Got it. Thank you!
]]>Hi Cassie – I would politely and matter-of-factly limit the 8-year-old from involving your son in his shooting fantasy. So, I’d say something like, “Ah, you are welcome to pretend to shoot towards the trees, etc., but not at ___.” The age difference in the children is too great for them to be allowed full rein to play pretend with each other.
]]>My pleasure, Jo. Yes, you bring up an important point. Children will process and heal their trauma through play and repetition of stories that touch on the feelings they have felt or absorbed from others. Their natural motivation to self-heal can be very strong. Children will tend to want to replay even the mildest surprising or uncomfortable experiences and events (like they witnessed a stranger yelling angrily, for example) and that’s a very, very healthy impulse that we want to encourage. That’s also the reason it is better for us to refrain from telling the stories ourselves, even if children request that. Our story will be different and not as effective therapeutically for our child.
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