PLAY Your Way Home: A Nervous System Reset

Fee: Attendance is Free

 Important fee information regarding CEs:

• $15.00 for 1.0 CEUs for Ohio Licensed Social Workers, Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists and Ohio Licensed Psychologists
• Must Attend the full training. Partial credit will not be given.
• Participants are welcome to join as many sessions they choose, please know for CE purpose, this covers the same topic and only one session can count within the same 2-year renewal period. If you have any questions, please contact your Licensing Board. Session Dates Offered (registration required for each date) May 27, 2026 12:00pm-1:00pm, June 3, 2026 2:00pm-3:00pm, June 8, 2026 12:00pm-1:00pm, June 17, 2026 9:00am-10:00am, June 24, 2026 12:00pm-1:00pm.
• 1.0 Department of Developmental Disabilities CPU's

Description:

For those of us whose work asks us to stay regulated for someone else (educators, social workers, therapists, caregivers, advocates) play is not a luxury. It is a neurophysiological need. And it is genuinely hard for nervous systems that live in survival mode. This 60-minute experiential session offers something different than another talk about self-care. It is a guided nervous system practice grounded in Stephen Porges's Polyvagal Theory and brought into the body through breath, voice, movement, and rest. Participants will move through the four phases of the PLAY arc (Pause, Listen, Activate, Yield) and leave with felt-sense access to safety, connection, and joy they can carry into their work and lives. This is not performance, nor training! It is a practice space for nervous system nourishment. Make sure you're in a space where you can move and where you can feel free to express yourself-this won't be a sit and get!

Learning Objectives

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Identify the three primary states of the autonomic nervous system (ventral vagal, sympathetic, dorsal vagal) and recognize cues of safety and threat within their own body.

2. Apply at least three vagal-toning practices (breath, voice, movement) as accessible tools for self-regulation and co-regulation in their professional and personal contexts.

3. Describe how the Polyvagal PLAY arc (Pause, Listen, Activate, Yield) sequences nervous system regulation to build the conditions for play and connection. 

About the Presenter: Sarah Buffie, MSW, LSW

Sarah Buffie is the founder of Soul Bird Consulting and creator of the Polyvagal PLAY methodology, a body-based framework that translates polyvagal theory into lived, embodied practice for the people doing the hardest relational work in our communities. 

About the Resilience Project: The Resilience Project is administered by Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services (GCBH) with the support of these partner agencies: Child Focus, Hamilton County DD Services, Clermont County Board of DD, Clermont and Butler County FCF, and HOPE Community Center for Mental Wellness. The Resilience Project is funded by a grant from Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS) and Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD).   After registering, you will be automatically added to Soul Bird Consulting's newsletter and can unsubscribe at any time.

Continuing Education

The Child Focus Training Center is approved through the Ohio Counselor, Social Worker and Marriage and Family Therapist Board.

This program is offered for 1.0 clock hours of continuing education for counselors, social workers, and marriage and family therapists.

Social Work Provider#: RSX129410 Counselor Provider#: RCX029503. Marriage and Family Therapist Provider# RTX091001.

Psychologists: The Child Focus Training Center is approved by the Ohio Psychological Association MCE program to offer

continuing education for Ohio psychologists. This program is offered for 1.0 clock hours of continuing education for psychologists.

Child Focus, 00PD-3109-52668, maintains responsibility for the program.   

 This training is hosted at Child Focus and presented by Soul Bird Consulting, LLC. The training content and descriptions are developed by the presenting organization and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Child Focus.

Cancellation Policy: The Training Center must be notified 7 days prior to a training via telephone, fax or email in order to cancel a registration and receive a full refund. We will send information regarding updates and cancellations to the email address used to

register for the training. We will also have this information updated on the CF website under Services Tab, then Education and Training.



IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE A REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION EMAIL, please contact Shelley Drummond sdrummond@child-focus.org