Play Therapy at Mala
Helping Children Heal, Grow, and Thrive Through the Power of Play
At Mala Child & Family Institute, we offer expert play therapy for children in Michigan, providing a safe and supportive space where healing begins through play. Located in Plymouth, Ann Arbor, and Farmington Hills, our trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming, and culturally sensitive therapists specialize in helping children express themselves, process big emotions, and develop lifelong emotional resilience.
If you're looking for play therapy near Detroit, Novi, Canton, Northville, Ypsilanti, or surrounding Southeast Michigan areas, we’re here to support your family with in-person sessions and virtual caregiver coaching.
What Is Play Therapy?
Play therapy is a relationship-based approach rooted in our core Mala values: trauma-informed care, neurodiversity affirmation, and cultural sensitivity. We understand that children don’t always have the words to express what they’re feeling. That’s why we meet them where they are (in play) the language of childhood.
In our thoughtfully designed playrooms across Plymouth, Ann Arbor, and Farmington Hills, children are invited into a safe, affirming space where their inner world can unfold through art, movement, games, storytelling, and imaginative play. Our trained therapists observe, attune, and gently respond, not to control behavior, but to build connection, regulation, and emotional resilience.
Whether a child is working through trauma, grief, anxiety, ADHD, autism, or life transitions, our play therapists at Mala provide individualized, strengths-based care that fosters healing from the inside out.
We don’t use play to distract from problems. We use it to honor and process them, in a way that makes sense to a child’s mind, body, and spirit.
Who Benefits from Play Therapy
Play therapy is ideal for children ages 2 to 12 who are experiencing:
Anxiety or separation anxiety
ADHD or difficulty with attention and regulation
Autism or sensory processing differences
Trauma, grief, or PTSD
Nightmares, sleep issues, or fearfulness
Behavioral issues, tantrums, or aggression
Divorce, blended family transitions, or sibling conflicts
School stress or peer relationship struggles
Families from Livonia, Novi, Canton, Westland, Ypsilanti, and other Michigan communities trust Mala for supportive, specialized child therapy.
Types of Play Therapy Offered at Mala
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This non-directive approach is at the heart of our trauma-informed, attachment-based work with children. In CCPT, your child leads the play while the therapist follows with warmth, attunement, and reflection. This builds emotional safety, autonomy, and trust—critical foundations for healing. Children struggling with anxiety, attachment wounds, or control-related behaviors especially benefit from this supportive and empowering modality.
Parents can expect sessions that focus on relationship-building and emotional self-expression, with progress emerging gradually through a secure therapeutic connection.
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In directive play therapy, our clinician takes a more active role in guiding the session. This may include introducing specific activities, games, or storytelling exercises designed to address issues such as trauma, grief, sibling rivalry, or fears. This approach is especially helpful for children who need structure to engage or who are facing concrete emotional or behavioral challenges.
Parents are often involved in identifying therapeutic goals, and may be given follow-up strategies to support the work at home.
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Sand tray therapy is a powerful tool used to help children process complex emotions and past experiences, particularly those linked to trauma or loss. Children use small figurines and natural objects to create symbolic scenes in a tray of sand, allowing them to express internal conflicts or memories that may be too difficult to verbalize.
At our Michigan clinics, we use sand tray therapy in both directive and non-directive formats, depending on the child’s needs, always with gentle clinical attunement to what surfaces in the sand.
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Art therapy encourages children to use creative mediums like drawing, painting, and sculpting to externalize feelings, develop insight, and strengthen emotional regulation. This modality is especially effective for children with anxiety, autism, selective mutism, sensory processing differences, or those who have experienced trauma.
Parents often see their child’s emotional world become more visible through artwork, and our therapists help translate this into actionable support and understanding.
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Incorporating movement, rhythm, sensory play, and therapeutic games helps children improve impulse control, emotional regulation, coordination, social interaction, and executive functioning. This approach is particularly useful for children with ADHD, autism, sensory integration challenges, or motor planning difficulties.
Sessions may include obstacle courses, cooperative games, mindfulness exercises, or sensory tools—all designed to build brain-body integration in a fun, engaging way.
Common Misconceptions About Play Therapy
Many parents who are new to play therapy are unsure of what to expect. Because sessions often look different from traditional adult talk therapy, it’s easy to misinterpret what’s happening in the room. Here’s what we want families to know:
"It’s just playing."
Play therapy is not babysitting or recreational play. It is a deeply clinical, evidence-based modality grounded in child development, neuroscience, and mental health theory. Our licensed therapists undergo extensive postgraduate training, clinical supervision, and ongoing education to use play in intentional and therapeutic ways. Every choice in the room, from the toys we offer to the way we respond to a child's play themes, is guided by skill, observation, and care.
Therapists must also possess strong emotional intelligence, trauma awareness, and regulatory capacity to hold space for children who may reenact overwhelming or confusing experiences during play. It is highly attuned work that requires advanced training and deep presence.
“If my child isn’t talking, therapy must not be working.”
Many children, especially those who are neurodivergent, have experienced trauma, or are still developing language, begin their healing journey nonverbally. In play therapy, your child doesn’t need to explain their feelings with words. Instead, they may show how they feel through pretend play, storytelling, drawings, or sensory exploration.
Our therapists are trained to observe and make sense of these patterns, helping your child process their emotions and build new ways of coping, without ever needing to “talk it out” before they’re ready. Healing starts with safety and trust, and those things take time.
“Therapy should look more serious.”
Play therapy may look lighthearted, but the emotional work being done is often profound. For children, play is serious business, it’s how they communicate, process, experiment, and understand the world. A child who appears joyful in therapy may be building trust, testing limits, or rehearsing safe relationships in ways that are deeply therapeutic.
Our therapists know how to balance fun and depth, engagement and structure. It is possible, and often necessary, for joy, laughter, and healing to coexist in the same room.
Parent Involvement in Play Therapy
We believe that caregivers are crucial partners in the therapy process. We support families via:
Parent coaching sessions tailored to your family’s needs
Regular caregiver check-ins to share updates and tools
Co-regulation strategies to try at home
Collaboration with schools and pediatricians (with consent)
Education on child development, sensory profiles, and more
Our locations in Ann Arbor, Plymouth, and Farmington Hills are designed to support both child and caregiver, because we know healing happens in connection.
Questions to Ask a Play Therapist in Michigan
What training and certifications do you have in play therapy?
What models do you use (e.g., child-centered, directive)?
How are parents included in the process?
How do you create emotional safety and build trust with children in therapy?
Do you specialize in neurodivergent or trauma-exposed children?
How do you measure progress?
What is your approach to culturally responsive care?
Do you collaborate with schools in my area (e.g., Plymouth-Canton, AAPS, Farmington Public Schools)?
Highly Trained Therapists – Our clinicians are trained in child-centered play therapy, trauma-focused care, and more.
Family-Inclusive Approach – We offer coaching and support for parents, not just the child.
Multidisciplinary Services – Therapy, psychological testing, psychiatry, speech therapy and occupational therapy under one roof.
Inclusive & Affirming – We serve diverse families across cultural, neurodivergent, and linguistic backgrounds.
Three Locations – Convenient access to care in Plymouth, Farmington Hills, and Ann Arbor, MI.
Holistic Child & Family Support – We don’t just treat symptoms, we nurture the whole ecosystem.
Why Families Across Michigan Choose Mala for Play Therapy
Train to Become a Child Centered Play Therapist
Doug Gardner, LMSW, RPT-S™ (Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™), is the Director of the Play Therapy Training Program at the Mala Child & Family Institute. With a deep belief in the transformative power of play, art, sand tray, storytelling, books, and imaginative expression, Mr. Gardner creates safe and nurturing spaces where children, teens, and adults can explore emotions, process life experiences, and build resilience.
Mr. Gardner specializes in trauma-informed and neurodiversity-affirming care. His role in training and supervision is grounded in a strong commitment to excellence, advocacy, and fostering the next generation of ethical and empathetic therapists. Through ongoing support and hands-on guidance, Mr. Gardner empowers emerging clinicians to develop confidence, sharpen their skills, and uphold the highest standards of care for the diverse families Mala serves across Michigan.
Mr. Gardner is passionate about cultivating a culture of learning, collaboration, and healing, ensuring that Mala continues to be a leading provider of trauma-informed, culturally sensitive, and developmentally attuned psychotherapy.
Doug Gardner, LMSW, RPT-S™
Director of Play Therapy Training at Mala
Our Play Therapists
