If you find yourself unsure how to tell if your clients are progressing in play therapy or if play therapy is working, this free weekly podcast episode is for you. In this episode, we’re diving into why measuring progress in play therapy feels so difficult without a solid clinical framework.  We’ll discuss how to track progress in the playroom and determine if you’re on the right course helping clients heal.  What we’ll cover: The Framework Gap: Why most play therapists watch for the wrong indicators (and what to do about it).Stage-Specific Progress: How "success" looks different in the early, middle, and late stages of healing.The 3 Essential Categories of Progress:Therapeutic Relationship: Identifying shifts from guardedness to vulnerability.Play Themes & Content: Recognizing when chaotic play transforms into mastery and resolution.Regulation & Agency: Spotting the growth in self-regulation and emotional tolerance.Stop second-guessing your clinical decisions and start reporting to parents with confidence. Learn how to name exactly what is happening in the playroom and why it matters for the child’s healing journey. Let’s connect in the comments: What do YOU currently look for as indicators that play therapy is working?  Drop your thoughts below! #PlayTherapy #ChildTherapy #PlayTherapyFramework #MentalHealthProfessionals #TherapistTraining #ClinicalProgress Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    Stop Guessing: 3 Indicators Play Therapy is Working

  8. Aug 20

    How to Stop Dreading Your Complex Play Therapy Cases

    Send us Fan Mail Are you dreading that "challenging" case on your schedule?   The client who wreaks your room or doesn’t talk during their play therapy session?  Or the parent session with a parent that seems to avoid you yet calls you frequently between sessions telling you everything that’s not working? As play therapists, we often define a challenging case by the severity of the trauma, the intensity of the behaviors, or the complexity of the family system.  But what if the "challenge" isn't the case itself, but how you make sense of the problem and the clinical framework you're using to navigate it? In this week’s free podcast episode, we are redefining what it means to work with complex cases.  We’ll explore why one play therapist feels overwhelmed while another feels manageable with the exact same client—and how a clear play therapy clinical framework makes all the difference. In this podcast, we cover: Redefining "Challenging": Why complexity doesn’t have to mean chaos.The Power of Getting to the Root of the Problem: Moving beyond the psychosocial assessment form to create a "living map" for every play therapy session.Trusted Framework vs. White-Knuckling: How to stop guessing and start making intentional clinical decisions.Seeing REAL Progress: Learn to identify the stages of healing so you know exactly why you’re choosing specific interventions—whether directive or non-directive. When you can identify why something is happening AND you have a framework guiding your clinical decisions, challenging cases stop being something you dread and start being something you can engage with intentionally.  Don’t let your caseload lead to burnout. It’s time to move from "hoping it works" to knowing why it’s working. Join the Conversation: When you hit a wall with a challenging play therapy case, what is the very first thing you do? Do you seek consultation, dive into research, or take a moment to pray? Let’s be honest in the comments—we’re all in this together! 🔗 CONNECT WITH RENEWING HEARTS PLAY THERAPY TRAINING: 🌐 Website: www.rhplaytherapytraining.com Register for the free webinar - How to Provide Play Therapy Without Second-Guessing Every Clinical Decision, Even With Complex Cases: https://www.rhplaytherapytraining.com/f/ptec-webinar Join my free Facebook Community Play and Expressive Arts Therapy Playground. Check out my free resources for mental health professionals working with children, adolescents, and families who want to integrate play therapy and expressive arts into their clinical work. I work with individuals and agencies to develop successful strategies and meet the treatment needs of your child and adolescent clients and their families using play therapy & expressive arts. Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute video call if you're ready to level up your skills

    How to Stop Dreading Your Complex Play Therapy Cases
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About

Join me on Next Level Play Therapy, a podcast for child and adolescent therapists seeking to elevate your play therapy services. Hosted by Cathi Spooner, LCSW, RPT-S, at Renewing Hearts Play Therapy Training.   Each episode delves into the nuances of play therapy, exploring innovative techniques, evidence-based practices, and practical strategies for providing exceptional therapeutic experiences. These engaging discussions cover a wide range of topics, including building rapport with children, how to make sure you get great outcomes for clients, therapeutic toys and tools and strategies to use in sessions, addressing trauma and attachment issues, engaging parents, promoting emotional regulation, and nurturing resilience for children and their families. Whether you're an experienced therapist looking to refine your skills or a novice clinician venturing into the world of play therapy, the Next Level Play Therapy podcast equips you with the knowledge and insights to enhance your play therapy practice. With interviews featuring experts in play therapy, exploration of best practices, discussion of game-changing principles and strategies, this podcast equips you with the tools to unlock the amazing power of play therapy to transform the lives of children, adolescents, and families. Tune in to Next Level Play Therapy and take a journey towards becoming an exceptional play therapist as we navigate the next level strategies that lead to profound healing and growth for children and their families.

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