Sarah age 5 came into the Playroom with a stutter that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere and it had become so severe that even her parents were struggling to understand her. After 4 or 5 sessions, it was time for feedback with Sarah’s parents and I had nothing! No idea what-so-ever about what was going on. I prayed and asked for wisdom.
During feedback, I shared with her parents that the first thing Sarah did at the beginning of every session was place four characters in the dolls house in specific places (Grandpa on the couch, Mom in the kitchen etc.) and then move to other play without returning to the dolls house or saying anything about what they were doing. It was as if she wanted time to freeze and everything to stay just as it was.
I asked her parents if they had moved to a new house and their response was “Not really”.
Confused, I asked them to explain. They told me that they had two houses on the same property with their folks and had recently swapped houses. Before Sarah arrived for her next session, I placed a second dolls house in the Playroom. When Sarah came in, she moved some furniture from one house to the other, and declared with delight and without a stutter ‘This looks just like my lounge at home!”
I continue to see Sarah as she works out her inner world and her speech is getting easier and more fluent every week.
The Miracle of Play!
