“Return to Play” by Brandi Heather — Book Summary
It’s a true delight to spend time with Brandi Heather, author of Return to Play: Rebuilding Resilience, Risk and Reconnection. I’ve been privileged to do just that and feel grateful to call her a friend.
Brandi is an award-winning Disability and Inclusion Educator and Therapeutic Play Specialist. With a background in kinesiology and sport studies, she’s spent years teaching at the post-secondary level before shifting into professional speaking—where she now invites audiences into, not only knowing, but experiencing the wonder and benefits of play. Her keynotes are not only insightful, they’re also interactive, energizing, and impactful.
Only recently did I immerse myself in her book—and what a gift it is.
Overview
In Return to Play, Brandi reminds us of something we often forget in our achievement-focused lives: that play is not just for children. It offers a way to heal, connect, and build resilience. She invites us to become more open, flexible, and creative—not just to boost mental and physical wellness, but also to enrich our relationships, productivity, and ability to adapt.
Brandi presents play as a protective factor from burnout, isolation, and the disconnection that can lead to mental health challenges.
Sprinkled through Return to Play are engaging stories. Whether it’s the joy of swinging, the tenderness of engaging with a hospice resident, or her conversations with thought leaders like Seth Godin (author of The Big Moo: Stop Trying to Be Perfect and Start Being Remarkable), each vignette brings Brandi’s message to life in an accessible and meaningful way.
10 Key Concepts in Return to Play
- Play is lifelong. From our first breath to our last, play nurtures our mental, emotional, and physical health.
- Play is medicine. Evidence-based research shows that play helps reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and chronic stress.
- Perfectionism is the enemy of joy. Avoiding playful risks limits our growth, curiosity, and creative spark.
- Connection lives in play. In play, we build trust, foster empathy, and remember our shared humanity.
- Failure becomes fuel. Play offers a safe space to experiment, fail, recover, and strengthen our resilience.
- Play makes room for messiness. Life isn’t tidy—but through laughter, scribbles, humming, and movement, we can become more comfortable with uncertainty.
- Inclusion thrives in play. It welcomes all people, all abilities, and all ways of being.
- The Six S’s of Play: Surface, Size, Space, Sound, Support, and Speed are Brandis’ play building blocks.
- Play softens stress. In a high-pressure world, play reconnects us with breath, ease, and vitality.
- Joy is contagious. When we play, joy is inevitable.
15 Quotes about Play by Brandi Heather
- “Many people relate play to silliness, or a chaos filled space without limits or control. However, play is respecting that each of us experiences at differently, and we can begin there, we have a starting point.”
- “I believe we can build and rebuild our strengths and play at any age, but we need to start by removing the stigma of play as unproductive or frivolous.”
- “People and organizations that can play in both times of challenge and success will flourish.”
- “When people are fuelled with a sense of belonging, acceptance, trust, and respect the results are imagination, tenacity, and drive.”
- The more we seek to protect children from risk, the greater the loss of independence and drive to discover their own self-regulating processes and body awareness.”
- “As the rates of obesity continue to rise, we need to help people find their motivation to move.”
- “When we keep people safe from experience or failure, we come to believe that they cannot be capable, which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
- “Reality television allows us to risk a little through others experiences, but watching endless hours of Netflix does not count as play.”
- “Play is a universal language that has the power to breakthrough one of the most difficult of prevalence, societal challenges, we face; loneliness.”
- “In play, we uncover our humility. . . When we learn humility, we are more capable of bringing our authentic self into daily practice.”
We are not our titles, what we do, or where we work. How would you introduce yourself if you took those things away? - “No our ability to create comfort in and with chaos is a learn skill. In a world filled with near impossible challenges, we need the cognitive flexibility to bend without breaking.”
- “Ambiguity tolerance is the ability to accomplish a goal with the goal entirely undefined and vague. It is a soft skill with its origins in play.”
- “Play is jumping in the puddle with both feet without the fear of getting wet! Play is training for the unknown and unexpected.”
- “Over protection and lack of Free Play detrimentally changes the way our kids face challenge and change.”
- “The world is a ramshackle place, let’s start practising our skills to thrive in it. Risk a little of yourself to find yourself in the process.”
Conclusion
Return to Play is a compassionate call to reconnect with what makes us most alive. Brandi Heather invites us to return to parts of ourselves we may have stuffed away in the name of maturity, responsibility, or excellence.
Through her stories, research, and honesty, Brandi reminds us that play isn’t frivolous. It’s how we can heal, connect, and remember who we are beyond the roles and expectations.
Whether you are a caregiver, a helping professional, or simply someone longing for more lightness and meaning, Return to Play will give you permission to embrace the joy awaiting you!
Please check out these related posts:
- How to Resign from ‘Making’ Happy Children
- The Top 7 Habits of Light-Hearted People
- Return to Center: Simple Strategies to Navigate Distress, Depression and Disconnection
