Student #6- Sand Tray Therapy Class Assignment: Video Critque

by Sand Tray Therapy Student

Sandtray Therapy Institute:
• I thought that the videos were helpful in offering thorough, basic information about beginning sandtray therapisits.
• I really appreciated how he explained 6 of the most commonly made mistakes made by therapists
o Focusing on the past rather than the present
o Analyzing feelings rather than describing them.
o Losing focus/drifting off topic
o Helping clients avoid intense display of emotion
o Focusing on coping instead of going deepr
o Not responding to non-verbals
Barbra Turner:
• It was good to hear how she was able to start a sandtray session with adults.
o Many adults come in feelings silly about doing sandtray therapy.
o It is good to acknowledge their feelings and to help them normalize them.
o Let them know that it’s okay to be self conscious but that they will not be judge on their artistic abilities.
• She also did a great job of explaining sandplay versus world technique.
• Really enjoyed seeing the progression of her client, Harold, as he goes through different phases through sandtray therapy.
• I liked how she described how sandtray therapy as the following:
o verbal therapy (conscious) + sandplay (unconscious)
o verbal providing a hierarchical relationship while the sandplay provided a more mutual witnessing of the creation of the client’s world.
J. Wadick’s Sand Tray Therapy Videos
• Session for training:
o Discussed how you can look at a tray from the client’s perspective or facing them.
• Depends on how comfortable a client is with their space.
o Liked how she was able to point out how the client had “a lot of “had to be”” which was causing her stress.
• Adult therapy:
o I appreciated how she talked about working with a very resistant client and how she was able to find a way to help open the client up by giving her smaller steps to work with (choosing ½ minatures).
• How to Arrange Figurines:
o I enjoyed getting ideas for different types of miniatures.
o Good to see how she categorized and arranged her figurines so that it was easier to access and organize.
• Sand Healing Journal: Day 106
o She was very moved during this video and after doing a sandtray myself I can definitely understand how emotional the process can become.
• Intro to Sandplay:
o Offered good information about sandplay.
• How children play in the sandtray
o Good to know that sandtray/play is beneficial for all children because it allows them to connect with nature/earth and has a grounding effect on them, allowing them to deal with stressors in a healthy way.
• How an Adolescent used sandplay:
o It was beneficial to be able to get an idea of what a session with an adolescent would look like.