The Therapywise Foundation

29/10/2026

My mum drives past this tree every day. And every day she says, ‘Good morning Jesus’. My mum is not a religious woman but she does believe in the power of belief & superstitions. And she’s come to feel that not saying good morning to ‘Jesus’ would be somehow bad luck. On Saturdays when she goes past she always has her friend, Jane, with her. As they drive past and my mum says, ‘Good morning Jesus’ Jane rolls her eyes & tells her she’s crazy. This has been going on for months now. Every Saturday.

A month ago Jane’s gardener cut through her internet cables whilst trimming her hedge. Two weeks later she was still waiting for BT to come and sort it out for her. So on the Saturday as they went past ‘Jesus’ my mum said, ‘Good morning Jesus. Could you please help Jane get her internet sorted’. The next day, Sunday, the BT engineers turned up first thing in the morning & fixed Jane’s internet.

Jane was surprised, but thought it was a coincidence & still thinks my mum is crazy. Jane is also trying to sell her house. And the following Saturday as they went past, my mum again said, ‘Good morning Jesus. Could you please help Jane sell her house.’ On the Monday a couple got back in touch with Jane to increase their previous offer to the full asking price. Now Jane doesn’t know what to think 🤣

On the Wednesday, my mum went past ‘Jesus’ as usual but this time she had her nephew with her. He has been waiting ages for a visa to arrive in the post so that he can go to live with his girlfriend in Australia. Apparently visas are held up at the moment. But she thought it was worth a try. So she said, ‘Good morning Jesus. Please could you get Tom his visa.’ Well, would you believe that visa arrived on his doormat three days later?

So here’s the thing. Sometimes it might seem
like asking for help is pointless, or you don’t think it’s worth it, it won’t come to anything or you don’t know where to go or who to ask for help. But it’s always worth reaching out. Just in case.

If you want help with your internet, I’m not your person. If you’re trying to sell your house you’d be better off asking the estate agent than me. And if you want a visa to Australia I’m definitely not who you need.

But, humour aside, sometimes reaching out is important. If you’re struggling with your child’s behaviour that’s possibly one of those very important times. Maybe you’re worried that you’re not being the parent your child needs you to be. Or your child is screaming at you because they just can’t cope. Or every day it’s a battle to get them into school. If that sounds familiar then I am your person.

DM me & I’ll connect with you to see if it’s me you need.

28/10/2026

Misconceptions of Play Therapy: “Therapy Has to Involve Talking and Asking Questions”

Children don’t always have the words, emotional awareness or developmental capacity to explain complex feelings and experiences. Direct questions can feel overwhelming or intrusive.

Play Therapy offers another way.

Play is a child’s natural language. Through toys, creativity, movement, storytelling and imagination, children can safely express and explore their inner world.

In non-directive Play Therapy, children aren’t pressured to talk or disclose. Therapists use skills such as tracking, reflecting feelings and responding empathically to communicate understanding.

Some children talk throughout their sessions. Others communicate mainly through play. Many move between both.

The important thing is that children don’t need to explain their experiences for therapy to be effective.

In Play Therapy, we don’t just listen to children’s words. We listen to their play.

Because sometimes, the most meaningful communication happens without a single word.

26/10/2026

Misconceptions of Play Therapy: “It’s Just Playing!”

One of the most common misconceptions about Play Therapy is that it's simply an opportunity for children to play, have fun and relax.

But Play Therapy is so much more than just play.

Play is children's natural language. Through play, children can express emotions, explore experiences and communicate things they may not yet have the words to explain.

So, what makes Play Therapy therapeutic?

• The therapeutic relationship: A safe, trusting and accepting relationship with a trained Play Therapist.

• The environment: Carefully selected toys and resources that encourage emotional expression and exploration.

• The therapeutic process: An evidence-informed approach grounded in child development, attachment and the therapeutic powers of play.

• Emotional processing: Opportunities for children to explore feelings and experiences through symbolic play, creativity and imagination.

And progress doesn't always look like progress!

A child repeatedly filling containers, creating imaginary worlds or returning to the same activity each week might appear to be simply playing.

But within the safety of the therapeutic relationship, these experiences can hold significant emotional meaning.

Play Therapists don't need to direct every activity or interpret every action for therapy to take place.

Play is the medium. The relationship is central. The process is therapeutic.

Because when children play, they're doing so much more than having fun.

25/10/2026

He came into my playroom clamped to his mother. He was 4 & he was so anxious he couldn’t even relax enough to enjoy the huge array of toys my playroom offered.

I let him know that it was up to him what he did in that room, all of him was welcome. Still he buried his face in his mother’s shoulder, her kneeling on the floor in the hope he’d begin to play. She tried suggesting he look at the tractors, knowing they’d be his favourite. He briefly glanced at them, but then returned to burying his face in her sweater.

After about half an hour she managed to coax him to play with her and the tractors. I stayed near but far enough away to not increase his anxiety. He accepted a biscuit. I took that as progress. At the end of the session he was again clamped to his mother & happy to leave.

The next 2 sessions saw little movement or progress. In fact his mother said she was seeing more reluctance to come. After the third similar session we spoke on the phone.

We agreed that forcing him to come would be counterproductive. It would be a repeat experience for him of how he felt trying to acclimate to nursery and school settings, which he’d never managed.

So what now? If he couldn’t manage to come to the playroom for child-led, gentle play therapy sessions, or any therapy sessions with his mother in the room either, what could we do?

Well, luckily I had a plan. I would support the mother with some immersive, neuroscience-based parent training. We would use brain-body-sensory strategies to help her son feel safer, more regulated and able to connect with others.

After 12 modules of the parent course, delivered online once a fortnight things are now hugely improved. His mother is feeling more confident and able to help her son when he’s struggling, she has a whole arsenal of tools she can use and she is able to feel more connected and regulated herself. Her son is struggling less often and his confidence is growing all the time. He’s having less meltdowns, being kinder to others and is making friends.

Healing isn’t immediate, but if parents have the confidence to know what to do it has got a much better chance.

If you would like to know more about how this could work for you and your family DM me & I’ll be in touch.

**please note, this not based on any one client, so as not to breach confidentiality **

22/10/2026

A mother contacted me to ask if I could help her 6 year old son.

She told me that she had concerns about his behaviour. She said he was the middle child of 5 and he was becoming increasingly difficult at home, being mean and aggressive to his siblings, shouting, screaming or trashing his and his brother’s bedroom. She was exhausted with it, his siblings were becoming scared of him and she didn’t know what to do anymore.

His school described him as either being solitary or aggressive during play times. They said that he had no real friends there and struggled to take responsibility for his actions.

I recommended that we begin with some one to one play therapy sessions. We began sessions every week at the same time and on the same day. That predictability helped him to feel safer coming to see me.

He loved coming to the sessions and was a lovely boy to work with. He played out themes of baddies/goodies, aggression and control to begin with. Themes of safety and protection, healing and nurture followed. He began to gain mastery over his emotions and his play allowed him to explore different outcomes. The sessions also gave him the experience of having some control, which seemed to be essential to his healing. He attended 20 sessions of Non-directive Child-centred Play Therapy sessions and his parents followed this by attending regular parent course sessions.

In the final meeting with his parents, they said he was like a different boy and his aggression had all but disappeared. His school also reported that he was playing well with others and had made 2 good friends in his class.

It can be really easy for our children to struggle with the difficulties modern day life throws at them. And when they’re struggling their behaviours can be baffling, hard work or even make us not want to be around them at all. And no wonder - when they’re struggling their behaviours are just awful. It’s exhausting trying to parent a child like that.

If this sounds like you, in even the smallest way, please know you don’t have to struggle on your own. We can work together to support your child and your family. We can bring back the magic of parenthood that you’d always imagined you’d have. Just DM me & I’ll be in touch.

***this is based on many clients and could be a true reflection of some, but is not based on any specific client in order to not breach any confidentiality.***

10/10/2026

We were out walking with our dogs & my partner took this photo of our youngest dog, Freddie.

Now Freddie can be, & has often been, very hard work. She’s been anxious, worried around other dogs (which can make her loud & obnoxious) and generally exhausting to live with! But photos like this remind me of the joy of her & her joy of life.

Sometimes we just need little moments to remind us of the joy of others, especially in those we parent (both children & furry ones!) & of the joys we can find in life. But it’s not always easy.

Sometimes parents struggle to find the joy in parenting. Or their child’s behaviour is so difficult that it’s hard to find joy in them.

If this sounds like you it might be time to get some parenting support or therapeutic support for your child. I’m here for you & we can work together to help you find that joy in your life.

therapywise.org/contact

04/09/2026

Now offering an intensive 1:1 parent course

Enquire today if you’re interested therapywise.org/contact

31/08/2026

Imagine if all schools began to adopt the attitude of everybody can be in their body however they need to be in order to learn! We would end up with much more regulated classrooms! Yes it’d be hard for the adults initially, but longer term so much easier!

Thank you to The Occuplaytional Therapist for the insight

Felt cute, might delete later 😉

Nah, okay, I didn’t just feel like sharing some selfies for no reason…I wanted to show you a few of the different ways that I personally sit at my desk, in an office, in a professional work environment, each day.

Yes, my feet reach the floor. Yes, I have arm rests and can sit with my body at 90 degree angles…but I almost never do.

(My feet are on the floor as I write this. Both of my legs are jiggling fervently. That’s another way I self-regulate.)

Sitting at 90 degree angles — ESPECIALLY if I were forced to stay still and not jiggle — does. not. work for me. Not even a little bit. I would not hear what you were saying. The words would be in one ear and out the other. All of my hearing and focus would instead be on how uncomfortable I was in my body.

If I’m perched in my office chair like a bird, or typing with my hand wrapped beneath one knee, or even putting my feet on the table…I can focus on what I’m writing. Or focus on what you’re telling me.

But I’m an adult. So usually nobody tells me I can’t sit that way if I don’t want to. (…Well, with the exception of one grad school teacher who actually pulled me into her office for a meeting about how I wasn’t sitting professionally in class…I was not doing any of these things. I was sitting criss-cross applesauce in a chair in a lecture. It baffled me that this was important enough to her to have a meeting about.)

But in school, kids’ seating options are usually limited to…well…sit quietly without wiggling in your chair at 90 degree angles for 8 hours a day. (Or, more realistically, for 30-90 minutes at a time, maybe with 1-5 minute stretch or wiggle breaks…which is *something* but it’s not enough.)

Children — not just ones with sensory difficulties, but literally all children, even the ones who don’t seem like they’re having a hard time meeting the expectation to sit still — learn better through movement and play. And on top of that very basic fact, children self-regulate through wiggling and movement and proprioception and vestibular sensory input. And on top of *that*, children who *do* struggle with sensory differences or other neurodivergences need it even more and in greater quantities.

Here are some quick ways to incorporate movement or stop policing posture in a school environment:

*Let kids stand up beside their table to work if they would prefer that to sitting down.
*Even better, let kids lie down on their tummies and work on writing, reading, etc, on the floor. (Pushing up on elbows or arms.)
*Don’t force “criss-cross applesauce” during floor time or circle time. Allow kneeling, criss-cross, lying on tummy and pushing up, side-kneeling, sitting with legs out in front, squatting, etc.
*Don’t enforce a limit you don’t have to, when what you really mean is another one. An example of this: I don’t let my toddler stand on her chair during dinnertime. If I see her squatting in order to stand up, I tell her to sit down (and help her sit down if she needs help). But if she wants to squat quietly for the sake of squatting, that’s OK. You don’t have to enforce “only sit with your bottom in the chair” if what you really mean is “don’t run away from the table/room/teacher”. You can enforce the actual limit instead.
*Incorporate movement learning — like walking around the room to see and copy different things posted different places, or interact with different centers/stations.

Yes. These things take more time than trying to enforce compliance. It always takes more time to create inclusive systems based on the needs of the people within them, than it does to imagine a quiet non-chaotic system and then punish anyone who doesn’t fall into line with that quiet and non-chaos. But these are children we’re talking about. Anything that’s actually built for children is going to take time and accommodation in the short-term.

The long term is children who learn better and understand more fully and are more at home in their bodies and minds. It’s worth it to me.

[Image description: A person in a red plaid flannel shirt with pink short hair sitting in a variety of ways at an office desk. In the first image, I am sitting perched in a squat. In the second, I am in side-kneeling on the office chair. In the third, my feet are up on the desk out to the side. In the fourth, one knee is up to my chest and the other leg is crossed over it. End description.]

16/08/2026

If your child (especially up to 7 years old) has received CBT treatment & it hasn’t helped, it isn’t their fault. Your child is not broken. They are not beyond helping. It is the system that’s not the right fit for them. CBT, even play-based is not developmentally appropriate for younger children.

Thank you to Play & Filial Therapy, Dr Renshaw for highlighting this research that proves what those working in developmentally appropriate ways with children have always known

15/08/2026

For those of you who might want to know a little more about how things work at The Therapywise Foundation here’s some answers to FAQ & some excerpts from lovely updates I’ve received & been given permission to share.

Frequently asked questions including pricing and testimonials/reviews