HSC Mental Health Memo Contributor

Cassandra Haag, CTRS

Director of Recreational Therapy

National Therapeutic Recreation Week Observed: July 06, 2025 - July 12

What is Therapeutic Recreation?
Therapeutic Recreation, also known as Recreation Therapy, is the process of using meaningful, engaging activities to help people grow, heal, and live fuller lives. It’s more than just playing games or having fun. It’s about helping people discover or rediscover what brings them joy, meaning, and purpose.

At its core, recreation is a basic part of being human. It’s about choosing to do things you take pleasure in, things that energize you, calm you, challenge you, or connect you with others. Recreation Therapists teach people how to use leisure as a tool for wellness. They help people explore who they are, what they enjoy, and why doing meaningful activities is vital for emotional, physical, social, and spiritual well-being.

Professional standards have been defined by the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC) and the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA).  Both the NCTRC and the ARTA describe recreation therapy as a structured, credentialed healthcare profession that uses activity-based interventions to improve a person’s functioning and quality of life. Recreational Therapy subscribes to the maxim that what we do with our time reflects who we are.   Therefore, patients participating in Recreational Therapy are coached that they are on a journey of learning to choose healthy, life-giving activities.

Why it Matters
Recreation is a building block of life. It is a way to be expressive and connect to the world. When people are taught that it’s okay and necessary to find joy, to be creative, to move their bodies, to try new things, and to simply play, they’re given tools for lifelong wellness. Teaching this message is at the heart of Recreational Therapy.

How It Helps at HSC
Patients often come to HSC during particularly difficult periods in their lives. Many have had limited or little access to positive, supportive recreational experiences or, because of hardships they have faced, they’ve forgotten how to engage in activities that bring meaning and joy. Recreation Therapy gives them a healthy setting in which to develop habits support their desire of leading a purpose-driven life. “We show them that life can still be fun, fulfilling, and full of purpose, even during healing. We’re not just filling time; we’re helping them rebuild their sense of self.” – Cassandra Haag

The Link to Mental Health
Mental health and meaningful activity go hand-in-hand. When a person connects with something they care about, something that brings them peace, purpose, or connection, it can change how they see themselves and the world around them.

Recreation Therapy helps individuals:

• Regulate emotions
• Reduce anxiety
• Improve social skills
• Boost self-esteem

Celebrate Therapeutic Recreation Week

Therapeutic Recreation Week is a time to honor the roll recreation plays in healing and recovery. Take a moment to reflect:

• What brings you joy?
• When do you feel most connected, calm, or inspired?
• What’s one activity you can do this week to support your own well-being?

“Recreation Therapy is the intentional use of meaningful, self-chosen activities to support healing, growth, and self-discovery. Everyone deserves the chance to reconnect with what brings them joy, restore their sense of purpose, and discover or recreate who they are beyond their challenges, not as a distraction, but as a fundamental part of mental, emotional, and overall wellness.” – Cassandra Haag

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The mission of the Human Services Center is to provide individuals with a mental health or substance use disorder or both with effective, individualized professional treatment, enabling them to achieve their highest level of personal independence in the most therapeutic environment.

The mission of the Division of Behavioral Health is to support quality clinical treatment, recovery supports, prevention and crisis services with integrity to obtain positive outcomes for individuals with behavioral health needs.

To read previous editions of the Mental Health Memo visit https://dss.sd.gov/keyresources/news.aspx#mhmemo