At CancerCare, we are always looking for innovative new ways to deliver therapy.
Our Children and Young People’s Service is particularly keen on using inventive techniques to engage with youngsters who may be less responsive to traditional "talking therapies” and may better express their feelings through play and art.
This month, we were delighted to welcome Briony Elliott to the CancerCare team in Morecambe. Briony specialises in dramatherapy which is a form of psychotherapy which can allow children, who may be experiencing difficult life situations, to explore their emotions through role play, art-work, storytelling and movement, in a safe space.
Briony became interested in the technique while studying for a degree in Drama and Theatre Studies during which she spent a summer working at a camp in America supporting children and adults with additional needs
Following her graduation, she found work in a residential school supporting with children and young people which inspired her to complete a masters in Dramatherapy at Derby University. Her dissertation focused on how dramatherapy can help people process trauma and loss and rediscover their sense of self during the therapeutic process.
Her training saw her work within primary schools and a domestic abuse organisation where she provided one-to-one and group therapy sessions for adults and children. Her role at CancerCare will see her work with younger children experiencing bereavement or with a family member who has been diagnosed with cancer.
Briony said: “Working as a therapist for children and young people is something I consider to be a huge privilege. Being alongside someone as they play, create, process and reflect, while facilitating potential healing and growth, is a real honour and being invited into someone’s imaginative world during our sessions is something I don’t take for granted.
“CancerCare prides itself on being non-clinical environment and it is wonderful to see the young people and their families welcomed with genuine warmth and compassion from the moment they walk through the door. The ethos of support and care really does filter through the entire organisation and this is one of valuable features that makes CancerCare such a unique charity.”
Director of Client Services Simon Rothwell said: “We are delighted to have a therapist with Briony’s unique skills and experience at CancerCare. Our work with children and young people has been growing steadily over the last few years and adding Briony to the team underlines our commitment to helping as many people as we can across the Morecambe Bay area.”
For more information about CancerCare’s services for children and young people click here