About this course
This course explores how Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy (CBPT) and EMDR can be integrated within a trauma-informed framework to support children in processing difficult experiences safely. Through playful adaptations of the EMDR protocol — including resource installation, bilateral stimulation, and desensitization techniques tailored to children — participants will learn how to meet children at their developmental level while working toward safe trauma processing.
This course is not EMDR basic training and does not qualify participants to practice EMDR independently. Only clinicians who have completed accredited EMDR basic training (e.g., EMDR Europe/EMDRIA) and who work within their professional scope should deliver EMDR.
"The most powerful determinant of change is relational."
Bruce Perry, 2002
Learning objectives
At the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Describe how CBPT and EMDR complement each other within a trauma-informed lens
- Identify indicators of a child's readiness for trauma-focused work
- Apply playful resource-building and bilateral stimulation techniques appropriate to a child's developmental stage
- Recognize the boundaries of their professional scope in relation to EMDR practice
Course Curriculum
Meet your instructor
Didem Altay, PhD, is a Clinical Psychologist, Certified CBPT Trainer, Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor™ (RPT-S™), and Adjunct Faculty member in the Department of Psychology, where she teaches Play Therapy. She is an APT Approved Provider of Continuing Education and provides training and supervision in play therapy. She is also a Certified I-CCPT, an EMDR Europe-accredited therapist, and a Consultant in Training. Her work focuses on CCPT, CBPT, and EMDR with children and adolescents.
