Constructing


One’s Niche: Offering Play Therapy to the


Deaf Community | GABRIEL I. LOMAS, PHD, LPC, RPT-S


Association for Play Therapy and know the field very well. The day was fascinating, and the handouts were really helpful. That single workshop was the only play therapy training I had in my graduate program, yet the impact was far-reaching.


I


After graduate school, while under supervision, I began counseling children and adults, many of whom were in the child welfare system. I struggled to find the words to help children process their experiences. I have a unique niche, as I am fluent in American Sign Language (ASL). Agencies were referring large numbers of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children to my practice, and I leaned heavily on that one workshop I had in play therapy. My wife, who is also a counseling graduate, and I were fortunate that training was plentiful in Houston, TX. We quickly connected with wonderful mentors and advanced our training. I earned a doctorate and became an RPT-S, which was important for my clinical work. It was clear that words were not needed, and play was the language I needed to use in sessions.


Using ASL in play therapy has


allowed me to construct a niche that has positively impacted my career and the lives of countless children with whom I have crossed paths!


For nearly 10 years, I was contracted by Child Protective Services (CPS) to do risk assessments with adults and therapy with victims of child abuse and neglect. I was often called by child advocates and social workers to assess parenting skills and evaluate children’s need for treatment on short notice, then make recommendations for the court or for CPS. I recall meeting with a young girl who had been wandering around a community alone. Her parents were drug-addicted and had left her to fend for herself while they binged on drugs. The police brought her in, and CPS took her into custody in the months prior to our meeting. The


n graduate school, I attended a Saturday workshop presented by Registered Play Therapists (RPT) who are still active in the


MEMBER STORYTELLING CLINICAL EDITOR’S COMMENTS:


The author explains how play therapy has helped him benefit the Deaf Community.


ABOUT THE MEMBER


Gabriel I. Lomas, PhD, LPC, RPT-S is a professor in the department of Educational Psychology at Western Connecticut State University. He currently serves as the President of New York APT. Lomas is an avid scholar in the areas of child welfare, adverse childhood experiences, and psychological issues with Deaf people. lomasg@wcsu.edu


caseworker noted that the child did not speak and hypothesized that she may be intellectually disabled. They could not locate anyone who could see her and give a professional opinion on her treatment needs or placement recommendations.


She was reticent to interact with me. She followed my puppets back to the playroom, but she didn’t immediately play with the toys. For the first few minutes, she moved around the room, examining all of the toys. When she finished visually exploring, she selected a doll family and a doll house and began to process her experiences. In that first session, she told me about her parents, being removed from them, hating it, going to a shelter, and feeling she had done something wrong. She had no idea what a shelter was. No one knew sign language, so no one could tell her what was happening.


It was clear from her use of signs that she was bright, had been educated in a school, and could take some direction from adults. She wore a dress, which she adjusted during the play to ensure modesty. When she got hungry, she asked for some pizza and told me a joke. She was thrilled to meet me, and I was honored to interact with her in play therapy for that one session. Unfortunately, CPS relocated her to a town that was too far for me to treat her in play therapy. Although I never saw her again, I hope my one-time interaction and recommendations helped.


Play therapy was a gift given to me like a small plant. I grew, nurtured, and used it as my tool to work with hundreds of children in the child welfare system. Without play therapy tools at my disposal, I am doubtful I would have reached many children, and I am certain I would not have reached the child described above. Play therapy has helped me reach Deaf children that others could not reach. Using ASL in play therapy has allowed me to construct a niche that has positively impacted my career and the lives of countless children with whom I have crossed paths!


www.a4pt.org | March 2020 | PLAYTHERAPY | 15


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