It’s not just a child’s play

Posted by: Priya Senroy on June 6, 2018 3:36 pm

Spring has many significance in a person life-regrowth, rejuvenating and spring cleaning.

In my personal endeavour to clean up our living space with my children, we came across toys that we could dispose of at a garage sale. They were very much attached to their Lego blocks which have been there since their birth and they refuse to part with it.

I have often used it in my work with children to teach the many skills that can be taught with Lego.

In trying to clean my paperwork, I came across an article on Lego therapy. It has been particular useful as technique to work with children with Autism.

I decided to take this a step further and sue it as a conflict resolution technique to navigate sibling rivalry.

I found that it can be used as a concept than juts building, rebuilding or even problem solving in its simplest form.

Whenever there was a conflict which needed adult intervention, I would give them a Lego box and tell them to build a complex pattern and see how they could work as a complimentary duo to solve it and off course, the prize would be a spring flavoured freezie…..

I did observe their play to give each of the girl’s feedback about what they did to solve the conflict and ultimately come to a mutual resolutions. They negotiated, bargained, analysed win-win, win-lose, collaborating and other techniques. I gave them feedback about their communication, any empathy that I saw and thinking about the big picture.

Since then I have been reading about Lego therapy and  find that these pieces which can create havoc in the middle of the night on the way to the washroom has immense potential and I have learned that it is not just a child play to play with Lego.

So next time if you find yourself losing it over a piece of Lego, think about the piece differently and see how you can sue it as a creative teachable moment.

More information on Lego and its use:

https://themighty.com/2017/01/lego-sets-therapy-counseling-sessions/

http://www.livingwellcounselling.ca/building-blocks-family-therapy/Building Blocks & Family Therapy

http://familykinnections.ca/services/group-programs/

 

 

Priya Senroy , MA CCC

www.senroycounselling.com




*The views expressed by our authors are personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the CCPA

“What more is there to do between October and May than letting your brain work in mysterious ways?”

Posted by: Priya Senroy on February 23, 2018 2:35 pm

This was my takeaway from the article I was reading on how Sweden beats its winter climate….

In my never ending search to beat the winter  and the cold blues I am trying to think and feel differently , and trying to spread this perspective to my clients.

Yes winter is white….Now white can mean bland, boring, dull, monotonous to some, while to others it might mean a blank canvas to start a fresh idea, a barren landscape to sow the seeds of new  opportunity.

So what I am proposing in this blog is to think of the white canvas, the landscape as a metaphor  of an incubator for our creative ideas.

Creativity does not need any season, any thermostat or thermometer…it needs our mind, our imagination and our attitude to think both inside and outside the box.

As I talk to clients who go through the Seasonal Affective Disorder symptoms and cant wait for summer to arrive, I like  encouraging them to use this opportunity to start to think on how to fill that empty canvas, the what background would they like to have, what new goals or ideas they would like to draw….its about reminding them them just like nature, like the tress and the animals…its time to hibernate, to take a break and grow internally….to power pack those seeds which are going to germinate or power pack those energy after a long year that just went past….its longing for those ideas, those creative juices to start taking shape and form so its ready to go whenever one is ready….

The notion that one has to do something or engage in something in order to be creative can easily be demystified if we focused on our internal stimuli, our motivation, our inner energy, our inner powerhouse and what would be the ideal time to do that then now….yes its winter outside, its cold and white ( sometimes) but no one says its dead….its alive as much as we could like to make it…we can stay stay indoors and not make the most of our own time or we can stay indoors ( for those of us who are not winter lovers) and start to gather colors, ideas, resources so that we can paint our year as it unravels….

So can we not let our brain work in mysterious and creative ways at this time of the year?




*The views expressed by our authors are personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the CCPA