Assessing and Treating Suicidal Thinking and Behaviors in Children and Adolescents A Play Therapy Guide for Mental Health Professionals in Clinical and School-Based Settings

Foreword

Eliana Gil

Preface: Perspectives on Suicide

Part One: Understanding Youth Suicide 

1. Introduction 

Mary Ruth Cross and Leslie Baker

2. Law and Ethics, Research, Media, and Looking Forward Toward Zero Suicide 

Leslie Baker and Mary Ruth Cross

3. Integrating Psychiatry into Treatment of Suicidal Youth: Information for Clinicians

Daniel Kostalnick  

4. Countertransference in the Treatment of Youth Suicide and Interventions for Providing Inner and External Support 

Leslie Baker and Mary Ruth Cross

Part Two: Assessment, Theory, and Treatment of Youth Suicide  

5. Assessment of Suicide in Youth

Mary Ruth Cross and Leslie Baker  

6. Play Therapy Theories: Applications to Suicide in Youth

Mary Ruth Cross and Leslie Baker  

7. Treatment of Suicidal Thinking and Behaviors in Children and Adolescents Using Play Therapy 

Leslie Baker, Mary Ruth Cross, and Kim Vander Dussen

8. Impacts of Diversity in Suicide Assessment, Treatment and Prevention for Children and Adolescents 

i. Introduction

Rebekah Byrd and Yumi Ogawa

a. Black American Children and Adolescents

Althea T. Simpson

b. Hispanic/Latine Children and Adolescents

Matthew Schramm and Jose Tapia-Fuselier Jr.

c. Native American and Alaskan Native Children and Adolescents

Ruben Colon

d. Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Children and Adolescents

Yung-Wei Lin

e. Understanding Suicidality in LGBTQ Youth Through the Lens of Queer-PRYSM

Leslie Baker

f. Autistic and Neurodivergent Children and Adolescents

Robert Jason Grant

ii. Conclusion

Rebekah Byrd and Yumi Ogawa

9. The Role of Schools in Suicide: Response, Resourcing and Prevention for Children 

Nichole Vernon

10. Technology's Emerging Role from Assessment to Prevention in Children and Adolescents 

Jessica Stone

Biography

Leslie W. Baker is the CEO and owner of Therapy2Thrive® Ruby Hill Marriage and Family Counseling Center, an outpatient clinic in California.

Mary Ruth Cross is the CEO and owner of Treehouse Family Counseling Services, an outpatient clinic focused on play therapy treatment with children and families.

"This is an incredibly timely and useful resource, one that will be helpful for the novice and seasoned practitioner and supervisor alike. Baker and Cross address assessment, treatment, and prevention, to deal with the obvious and hidden signs of suicidal thinking, preoccupation, and planning. Many of the chapters are written by Baker and Cross from a prescriptive play therapy lens. The other chapters feature renowned authors and cover racial and cultural differences and inclusion, age and gender, ethics, neurodivergence, psychiatry, countertransference, school settings and technology, and special issues utilizing expressive arts and play therapy approaches. This comprehensive book will not be a one-time read but rather a resource to return to again and again. For those of us on the front lines of treatment, as well as play therapy leaders teaching and mentoring the rising generations of play therapists, this is absolutely required reading." 

Athena A. Drewes, PsyD, MA, MS, Ed, RPT-S, founder and president emeritus of the New York Association for Play Therapy and former director of the Association for Play Therapy

"This much-needed text addresses one of the most challenging and detrimental issues faced by clinicians working with children and adolescents. It is theoretically sound, comprehensive, and practical. Breaking new ground in the field, this publication will serve the needs of both novice and seasoned clinicians as they work with one of our most vulnerable populations." 

Sueann Kenney-Noziska, MSW, LCSW, RPT-S, Play Therapy Corner, Las Cruces, New Mexico

"The searing pain of youth longing for connection in a world of pervasive disconnection fed by social media makes this book on the assessment, prevention, and treatment of suicidal behavior in youth essential. This book is comprehensive, pays close attention to cultural issues, and reflects the wisdom of both the editors and its distinguished contributors. Highly recommended!" 

David A. Crenshaw, PhD, ABPP, author and chief of clinical services at the Children's Home of Poughkeepsie

"Cross and Baker offer mental health providers a map for approaching suicidal ideation in children and adolescents while demonstrating the therapeutic power of play as an effective treatment. I hope all mental health providers read this book to help destigmatize the topic and help ease the anxiety when working with this population. As Cross and Baker note in the book: 'Because you (the child) are worth caring about.'"

Liliana Baylon, LMFT-S, RPT-S, bilingual and bicultural therapist

"This book fills an important gap in the mental health field, providing play therapists with a culturally inclusive look at how we can effectively address suicide in children from all backgrounds. The authors highlight the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on all young people, with a special focus on marginalized children. In applying the therapeutic powers of play through expressive therapies, the authors are providing play therapists with the skills and competencies they need to engage children, caregivers, and school-based professionals in combatting the epidemic of suicide in young people."

April Duncan, DSW, LCSW, RPT-S^TM, founder and CEO of BMH Connect