The Power of Play

I love to play. Whether it’s sports, board games, video games, or playing music and dancing around, when I am playing, I feel most happy.

In working with adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities, we have an opportunity to look at play from a couple of different perspectives. First, there is the perspective of the person receiving services. How often do they get a chance to play? To just let loose and have fun without a whole bunch of rules and/or guidelines as to how they are supposed to play or what they are supposed to be doing.  Then there is the perspective of the staff providing the services. How often do they get a chance to play with the individual they are supporting? Or with their fellow staff?

A while back, Milestone HCQU West had the opportunity to host an event with musician Jim Donovan, formerly for the band ‘Rusted Root’, and now with ‘Sun King Warriors’. More than a dozen adults with IDD and support staff came together at Butler County Community College, and they drummed their hearts out. Jim led the group in drumming and chanting, and together the group played and played, making wonderful music, having a great time, and strengthening relationships with the person that brought them there and the group as a whole.

These types of collaborative activities joining staff and individuals together brings about a wonderful opportunity for both parties to play and connect on a human level. And in a business that can quite often be difficult, complicated, and sometimes downright messy, it is so important to take time and engage in some play with one another.

Sometimes things get cumbersome, monotonous, tedious, and boring. Sometimes, priorities and responsibilities may keep me from being able to play. Sometimes, I might get so overloaded and overwhelmed with all of life’s “to-do’s,” that I forget to play entirely! Has that ever happened to you?

Sometimes things are really serious and important decisions about people’s health and safety have to be made. Sometimes, it might not be appropriate to play. The business of caring for adults with disabilities is often a daunting one. Challenges in staffing, provision of care, and funding all impact the bottom line of providing high quality responsible services to adults who have a wide variety of support needs, from minimal to extensive. It is extremely difficult to formulate a system of care that adequately addresses the various needs of the full spectrum of adults who receive those services. It is not easy work. And a lot of the time, it certainly doesn’t feel like play.

And when the serious business is over – do we get back to having fun with the person we are supporting? Or do we have to deal with another serious issue? And another, and another…

Do some people, over time, seem to lose their capacity for play or fun? Do the meds interfere? Does the trauma haunt? Is the fear and fog too much to overcome? Are the losses too great?

Given what we know as supporters of people with disabilities, rates of trauma, abuse, neglect and mistreatment are disproportionately high. Often behavioral challenges have been addressed with medications that bring with them side effects and other impacts on a person and the energy or clarity that they might possess. Medical complications may further muddy the picture. Pain, fatigue, confusion, fogginess, unmanaged seizures, sensory disorders, and genetic syndromes are just a few of the medical issues that can present and make it very difficult to spend much time focusing on play.

Who will help them remember what it is to play? How can that be done?

This is one of the most vital components of the work that we do with adults with disabilities. What do we do on a regular basis that contributes to the joy a person experiences in life? So often, the most direct attention is paid to all of the necessities of living. When this happens, it may sometimes overshadow the reason for living! And the reason for living is just that – to live! As supporters to people with disabilities, we must become the experts on how to enjoy life! We have a responsibility to those that we support, not just to keep them clean, fed, medicated, and sheltered. The greater responsibility of what we do lies in the thoughtful formulation of plans that will encourage the best life possible for the people we support.  How can we help them feel safe, secure, and empowered such that they might be able to engage in the play that life offers? This is the crux of what we do, why we do it, and how we can do it to maximize the impact it might have on this person.

A small joke. A smile. A laugh. An invitation to connect, to engage.

There is power in play. It is an innate need, living with a long memory in each and every one of us.