Sandtray Therapy
Sandtray therapy is an expressive form of psychotherapy in which clients use miniature figures to create scenes in the sand. Most sandtray therapists use a tray that is 30 x 20 x 3 inches with a blue floor and blue sides. The advantage of sandtray over traditional talk therapy is clients are allowed to create metaphors, which allow them to express feelings symbolically rather than verbally. Sandtray therapy is a type of play therapy (Flahive and Ray, 2007) and like play therapy affords clients an activity-based mode of expression. Homeyer and Sweeney (1998) noted that sandtray provides a safe psychological distance for clients. This distance can be very beneficial to traumatized or bereaved clients who may avoid direct verbal expressions of painful emotions.
Like many forms of psychotherapy, there are numerous theoretical approaches to sandtray therapy, but in this article, only two approaches will be mentioned: Jungian and humanistic sandtray therapy. Most Jungian therapists actually call sandtray therapy “sandplay therapy.” Many Jungian therapists believe that that it is unnecessary for clients to discuss their scenes after they create them. In other words, these therapists believe that creating a sandplay scene is in and of itself a complete experience. I would agree that the actual creation of sandtray scenes is very therapeutic but disagree that it is sufficient for growth and change.
In humanistic sandtray therapy, the creation phase of sandtray therapy sets a tone for exploration and discovery as clients look at the miniatures and find connections to them. I usually ask clients to, “Create a scene of your life the way it is now.” 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-talking about the scene and experiencing it-has begun internally. Moving to the verbal processing phase is much more natural when clients allow themselves to experience the creation phase.
Though it is typical for humanistic sandtray therapists to begin the processing phase by saying, “Tell me about your scene,” the client may be experiencing feelings as she creates her scene. If the client is experiencing an emotion after creating the sandtray scene, I might start the processing phase of therapy by saying, “It looks like you’re feeling something. What is it like to create this scene?” In the humanistic approach to sandtray processing, the focus is on a here-and-now exploration of emotions. During this phase of sandtray therapy, my main goal with the client is to facilitate a process of exploration, expression, awareness and discovery.
Theory of Change
All humanistic therapies focus primarily on the quality of the therapeutic relationship. Humanistic sandtray therapy is based upon a deep and accepting therapeutic relationship and an approach to sandtray processing that focuses on here-and-now experiencing. Humanistic sandtray theory emphasizes the role of awareness in psychological growth and change. I change not by trying to be something other than who I am but rather I change by being fully aware of how I am (Carson, 2003). This theory of change has several implications but let’s focus on two of them: self-acceptance and self-awareness. If I do not have to be something I am not, I can accept myself. In other words, this theory promotes self-acceptance. If I truly believe that deep down in the core of my being that I am acceptable and okay-and many people do not believe this-then being more aware of myself is a good thing. However, if I believe that the real me is unacceptable, knowing myself is not a good thing. In fact, if I believe that who I really am is unacceptable, it would make sense to avoid knowing myself.
Given the importance of awareness in this theory of change, it is critical for humanistic therapists to be highly skilled in facilitating client awareness. By focusing on in-the-moment experiencing, therapists create an environment in which clients pay attention to how they are and what they are feeling. Unlike Jungian sandplay, emphasis is placed upon awareness rather than insight.
Stephen A. Armstrong, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at Texas A&M University-Commerce. He has published numerous refereed articles in professional journals including several articles on sandtray therapy. Recently, he published a book, Sandtray Therapy: A Humanistic Approach. He also founded Sandtray Therapy Institute, which provides quality training and publications in humanistic sandtray therapy. The submitted article includes excerpts from his book on sandtray therapy, which can be found on his site.
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