She recounted that in 1969-1970, the year that Theraplay®
was
initiated, they “got a lot of flak from traditionally-trained social workers and from other professionals who learned about our work. To convince them of its value, Ann made a film showing good outcomes.” Phyllis had spent
that year at the Tavistock Center
in London, England, attending weekly lectures by John Bowlby, watching the Robertson films documenting the devastating effects of separation and loss on young children, and attending case conferences in Donald Winnicott’s home. In Phyllis’s words, “It was a wonderful introduction to attachment theory and to Winnicott’s sensitive work with his strong focus on the importance of the mother-baby relationship.”
Upon her return, Ann showed her the film, and Phyllis remembered saying to Ann, “We are changing the child’s view of herself in the way that Bowlby talks about. We are providing Winnicott’s holding environment.” Phyllis was enthusiastic about the connections she was making, “excited to begin using my new ideas to understand why our work was being so effective.” Three years later, Ann located the two children from the first film and added a post script: “The children were thriving with no signs of the difficult behavior of their early days.” According to Phyllis:
This was the beginning of my life-long quest for learning about attachment. The development and refinement of our Theraplay® approach has been strongly influenced by the ongoing research stimulated by attachment theory: what kind of parenting leads to secure attachment, what makes it possible for parents to provide that kind of parenting, the importance of co-regulation, and the great expansion of knowledge about the neurobiology of social emotional development currently unfolding. What an exciting path we all travel on as we learn more and more about the impact of relationships!
Exciting, indeed! In Part 2 of this interview, I explore the four dimensions of Theraplay®
play therapy, which are often compared. Stay tuned, too, for her hopes and dreams for the future of Theraplay®
! ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Eliana Gil, PhD, LMFT, RPT-S, ATR, is a Founding Partner and Senior Clinical Consultant of Gil Institute for Trauma Recovery and Education. She is semi-retired and continues to supervise, consult, and teach.
elianagil@me.com
with Phyllis, and her mentors and
inspirations in this work. I also asked her to detail the similarities and differences between Theraplay®
and Viola Brady’s developmental
www.a4pt.org | March 2018 | PLAYTHERAPY | 13
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