Author
Monica's groundbreaking book, Inviting the Spirit of Play to Transform Trauma: Healing for All Ages, integrates state of the art trauma treatment approaches with the power of playfully spirited practice. It gives therapists and those in allied professions an inspiring, practical, and scientifically-based resource to promote positive change and healing with traumatized clients of all ages. The book shows how playfulness (not play therapy) is compatible with and complementary to all theoretical orientations.
Accessible and intimately written, chapters show how inviting a playful mindset and spirit can accelerate healing and transformation of complex and chronic trauma in adults, adolescents, children, families, and couples. The book offers a practical understanding of trauma and play, and their important shared right brain relationship. It dives deeply into play’s superpowers—scientifically supported mechanisms of action—which make play particularly suited to treat trauma across the lifespan. It interweaves and reviews supportive cutting-edge trauma approaches including: Polyvagal Theory, affective neuroscience, interpersonal neurobiology, Broaden and Build Theory, Coherence Therapy, Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Internal Family Systems, Structural Dissociation of the Personality, and more. It touches on spirituality, too.
Filled with clinical examples, chapters illustrate how therapists can tap into their attuned playful spirit and create a playful setting in person or online. Theory meets practice in chapters which show therapists how to playfully and respectfully frame and approach difficult trauma symptoms, the process of grief and change itself, autonomic regulation and affect tolerance, relational security, challenging dialectics, telling the trauma story, and ending treatment.
Accessible and intimately written, chapters show how inviting a playful mindset and spirit can accelerate healing and transformation of complex and chronic trauma in adults, adolescents, children, families, and couples. The book offers a practical understanding of trauma and play, and their important shared right brain relationship. It dives deeply into play’s superpowers—scientifically supported mechanisms of action—which make play particularly suited to treat trauma across the lifespan. It interweaves and reviews supportive cutting-edge trauma approaches including: Polyvagal Theory, affective neuroscience, interpersonal neurobiology, Broaden and Build Theory, Coherence Therapy, Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Internal Family Systems, Structural Dissociation of the Personality, and more. It touches on spirituality, too.
Filled with clinical examples, chapters illustrate how therapists can tap into their attuned playful spirit and create a playful setting in person or online. Theory meets practice in chapters which show therapists how to playfully and respectfully frame and approach difficult trauma symptoms, the process of grief and change itself, autonomic regulation and affect tolerance, relational security, challenging dialectics, telling the trauma story, and ending treatment.
This book will empower those working at the heart of trauma treatment to compassionately hold space for the depth of trauma’s painful, isolating effects while embodying the life-affirming, joyful, relationally healing and transformational qualities of playfulness. Most importantly, therapists and clients will grow to have a more fun, creative, engaging, and effective trauma healing process.
Monica also developed the integrative and innovative embodied mirroring technique which helps therapists move through stuck points in treatment with children, teens, and adults in a deeply experiential, relational, and somatic way. She published an article describing embodied mirroring in the Journal of Psychotherapy Integration (2015), 25 (2), 115-127 and presents engaging workshops on ways to bring this technique into clinical practice for clients of all ages.
Monica also developed the integrative and innovative embodied mirroring technique which helps therapists move through stuck points in treatment with children, teens, and adults in a deeply experiential, relational, and somatic way. She published an article describing embodied mirroring in the Journal of Psychotherapy Integration (2015), 25 (2), 115-127 and presents engaging workshops on ways to bring this technique into clinical practice for clients of all ages.
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