A shared journey,

is Sacred.

Tracks in the Sandtray Training & Counselling Centre

What does an eminent writer; an obscure book called “Floor games” and a Child Psychiatrist named Dr. Margaret Lowenfeld have to do with Sandplay?

 

  They all had a role to play in the development of a process called  “World Technique”, which was to be further developed by a Jungian Analyst, Dora Kalff who used the “World Technique” as a therapy with children and adult and called it Sandplay.

 

• H.G. Wells and “Floor Games”
• Lowenfeld’s adaptation of the concepts in “Floor Games” – “World Technique”
•  Lowenfeld’s observations of Children’s play in a safe and controlled environment.
• Lowenfeld and Dora Kalff meeting – Study
• Dora Kalff and Jung – Sandplay and a “Free and Protected space”

Sandplay, used in conjunction with other play therapy items, has been widely popular with therapists of all theoretical persuasions, in Europe & Britain for many decades.  Most of the research on sandplay as been carried out in Britain & Europe. The Jungian view of sandplay is widely held in the USA and has restricted the use of sandplay spreading to other orientations, this has also applied here in Australia.  The psyche is not the province of any therapeutic modality; rather it is the heart and core of all depth psychotherapy.

Active Sandplay is one of the most insightful ways to clear deep blocks, be they personal or spiritual. In the sand the psyche states it as it is. The unconscious, speaks to us clearly, showing our truth. The pieces we find and the way we place them in a tray of sand are symbolic of our lives, beliefs and customs. Sandplay is a valuable tool in bringing the understanding of our personality into greater clarity. It helps us to unravel the way our egos were formed and to access the more vulnerable levels that normally spoil our relationships. We recommend sandplay for spiritual as well as personal work, for children and, in the most beneficial way, for healing rifts in relationship. Change can be rapid when we can talk directly with the unconscious.

A game without  rules

  There is very little instruction given to a client regarding the Sand tray, although in the first session, people need to be given some information.  These instructions vary between children and adults.

E.g.:-

 It is important to explain that the bottom of the tray is painted blue to represent water

 It is also important to encourage the person to run their hands through the dry sand before they actually start working in the sand tray, this puts their energy into the tray for their session.

 Have a measured amount of water in a jug so that the person may wet the sand, work it and mold it into whatever shape they wish.

 

Working with children.

Play as Therapy

   Children need non-verbal, playful and non-threatening way to explore and express inner fears, conflicts and questions.  Real healing comes from the child’s inner resources expressed as symbols in dreams and play (Von Frans, 1980) as those are allowed to reveal in the “free and protected space” of a nurturing therapeutic relationship.

 

  Play is the way children express themselves, it is the way they learn about life.  Watch them play doctors and nurses, or farm life, or babies, or wars etc.,  

  They play at being grown up, they imitate what is going on around them.

   However not all children have that type of life, many are exposed to traumas, such as family violence, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual abuse, divorced parents, to name a few.

  Since play is the language of children and childhood, as well as a language for a client of any age who is unable or unwilling to verbalize, the sandtray provides a safe place for expression.  The process allows the client to be fully in themselves.  Sandplay is not only a symbolization of the psyche, but a forum for full self-expression and self-exploration for the client.

 

  A child could be asked to tell a story in the sand with the miniatures from the shelf. The story is theirs, they may or may not share the story with the facilitator, it’s their choice, the telling of the story in the sand enables them to express what needs to be told.  This story could be of trauma, of a happy event, of issues in their home or about their country.

 

  That same child could be asked to make a picture of his/her family from the miniatures on the shelf.  

Or he/she could also be asked to make a story of a nightmare, they might be experiencing, they might just be asked to pick out some of the things they like and some of the things that they dislike from the shelf to place in the sand tray.

  Sandplay also helps children get in touch with the emotions that are found unacceptable in society or that they do not understand, it can teach emotional intelligence, helps with the language and ties the two together.

  The Sandtray can be used by a school teacher to assist a child with learning difficulties, hearing problems, behavioral issues, bullying, sibling rivalry  to name a few.

 

Children are also encouraged to create their own thing in the sand.

 

  Some inarticulate clients turn to Sandplay with the relief, since self expression through language is so fraught with anxiety and therefore they find verbal counselling unsuitable.

The very tactile experience of touching and manipulating the sand is a therapeutic experience in and of itself.  I have frequently had nonverbal clients who have done nothing more than run their fingers through the sand and then begin to talk about deep issues, as if the sensory experience with the sand causes a loosening of the tongue.

 

  Sandplay also creates a therapeutic distance for children and adults.  When an issue is too emotionally challenging for the client, sandtray allows the expression in a more objective medium.   Visually creative people also welcome Sandplay; it allows them to explore more ideas etc.