Dr. Brown spoke of the importance of the "state of play" and how this unstructured, spontaneous play unpressured by time can help create important bonds between us, lessen anxiety and even reduce violence. The 'doing' is more important than the outcome. Dr. Brown talked about the difference between structured vs. unstructured play. He pointed out that in unstructured play children get a sense of their own capacity when there is less parental involvement.
One of the callers (Lisa) pointed out that Joy consists of 4 elements: singing, laughing, dancing and playing. She talked about how playing can actually reduce pain in adults and children. Dr. Brown made the correlation with how this affects us at work. If we are engaged in playful work environments, we reduce anxiety and see work as our "safe place". This has a direct impact on sick leave in employees. He used Google as an example of a playful workplace where employees feel valued and don't feel the need to take excessive sick days.
Another caller, Katie (a child life specialist) said that play prepared children for an ever-changing world, spontaneous and unexpected. She also spoke of the importance of improv and how this was a great tool to use with autistic children as it engages eye-contact, visual cues, and listening.
What Becky, Sarah and I came away from the show with was that play doesn't end when you grow up. Becky said that as adults, we are waiting for invitations to play. We wonder if some of us are able to see those opportunities?
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