Sandtray Therapy

What is Sandtray Therapy?

Sandtray therapy is a powerful therapeutic technique that allows individuals to express themselves, process experiences, and explore their inner world through tactile, creative play. It often takes a non-verbal approach, alleviating the pressure to find the right words, making it especially effective for children.

A "sandworld" represents a personal story or experience created in the sand. A series of sandworlds can help process emotions, build resilience, and regulate the nervous system as the sand promotes focus and grounding, the water supports emotional expression and flow, and the symbols serve as representations of individuals, resources, or movement.

Melissa, a registered nurse with a special interest in helping children who have experienced medical trauma, offers sandtray therapy at Connections. Her expertise creates a safe and nurturing environment for healing and self-discovery. Sandtray therapy is available to all individuals, and is appropriate for children from 3 years of age.

Key Elements of Sandtray Therapy:

The Sand helps regulate the nervous system and fosters focus

The Water represents and supports the processing of emotions

The Symbols serve as representations of individuals, resources, or movement

The Sandworld is a symbolic story or experience created in the sandtray

The Process is a series of sandworlds that facilitate deeper processing, foster healing, and build resilience