Description
ECHOES IN THE PLAYROOM: NAVIGATING COUNTERTRANSFERENCE IN PLAY THERAPY
PRESENTED BY:
SARAH STROUP, LMFT, RPT-S
MAGGIE LEAVITT, LMFT, RPT-S
Workshop Overview:
Your emotional presence is one of your most valuable therapeutic tools. But what happens when a client’s story feels too close to home? In this interactive workshop, we’ll move beyond the textbook definition of countertransference and explore it in the context of real-life child therapy.
You will learn practical strategies to identify your emotional triggers and process them effectively. This isn’t just theory—you’ll leave with a clear roadmap for deepening your selfawareness, preventing burnout, and strengthening your therapeutic relationships with your young clients.
If working towards your RPT, this may be applied to special topics.
Workshop Objectives:
After the workshop, participants will be able to:
- Define and differentiate between transference and countertransference
- Identify common triggers for countertransference when working with children
- Develop and implement practical strategies for recognizing and managing countertransference in play therapy
- Identify ethical and legal risks that result from countertransference
- Identify how self-of-the-therapist influences the application of play therapy and how to use a systemic lens when assessing for countertransference.
APT Approved Provider: 20-605
Number of continuing education credits: 3
When:
January 9th, 2026, 9AM – 12PM
Where:
Live webinar via Zoom
Three non-contact CEs offered through APT
Pending ethics CE approval
Cancellation Policy:
Registration cancellations must be submitted in writing. The registration fees, minus a $35 administrative charge, will be refunded if the request is made 30 days prior to the conference, workshop, or training. Registration refunds will not be made within 30 days prior to the conference, workshop, or training. No refunds will be given to parties who register but do not attend. Registrations may be transferred to another person without penalty only if the original registrant notifies the training coordinator in writing. We reserve the right to cancel any conference, training, or workshop in the vent of unforeseen circumstances. If such occurs, we will attempt to notify registrants at least 10 calendar days prior to the conference and refund all registration, workshop, continuing education fees.
Live webinar:
A zoom link will be emailed to you a day prior. This is a live webinar. At this time, a recording of this training will not be available.
Disclaimers:
This training is meant to replace ethical or legal counsel. Please seek consultation from an attorney and/or your liability insurance ina ssessing ethical and legal risks.
*Statement from APT:
Prior to the pandemic, APT defined webinars, both live and ondemand, as non-contact training/hours. This was primarily due to the organization’s belief that in-person training was essential for mental health professionals working toward the
play therapy specialty credential. This has not changed. However, circumstances and access to in-person training has changed. Therefore, as of July 1, 2022, the standards were modified to address these ongoing circumstances, and the attainment of play therapy instruction hours needed to meet the initial Credentialing Application requirements. For Application purposes: Please see www.a4pt.org for more information.
Grievance Policy:
At Monarch Training Center, we’re fully committed to upholding all legal and ethical responsibilities to ensure fairness in our promotional activities, program content, and the way we treat our attendees. While we strive to ensure everyone is treated fairly and try to anticipate any issues that may arise, we understand that complaints may still occur. When they do, we aim to address them as quickly as possible. If you have any concerns about a speaker, the materials being presented, the delivery methods, or the training facilities, please reach out to Sarah Stroup and we’ll work to resolve the issue promptly and efficiently.
Conflict of Interest Statement:
At Monarch Training Center, we’re all about ensuring our programs are top-notch and free from any potential conflicts of interest. We take it seriously, meaning we’re on the lookout for any situations where personal, professional, legal, financial, or other interests might cloud someone’s judgment or effectiveness in planning, promoting, delivering, or evaluating our courses. Our instructors and presenters are on board with this. They’ll be upfront about any relationships or financial support that could raise an eyebrow, making sure to disclose them before the program kicks off. You’ll know where everyone stands from the get-go, either through a designated person or a clear slide at the start of the presentation. Transparency is key, and we’re committed to keeping you informed every step of the way.