"Provides the reader with expert guidance for the use of play-therapy techniques in work with families and their young children. Case examples are alive and instructive." --"Families in Therapy"
"Provides clinicians with information that will effectively help them when working with children and their families. It is certainly a book worth reading and utilizing." --"Journal of Family Psychotherapy"
"For child clinicians who engage in play with children individually, this text provides important tools for overcoming barriers that may have made family therapy seem difficult or unworkable at times." --"AFTA Newsletter"
"The Family Therapy and Play Therapy fields have had to wait a long time for a comprehensive, clinically sound, and integrated handbook. Dr. Eliana Gil's work is well worth the wait. The book fills a gap that has been present far too long. We have needed a comprehensive work that acknowledges that families have the resources to grow and heal together. Therapy does not have to be something done
to people, but rather done
with people. Dr. Gil not only acknowledges this, but teaches us how to do it. It might be frequently said, but in this case absolutely true,
Play in Family Therapy is a 'must' for all clinicians who care for and work with families and their children. This work is a gift for any clinician and the families with which they work. I am thrilled with the clarity of presentation and all the wonderful techniques Dr. Gil presents." --Mary Jo Barrett, MSW, The Center for Contextual Change
"If you have ever struggled with the question of what can be done to facilitate family relatedness or wished for help in understanding what children have experienced in their lives, this book is for you.
Play in Family Therapy is the single most comprehensive collection of play procedures for families in therapy. Eliana Gil's easy going writing style captures the reader's attention and imagination with lively, dramatic case examples of play procedures that open the door and allow the reader to view the inner dynamics of family interactions. Drawing freely on her own creative insights into family interactions, Gil shows therapists how to have fun through play with families and in her skillful hands, the richness of family play comes alive. She writes like she speaks with enthusiasm, conviction, authority, encouragement, and a heartfelt understanding of children and their families." --Dr. Gary Landreth, EdD, Director, Center for Play Therapy, University of North Texas
Eliana Gil, PhD, is senior partner in a private group practice in Fairfax, Virginia, the Gil Institute for Trauma Recovery and Education, which provides therapy, consulting, and training services. She is also Director of Starbright Training Institute for Child and Family Play Therapy in northern Virginia. Dr. Gil has worked in the field of child abuse prevention and treatment for nearly 40 years. A licensed marriage, family, and child counselor; approved marriage and family therapy supervisor; registered play therapist; and registered play therapy supervisor, Dr. Gil has served on the Board of Directors of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children and the National Resource Center on Child Sexual Abuse, and is a former President of the Association for Play Therapy. She is the author of The Healing Power of Play: Working with Abused Children; Play in Family Therapy; Treating Abused Adolescents; Helping Abused and Traumatized Children: Integrating Directive and Nondirective Approaches, and other acclaimed books and video programs on child abuse and related topics. Originally from Guayaquil, Ecuador, Dr. Gil is bilingual and bicultural.