Video #1 - What is Sandtray and How Does it Work?

 

 

Video #2 - Getting Started in Sandtray

 

 

Video #3 - The Sandtray Session

 

 

Sandtray therapy is a dynamic and expressive form of psychotherapy that allows clients to express their inner worlds through symbol and metaphor. Humanistic sandtray therapy emphasizes a deep and accepting therapeutic relationship and an approach to sandtray processing that focuses on here-and-now experiencing. We believe that as people grow and develop in childhood and adolescence, they all lose touch with who they are. They may have been taught that certain feelings are acceptable while others are not. In this process of denying who they truly are, they become disconnected from their true selves. Humanistic sandtray therapy provides an experience of reconnecting to one’s true self, of rediscovering dreams, hopes and visions. 

 

Like play therapy with young children, sandtray therapy provides an experience that is active, nonverbal, indirect, and symbolic. However, with clients who are 15 and older and do not have the developmental limitations of preoperational and concrete operational children, humanistic sandtray therapy capitalizes on the verbal and abstract thinking abilities of this age and extends the impact of the scene creation phase of sandtray to the processing phase of sandtray. The scene creation phase, in which clients arrange their miniatures in the tray, is very important and is central to the sandtray therapy experience. In humanistic sandtray therapy, the processing phase provides an additional experience that builds upon the scene creation phase and revolves around it. Throughout the processing phase of sandtray, clients look at their scene and experience the impact of it.

 

In sandtray therapy literature, much has been written about the importance of the tray itself, the miniatures and the safe and protected space of the sandtray. Jungians, who prefer to use the word sandplay, emphasize these aspects of sandtray. We believe that all of these are important but we focus more on the processing phase of sandtray on this web site because little has been written on this issue and sandtray therapy is far more therapeutic when therapists are skilled in facilitating a process of awareness during this phase of therapy.

 

Sandtray Therapy Institute

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Sandtray Therapy Institute (STI) was created to provide state of the art training and materials for therapists who want to learn an effective method of using sandtray with clients. Sandtray therapy is a type of play therapy (Flahive & Ray, 2007; Homeyer & Sweeney, 1998) and an expressive art intervention that can be used with clients of all ages. Most theory-based play therapists are child-centered—the only play therapy approach with substantial research support—but most sandtray therapists are Jungian. STI extends the Rogerian philosophy used in child-centered play therapy to the world of sandtray therapy. The STI teaches and trains advanced graduate students and practitioners a humanistic method of sandtray processing. In addition, STI is committed to providing a supervisory experience for trainees that facilitates supervisee growth and awareness as well as advanced skill development.

 

STI focuses primarily on the processing part of sandtray and provides a therapeutic method of facilitating client’ awareness and growth. By processing, we mean the verbal and experiential exploration of the symbols and metaphors used by the client in the scene creation phase of sandtray. 

 

Humanistic sandtray therapy emphasizes exploration rather than interpretation, feelings over thinking, and awareness over insight. Insight is viewed as a by-product of awareness and tends to be a result of reflection upon the sandtray therapy experience. Most therapists and many clients are analytical about their experiences. We all like to understand why we do things even if it may not help us change habits or patterns of behavior. Awareness on the other hand, allows us to notice our experience in the moment so that we can choose another option if we wish.

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Why use sandtray?

If you are a practitioner who is considering sandtray as an adjunct to your interventions, we believe that you can enhance your effectiveness with many clients by using expressive art activities such as sandtray. Sandtray provides

 

• A structured environment in which client’ metaphors can be created and explored.
• A visual representation of the client’s issues that helps you and the client continue to focus on core issues throughout the session. Clients typically look repeatedly at the symbols in their scenes even after they have explored them, which provide an external guide to return to the issues.
• A deeper experience for the client. Clients often stop themselves and avoid a full experience of their feelings. Sandtray therapy facilitates a deeper exploration of self.
• Stuck clients an indirect method of facilitating therapeutic movement. When clients look at their own metaphors they can bypass defenses and move through resistance.

 

If you are a play therapist, sandtray is a play therapy intervention that can be utilized with children (eight and older), adolescents and adults. Like play therapy, sandtray therapy clients express themselves metaphorically. Although the processing phase of humanistic sandtray therapy is much more verbal than play therapy with preoperational children, the use of metaphor is similar to play therapy. Thus, it is a natural fit for play therapists to use sandtray with older clients.

 

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Humanistic Sandtray Therapy

Humanistic therapists view the client as self-actualizing and "endowed with an inherent tendency to develop his or her potential" (Cain, 2002, p. 3). Humanistic therapists believe that people are capable of being self-aware and responsible for the choices they make. Clients are viewed as social beings that have a powerful need to belong. In humanistic psychotherapy, the therapeutic relationship is the fundamental source of constructive change in the client (Cain, 2002). The primary goal in the therapeutic relationship is to create an optimal climate for growth. Rogers noted, "Most children, if given a reasonably normal environment which meets their own emotional, intellectual and social needs, have within themselves sufficient drive toward health to respond and make a comfortable adjustment to life" (Kirschenbaum, 1979, p. 75). By the time that therapists see children, adolescents or adults as clients, however, they need more than "a reasonably normal environment" because they do not have the trust of a young child. Thus, the importance of the optimal climate for growth is paramount. At STI, we teach and train therapists in how to provide this optimal climate. The therapeutic relationship is the heart of the climate but therapist self-awareness and skill enhances the climate and catalyzes client growth.

 

In sandtray therapy, the humanistic therapist creates a safe and accepting place for clients to face their core issues. Like play therapy, the metaphorical nature of sandtray provides a safe distance for clients to express painful and distressing feelings. Sandtray allows clients to express themselves symbolically and nonverbally and provides a visual projection of intra-psychic and interpersonal subjective client’ reality.

 

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Purpose and Timing of Sandtray

Sandtray provides clients with another medium through which they can express themselves. We only use sandtray with clients who trust us on a fairly deep level. We are not comfortable with the idea of selling the client on the idea of doing sandtray. If the client is reluctant to do sandtray, we do not do it. Later in the course of therapy, we may bring it up again if we think it would be therapeutic. Homeyer and Sweeney (1998) noted that sandtray "should be used purposefully and intentionally" (p. 53). They stressed that the therapist must be clear regarding the purpose and timing of using sandtray with a particular client. In addition to mentioning developmental considerations, Homeyer and Sweeney recommended good times to use sandtray as an intervention with clients. One suggestion was to use sandtray as a change of pace with clients as a way to re-energize the therapeutic process or to take the therapy to a deeper level. This recommendation is similar to a concept in humanistic sandtray therapy: sandtray can be helpful when a client is stuck.

 

The humanistic sandtray session basically involves two parts: the creation phase and the processing phase. In the creation phase, clients create their scenes and in the processing phase clients are invited to verbally explore the metaphorical world they have created.

 

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Creation Phase

Homeyer and Sweeney (1998) provided possible prompts for clients to begin the creation phase of sandtray, but as we look with the client at the tray and miniatures, we usually say this to the client. “I would like you to create a scene of your life the way it is now. You may want to include images from the past or future but be as honest with yourself about the way your life is now.”

 

During the creation of the scene, humanistic therapists try to be as present as possible but they do not typically talk. It is important for clients to have an internal experience of connecting to and selecting miniatures. Therapists do not want to interrupt clients’ internal processing but want clients to know that the therapists are with them when they are experiencing the moment of creating the scene. If available, therapists have music playing at a low volume in the background during this phase of the session.
 
Interestingly, some sandtray therapists believe that the healing process in sandtray is in the creation phase of sandtray only. Therefore, these therapists do not process the tray with the client (Boik & Goodwin, 2000). Other therapists use the scene in the sandtray as a springboard for verbal interaction. The humanistic approach described on this site is to appreciate and value the healing process that occurs during the scene creation phase and to use the scene as a springboard. The verbal processing of the tray extends and expands the inner work that began during the creation of the scene.

 

The creation phase sets a tone for exploration and discovery as clients look at the miniatures and find connections to them. Some clients get lost in the process of arranging the miniatures just the way they want them. If the creation phase is a meaningful experience for clients, if they are seeing and thinking about aspects of their lives that they normally do not focus on, then the processing phase has begun internally. Moving to the verbal processing phase is much more natural when clients allow themselves to experience the creation phase.

 

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Processing Phase

We typically begin the processing phase of the session by saying "Tell me about your scene." However, if client are feeling something during the creation phase, we try to start where they are. We might say, “I’m noticing that you look sad. What are you noticing right now?” This concept of being with clients where they are in the moment is a central one in the humanistic approach to processing.

The humanistic approach to sandtray that is described on this site steers away from interpretation and focuses on exploration. This exploration process is a deep experience. Most of what we do with clients during the processing phase is to facilitate a process of exploration and awareness. We agree with Rogers' contention that the most powerful and therapeutic responses allow clients to move beyond their previous levels of awareness.

 

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Going Deeper Into Feelings

You may be wondering about the value of deep exploration. Why is it therapeutic to go deep into a client’s experience? Another way of asking the question is “What is the value of a experiencing a feeling fully during the processing phase of a sandtray session?” Actually, allowing oneself to experience feelings fully has several payoffs. First, there is an issue of being comfortable with what goes on in my own skin. How comfortable am I with my own experience? Am I at home with myself? Being at peace with one's own issues is invaluable. Do I have to wall off certain experiences in myself or am I able to lean into them? Second, it relates to a law of nature that we have discovered. In order to move through an experience or feeling, I must experience it fully. Rogers (1989) noted that once "a troubling feeling has been felt to its full depth and breadth, one can move on. It is an important part of movement in the process of change" (p. 151).

Now, let’s focus on how to go deeper with a client. Imagine that your adult client is struggling in her marriage. You have asked her to create a sandtray scene of her marriage. In her scene, she positions the miniature representing her husband on one end of the tray and her figure on the other end. As she is processing the scene, she says, "I don't love him anymore, but I'm afraid to leave him." If you have ever worked with couples or clients who are struggling with their marriage, I am sure that you've heard something similar to this statement. In this approach to therapy, we call this kind of statement a polarity.

Let’s look at some possible options for responding to the client who does not love her husband. It is critical to notice the polarity in the client's statement. One option for the therapist would be to ask the client which of the two parts (part 1-do not love him, part 2-afraid to leave him) she is more aware of now. I might say, "Right now, are you more aware of the part of you that doesn't love him or the part that is afraid to leave?" Let us say that she says she is more aware of the part of her that is afraid. I might ask, "Do you feel the fear right now?" If she says yes, I might say, "What is the fear like? Describe it to me."

 

Therapists sometimes underestimate the power of fear and resistance in clients. In every client there is a desire to change and a fear of change. In fact, every person has this polarity. Scenes in sandtrays almost always portray polarities, or two opposing tendencies, parts, wants or desires. In fact, I do not know that I have ever seen a sandtray that does not have a polarity in it. Typically, sandtray scenes include clusters of miniatures that are carefully arranged in selected corners or areas of the tray. Whenever clients use fences or walls in their scenes, a polarity is usually present.

 

In sandtray therapy, working with polarities can save the therapist and client a tremendous amount of energy. If a client is not ready to experience a painful feeling deeply and the therapist acknowledges this and works with the fear rather than the pain, the client will not fight the process and the therapist will not feel like he or she is swimming upstream.

 

In Sandtray Therapy: A Humanistic Approach, we describe in detail how to work with polarities and resistance. If a client is not ready to change, it is important to work with that client where she is rather than trying to push her to where she needs to be.

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