Mara Play Therapy

09/02/2026

04/02/2026

If you’ve ever been told your child “should be able to calm themselves by now”, this matters.

Decades of developmental research show that emotional regulation is not something children learn alone. It is built, slowly and repeatedly, through co-regulation with a safe adult. Before the brain can self-soothe, it needs to experience being soothed. This isn’t permissive parenting — it’s how nervous systems develop.

Studies on parent–child synchrony, the Still-Face paradigm, and social biofeedback consistently show the same thing: regulation is social before it becomes internal. Children borrow calm, learn meaning, and gradually build the capacity to regulate themselves through relationship. Co-regulation isn’t a parenting trend — it’s the cornerstone of emotional development.

Research references (evidence-based)
Ruth Feldman – Bio-behavioural synchrony research demonstrating that attuned caregiver–child interactions predict later self-regulation and emotional competence (Feldman, 2003; 2012).
Edward Tronick – Mutual Regulation Model and Still-Face paradigm showing that infants rely on caregiver responsiveness to regulate distress before self-regulation emerges.
György Gergely & Watson – Social biofeedback model explaining how contingent adult responses teach children to understand and regulate internal emotional states.
Murray et al. (2019) – Applied developmental model positioning co-regulation as a core mechanism through which self-regulation develops across childhood.
Bornstein et al. (2023) – Reviews framing co-regulation as a multilevel biological and relational process foundational to emotional regulation.

30/01/2026

✨Is my child too old for play therapy? ✨

Many parents worry that once children reach 9 and older, they won’t “play” anymore.
“They’re very verbal.”
“They can explain what’s going on.”
“So maybe play therapy isn’t right for them?”

🧠 Here’s an important thing to know:
A child’s brain — especially the frontal cortex, which supports emotional regulation, impulse control, and logical thinking — is still developing well into adulthood. Even older children don’t yet have the full capacity to process big emotions or difficult experiences through talking alone.

🎭 Why play still matters
Play therapy uses symbols, metaphor, creativity, and action — the child’s natural language — to explore experiences that feel overwhelming, confusing, or unsafe to put into words.

For older children, play therapy may include:

🎨 Art, drawing, and creative expression
Exploring emotions such as anger, sadness, anxiety, identity, and self-esteem.

🏖️ Sand, figures, and symbolic play
Expressing relationships, safety and danger, power, protection, and past experiences.

🎲 Games with rules
Revealing themes of control, frustration, fairness, boundaries, anxiety, and coping with losing or winning.

📖 Storytelling, role-play, or imaginary worlds
Working through fears, family dynamics, past events, strengths, and hopes using metaphor.

🧱 Movement, building, and problem-solving activities
Supporting emotional regulation, confidence, resilience, and processing feelings held in the body.

🌱 Trauma is processed at the age it happened
Even if a child is older now, their nervous system may need to explore experiences at the developmental stage they occurred — not just through logic or conversation.

✨ Older children are not “too old” for play therapy
Play therapy meets children where they truly are — emotionally and developmentally — and supports healing in a way that feels safe, respectful, and age-appropriate.

Mara play therapy

https://www.forresterplaytherapy.uk

23/01/2026

Donald Winnicott beautifully captured the depth of play when he wrote:

“Play, like dreams, serves the function of self-realisation.”

In Play Therapy, play becomes the child’s pathway to understanding themselves. Just as dreams allow the unconscious to communicate through symbols, play gives children a safe, symbolic language to express feelings, experiences, and needs that may be too complex or overwhelming for words.

Through play, children explore who they are, what they have lived through, and how they make sense of the world around them.

This process supports emotional integration, identity development and healing, not by being directed, but by being experienced.

Play is not simply an activity.
It is a deeply meaningful process of becoming.

17/01/2026

Children have been back in school for almost two weeks after the holidays, and many families are beginning to notice how demanding this transition can be for children emotionally. One topic that often comes up at this time of year is masking in school.

Many children work incredibly hard during the school day to hide how they’re really feeling. They may appear settled, quiet, and coping well, while inside they’re feeling overwhelmed or anxious. When they get home, the mask often comes off — and big emotions can appear.

Masking isn’t bad behaviour.
It’s dysregulation and a coping mechanism — a sign of how much effort a child is using to get through the day.

How parents can support at home:
💛 Keep after-school time calm and predictable
💛 Lower expectations and allow decompression time
💛 Avoid too many questions straight away
💛 Offer food, rest, or quiet connection first
💛 Connect through child-led play, being fully present
💛 Acknowledge the challenges your child is facing, even when they can’t put them into words

Home is often where children feel safe enough to unmask.

At Mara Play Therapy, children are offered a warm, non-judgemental space where they don’t need to hide how they feel. Through child-led play therapy, children can express emotions safely, feel understood, and develop regulation at their own pace.

🌐 https://www.forresterplaytherapy.uk

📩 maraplaytherapy@gmail.com

02/01/2026

Back-to-School Countdown: Friday Reset

School starts again on Monday — and today is about helping children’s bodies and brains remember what school rhythm feels like.

Not a full reset.
Not strict routines overnight.
Just gentle preparation.

Easing bedtimes.
Bringing wake-ups a little earlier.
Returning to predictable meals and snack times.
Talking about school in calm, curious ways — who they’ve missed, what they’re looking forward to, what they’d love in their lunchbox.

These small shifts help reduce stress before it shows up as behaviour.

Preparation isn’t pressure.
It’s support.

👉 Come back tomorrow morning for an emotional prep post, including a FREE DOWNLOAD Parent Handout — supporting worries, big feelings, and the transition back into school-ready mode.

16/12/2025

Noise sensitivity and Moro reflex

03/12/2025

Today marks one year since Mike, Helen and I (and my dad) first walked through the doors of our building at Liberton Brae. We had so many hopes and dreams — and a LOT!!!! of work ahead of us. I’m so proud of everything we’ve achieved and all that we’ve learned along the way on this beautiful project.
Happy 1-year anniversary

30/11/2025

18/11/2025

Supporting children with sensory processing difficulties

06/11/2025

This may be supportive to some of you.

03/11/2025

My child needs mental health support but will never attend therapy!!

You’re not alone — many children and young people find the idea of “therapy” scary or uninteresting.

🐾 That’s where Animal Assisted Play Therapy®️ (AAPT) can make a real difference. And that’s where Fresa comes in…

Fresa is my 2-year-old Goldendoodle therapy dog— her name means Strawberry 🍓 in Spanish. She’s playful and loves inventing her own games, like hide-and-seek or tossing a balloon back and forth. Fresa is very attuned to people, especially children, and she’s wonderful at matching their energy.

Kind, funny, and clever, Fresa understands Polish, Spanish, and English! She naturally connects with children and helps them to:

✨Build trust

A calm, friendly dog helps children feel safe and relaxed — no judgment, no pressure.

✨Feel accepted

Animals offer unconditional acceptance, helping children feel valued and free to be themselves.

✨Turn therapy into play

Playing with Fresa makes sessions fun and helps children open up naturally.

✨Develop empathy

Dogs reflect children’s emotions, helping them understand and manage their own feelings — and those of others.

✨Create connection

Animal Assisted Play Therapy®️ fosters a safe bond between the child, therapist, and dog — nurturing trust and healing.

At Mara Play Therapy, Fresa joins me in play therapy sessions to help children and young people explore trauma and difficult emotions in a gentle, supportive way.

If you’d like to know more about how Animal Assisted Play Therapy®️ could help your child or young person, we’d love to hear from you.

📍 Edinburgh South. 18E, Liberton Brae EH16 6AE

🌐 www.forresterplaytherapy.uk/edinburgh-playroom

📧 maraplaytherapy@gmail.com