“The synergy that emerges in the playroom when working from a Synergetic Play Therapy framework allows a deep level of attunement to emerge similar to the unspoken connection twins feel or the attunement that occurs between a caregiver and an infant.”
– Lisa Dion, LPC, RPT-S

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Synergetics (a term coined by physicist Buckminster Fuller) is the study of systems in transformation, with an emphasis on total system behavior unpredicted by the behavior of any isolated components.

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Synergetic Play Therapy honors both the therapeutic powers of play, the science that governs relationship, and the development of the therapist, recognizing that it is ultimately the interplay between these three systems that support deep transformation for both therapist and child.

The word itself is also reflective of what is happening in the playroom and how integration and healing occurs. As the therapist attunes to their own internal systems and then attunes to the internal systems of the child, a union of systems occurs. In this union, a synergy forms, allowing for co-regulation to emerge. The co-regulation supports both the therapist and the child in their ability to move towards the uncomfortable thoughts, feelings, and body sensations that they would not have been able to move towards as easily on their own.

During this “synergy of systems”, therapist and child enter something akin to a “Synergetic field’ where right hemisphere to right hemisphere communication emerges, allowing for integration and transformation.

Curious? Check out the toggles on this page and the tabs in the sidebar to learn more about the history, philosophy, tenets, research, and training of SPT.

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                                            -Synergetic Play Therapy Institute

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Chronological versus Emotional Age, Synergetic Play Therapy

At the beginning of each session the therapist is putting effort into assessing what emotional age  the child/adolescent is at.  You might have a 17-year-old sitting in your office based on chronological age; however, you may be working with with a 6-year-old emotionally. Emotional age can very between overall emotional age, or shift depending on trauma/task.  To better understand, The Synergetic Play Therapy Institute defines the following Developmental Tasks Model, which we utilize:

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Who Am I?

Ages 11+

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How well can I do it?

7-11 Years

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How much can I do?

3-6 Years

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Am I okay?

18 months - 36 months

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Is the world okay?

Birth to 18 months

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Do I exist?

Conception to birth

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