S3E11 - Parent Companion for Play Therapy: Seeing Behavior as Communication

Play Therapy Parenting: Real Parenting Questions Answered by a Child Therapist · Oct 29, 2025 · 14m · transcript

In this episode of the Parent Companion for Play Therapy series, I talk about how we interpret our children's behavior — and why it's so important to see behavior as communication. I share a simple but powerful reminder from the phrase that comes from Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (Landreth, Bratton, 2016) "focus on the doughnut, not the hole." When we fixate on what's missing or what frustrates us about our kids, we lose sight of the good that's right in front of us.

I explain how behavior is often a child's way of showing pain, confusion, or vulnerability, and how shifting our…