Play is a very essential component for a child to grow well. According to doctors and psychiatrists, playing helps a child to grow socially, emotionally and cognitively as well. Play therapy is a totally new therapy where children are made to express their painful feelings with the help of dolls, toys, puppets, games and sand trays. Children are innocent individuals who cannot express incidents of sexual molestation or abuse; however, they are shattered from inside. A child who was sexually abused finds comfort in playing with these kinds of games.
Dolls
Dolls are one of the favorite toys given to girls. They help girls to act out past situations, which have been inscribed in their minds that they cannot practically explain or speak out verbally. Dolls can make great containers for hugs as well as punches and it also allows children to express and come out with their fear or anger towards their attacker in a protected environment. A psychologist can make a child express her feeling with the help of a customized doll. However, there are ways to do the same and everybody and anybody should not try out this method because it may have negative effects.
Sand Tray
Children to produce numerous scenes as well as story lines use sand trays. The sand tray helps to portray the world of children through their eyes. It also provides an outlet for children so that they can express their feelings -be it grief, anger joy or hope.
Puppets
Puppets are some of the most effective tools that can be used for communication. The puppet functions as a touching shock absorber for the child and helps the therapist to communicate with the child in an easy, indirect and different manner. Any abnormality in the child can be brought out with the help of a puppet show and the puppet can also be used to commence a dialogue with a sexually abused child.
Games
There are different kinds of games that can be played with the abused child so that she or he opens up in front of you. There are games, which can help a child to express her feelings, games like stacking blocks that involve both the child and the therapist where one has to express her thoughts after stacking each block in place, or games that have lot of discussions in it. One can end the game discussing about different incidents with the child about his/her bad memories, which makes the child angry and depressed. A story telling session is a great way to make a child express her feelings as well.
