Working with children

“Play is an essential part of creativity. During play, the child discovers itself, tests its environment and discovers and experiences reality.”

Max Bolliger

Sandplay figures and sand tray

Animal figures of the sandplay

My psychotherapy practice in Zurich offers children, young people and young adults a protected, therapeutic environment. Current crises, emotional problems, development problems and feelings of social exclusion are tackled head-on during play and discussion under my psychotherapeutic care.
Positive co-operation with all those involved – parents, teachers, educational psychologists, paediatricians and other mentors – is an important condition for the success of any psychotherapeutic process.

Working method
Apart from discussions, the children and young people can select the following ways of discovering themselves, trying out new things and expressing, in a formative way, what has hitherto remained unsaid:

• Creative play
• Therapeutic Sandplay by D. Kalff
• Role play/playing according to rules
• Drawing/painting
• Fairy tales and stories

Appointment
Following the appointment, a preliminary meeting is held with the parents – or alone in the case of young people – during which the current situation, common objectives, procedures and forms of co-operation are discussed. A trial phase of 3 sessions is then agreed upon, after which a joint decision is taken on whether the psychotherapeutic process should continue on a weekly basis.
The fee is agreed upon at the preliminary meeting.