297 | CCPT Purism: The Child Knows the Way—A Call to Re-Center - Play Therapy Podcast

Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
You're listening to the Play Therapy Podcast with Dr. Brenna Hicks,
your source for centered and focused play therapy coaching.
Hi,
I'm Dr. Brenna Hicks,
The Kid Counselor.
This is the Play Therapy Podcast where you get
a master class in child-centered play therapy
and practical support and application for your
work with children and their families.
In today's episode,
we are closing out

(00:22):
the CCPT purism series with the intention of
Recentering ourselves
on what it truly means to practice this model with integrity.
I hope that that has been clear
throughout this entire series
that
there has been intentionality
in going through this from the beginning all the way through

(00:44):
because it really is
hopefully affirming the journey
that we're on
and that we need to continually reflect
on some things to make sure that we are adherent.
And we want to make sure that we are the model that we're not using the model.
So this will kind of be
a summary of the whole thing,

(01:06):
kind of just grounding us back to the beginning and the why of all of it.
Before I dive into that,
I just want to give you a quick reminder.
playtherapypodcast.com/live
RSVP to our live event for our 300th episode,
which will be on Friday,
May 16th at 1:30 p.m. Eastern.
So I would love to have you on the call.

(01:26):
We're going to
intentionally
highlight and prioritize podcast listeners
since you all listen,
but don't necessarily get to engage often,
and we had a ton of people on the call last time.
I expect more this time,
so please make sure that you RSVP so we know how many will be there
and we can send you reminders and texts and all the things leading up to that event.

(01:48):
So playtherapypodcast.com/live Friday,
May 16th at 1:30 Eastern.
All right.
So let's
kind of unpack this as
as a summary here.
Instead of teaching something new today,
I'd like to look back over the series.
And there's some forethought in this.

(02:09):
And if you've been with me through this whole series,
thank you.
And if you've been with me from episode one,
in an even bigger thank you.
Some of you have been emailing me and saying,
I started episode one as you told me,
and I'm still a year behind,
or I started on episode one and I'm caught up to this month and this year,
so I know a lot of you will not be hearing this

(02:29):
until down the road because you've been trying to go in order.
But if you are caught up and you listen to every episode every time it drops,
thank you so much.
I truly can't express to you how much I appreciate y'all.
If this is your first episode ever or you did not listen to the rest of the series
and you took a break and you kind of stumbled on this one,

(02:49):
this episode will kind of give you a road map of the whole series and
it'll kind of paint the picture of what this CCPT purism series is all about.
So,
Let me give you some backstory on why
we started this series in the first place.
I wanted to acknowledge the drift in the field.
I wanted to acknowledge what I perceive as our greatest

(03:13):
concern and hindrance
as CCPTs.
And I think that we have to really guard against and be cautious
of allowing little things to seep in
and
take us away from the model
or allow us to drift in a little bit of a different direction
and sometimes it's not even obvious to us.

(03:33):
So I wanted to highlight that that was one of the reasons.
I also wanted to reaffirm
the original purpose of the model.
If we understand where CCPT came from.
Then we understand why it works.
And then we can go all in.
And therefore,
it's no longer just about techniques,

(03:54):
but we embrace
the way of being.
We are CCPT,
but we,
it's really difficult to be CCPT
unless we understand the origins
and how we've gotten to where we are
and why it works
so we kind of
drove on the road for that for a little while.
And then

(04:15):
I wanna just really quickly hit
a highlight from each episode because I want to make sure
that as a recap,
we can really kind of weave all of this together.
So we talked about Rogers
and
the main takeaway of that episode
was he provided us our foundation.

(04:36):
What do I mean?
People grow best
in freedom
and relationship.
That extends to kids too.
They will self-actualize best
with freedom and relationship.
Then we moved into the core tenants.
The self-actualizing
tenant.

(04:57):
Self-concept.
And the organismic valuing process.
That is at the heart
of CCPT's foundation.
Then
we moved into the three core conditions.
Which pop quiz or what?
Thank you.

(05:18):
Unconditional positive regard,
empathy,
and congruence.
Why did we talk about those?
They are prerequisites
for growth.
It was made very clear in Roger's work
that those are required.
Then we looked at how Axline's influence shifted
into the eight principles.

(05:40):
So all of Roger's work.
Integrated into 8 principles
that first brought the theory into the playroom
and into working with children.
Then we looked at the Guerneys.
Who expanded CCPT through their filial work.
Trusting that the parent-child relationship

(06:02):
is significant.
Then we looked at Landreth.
Who gave
the model,
the name,
the clarity and the structure that we know today.
And then we dove in to what actually CCPT structure is,
which was
non-directive does not mean chaotic.

(06:25):
Structure creates the safety.
So we looked at the importance of structure in the playroom.
It's not a free for all.
Then we looked at common drifts,
how are the
ways that we leave the model very subtle
and often unbeknownst to us,
such as
questions,

(06:45):
praise,
interpretation,
etc.
Then why non-directivity works.
And how children
emotionally process.
There's developmental repair
and there's symbolic play.
And then the real world challenge,
how to stay faithful to the model when systems push against it.

(07:08):
It was our most recent episode.
So,
I'm hopeful
that you can see the continuity through
those 10 episodes.
And let's
kind of unify this in a meaningful way
as our summary.
CCPT.
Is built on one main truth.

(07:29):
And there are a lot of truths in CCPT.
children inherently know their struggles.
children will naturally self-actualize,
given the time,
the tools and the opportunity.
Trust the process.
I could go on and on,
lots of truths in CCPT.
But if I had to say that it was built upon one

(07:50):
major truth.
It's that the child knows the way.
And if we believe that,
Everything
about our work reinforces this belief.
Therefore,
if we drift,
if we redirect,
if we interpret,

(08:11):
if we doubt,
if we question,
if we do anything.
Other than
reinforce the belief that the child knows the way.
Essentially what we're saying.
Is I know more from you.
I'll take it from here.
I can help you.

(08:32):
Let me take over.
I know what's best.
Listen to me.
And
all of a sudden now,
we don't even recognize CCPT
in the work that we're doing.
So,
CCPT
I would argue above any other model.

(08:55):
Requires humility.
Uh,
and a lot of it,
a lot of it.
I,
I think it's rare,
and
I might argue,
hardly ever
do I meet a CCPT
that's full of themselves.
They just,
they're not congruent.

(09:16):
It requires humility and if you're not humble,
CCPT will humble you to the ground real fast.
Which I would argue is why a lot of play therapists are not CCPT.
Because
humility
isn't
easy.
But it's necessary.
You have to be really patient.

(09:38):
This is not a quick fix.
This is not a fast process.
Patience is a necessity.
You have to have presence.
Really engaged,
really attuned,
really aware.
Right in it with the kid.
And you have to have trust.

(09:59):
And
Not only are those the things that make it hard.
I would argue those are the things that make it transformational.
So the beauty of CCPT
is that the one truth.
Is our north star.
The child knows the way.
So with humility and with patience and with presence and with trust

(10:23):
and with faith.
And with belief and with all kinds of things,
it's hard.
But that's what makes it transformational.
So,
I'd like to kind of give you an opportunity to reflect on this a little bit,
and if you want to shoot me an email,
I'd be happy to
correspond with you about it.
But I would love for you to think about what episode

(10:45):
in this series,
this is the 11th of 11,
so it's an 11 episode series.
I wonder what episode or idea most impacted you.
I wonder what part of the model you might still be wrestling with.
What stands out for you as your greatest struggle right now?
Where do you feel

(11:06):
supremely confident?
Where can you say,
I really feel like I have a handle on that,
and where do you feel there are opportunities for growth?
If you would like to process those and shoot me an email,
please feel free if you just want to ponder them on your own.
Also helpful.
But
I think

(11:26):
as we wrap this up,
and as we have done this really intentional
walk
through the model,
I hope that you have
already or you will now
commit to a specific change.
And how you show up in the playroom.
What do you feel

(11:46):
convicted about?
What have you needed to confront?
What
are you,
is your greatest challenge
that's been coming up for you,
commit to one specific change in how you show up in the playroom.
And
not only do we need to think about how we show
up in the playroom and what that might look like.

(12:08):
But
Maybe we need to challenge ourselves to continue this type of thinking,
continue this type of learning,
even when the series finishes.
So
maybe that means that you reread a seminal work.
And CCPT.
You read a book that
you haven't read in a really long time.
If you haven't read Art of the Relationship in a while,

(12:28):
do yourself a favor and read it again.
If you've never read it,
pause me right now and go order it online.
It's that important.
Maybe you need to revisit a session.
If you record your sessions,
maybe you need to watch it.
And self critique and self-review.
If you don't record it and you can't rewatch it,

(12:50):
think yourself through that session.
Think about what happened,
think about your responses,
think about what you might have done or said differently.
Catch yourself
before you start to drift is,
is really the challenge.
Do what you need to do to ground yourself and to anchor yourself and to remain there.

(13:11):
Because
it's subtle and it's quick.
I like the term slow fade.
We were on a slippery slope and we don't even realize it because it's a slow fade.
So here's my final encouragement to you.
First of all,
you're not alone.
You do not have the privilege or the luxury

(13:33):
of hearing from CCPTs all over the world like I do.
I wish,
I honestly wish that I could share with you all of the messages that I get,
all the emails,
all the texts.
I wish that I could communicate to you.
You are so not alone.
The movement of CCPT
is
gaining and growing

(13:55):
and momentum's building,
and
it,
it is just a sweep.
It's,
it's incredible
to see what's happening.
You are not alone.
Even though you feel like it sometimes,
even though you question things sometimes,
even though you get pushed back,
even though no one seems to get it,
you're the only one in your agency practice,

(14:15):
organization,
you feel alone.
I promise you,
you're not.
First of all,
you have me.
So at the very least,
it's a party of two.
But I promise you,
you are not alone.
There are thousands and thousands
of CCPTs.
Just as bought in as you,
just as passionate as you,

(14:36):
just as committed as you,
and you need community.
We talked about that in one of the earlier episodes.
Join the Collective if you haven't.
It is a community of people
that are going to help you see
that you do have a tribe of people
that will encourage you and support you and share
resources with you and answer questions and dialogue and

(14:57):
get to know you.
It's important
to surround yourself with people
that are like-minded.
You're not alone.
Second of all,
this model is enough.
CCPT is enough.
And if these 11 episodes haven't helped you see that,
I think I've,

(15:18):
I've lost all of my
sway
because
this is pretty compelling stuff,
y'all.
So if this hasn't resonated with you,
I don't know what would.
This model is enough.
And so are you.
You are enough.
Knock off this imposter syndrome crap,
knock off this.
I'm not licensed yet.
I'm not RPT.

(15:39):
I'm still in grad school.
I don't have my hours yet.
I'm still a pre-licensed associate,
blah blah.
You are enough.
CCPT is enough,
and so are you.
And if you are
CCPT because it's a way of being.
If you are CCPT.

(16:01):
You don't have to perform.
Just be present.
That's all that's expected of you.
Not perfection,
not
flawless execution,
not deep theoretical grounding.
Just be present
The best thing you can offer a child

(16:22):
is not a technique,
not a skill,
not something clinical,
not a technique or trick or tip or whatever,
it's yourself.
You're offering yourself.
Why?
Because it's about the relationship.
And when you offer yourself,
it's because it's grounded in

(16:43):
belief.
And safety
So
You're not alone.
You are enough.
So is the model.
Be present.
Those are your marching orders for the week.
And seriously,
thank you
for walking.
Through the series with me.

(17:03):
And if you know of a colleague
that would benefit from this.
Make a little playlist of these 11 episodes and share it with them
because
if someone's ready to go all in,
they're gonna need
the deep
understanding
and this is gonna be a place to start for them.
So make a little playlist and and share it with someone that might need it.

(17:24):
I would encourage you to do that.
And for yourself,
come back
to any of these episodes anytime you need to reenter.
If you catch yourself in a drift,
if you catch yourself mid drift,
if you catch yourself thinking about drifting,
reenter yourself,
come back and revisit these.
This is the way that we stay adherent to the model.

(17:45):
So,
I'm gonna wrap it up with these 3 short little phrases.
Let the child lead
Trust the process.
B
CCPT.
Love y'all.
We'll talk again soon.
Bye.
Thank you for listening to the Play Therapy Podcast with Dr.
Brenna Hicks.
For more episodes and resources,

(18:07):
please go to www.playtherapypodcast.com.

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297 | CCPT Purism: The Child Knows the Way—A Call to Re-Center

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