Have you ever felt stuck in talk therapy, unable to express your thoughts or emotions? If so, you’re not alone. Many adults who have experienced trauma, anxiety, depression, or grief find that healing involves more than just talking; it requires engaging both the brain and body in creative ways. That’s when specific therapies can help us go deeper, beyond words, to achieve healing. EMDR( Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) and Sand tray therapy are two powerful tools that help people heal from trauma, anxiety, depression, and grief. In this blog, we will explore how integrating both modalities can facilitate more profound healing.

What is EMDR Therapy? 

EMDR is a trauma-focused therapy approach developed by Francine Shapiro. It has been widely researched and shown to be effective for helping people process traumatic or distressing memories. It works by helping people reprocess distressing memories that are stuck, so they no longer feel overwhelmed. During EMDR, you don’t need to share every detail of your trauma. The therapist will help you identify specific memories or situations that are causing you distress. Once you identify the memory or distressing event, the therapist will guide you in engaging in bilateral stimulation. This process stimulates both sides of the brain, typically through eye movements, tapping, or sounds. By activating both hemispheres of the brain, this technique facilitates reprocessing of the memory, making it feel less overwhelming and emotionally charged.

EDMR can be helpful for: 

• Trauma and PTSD

• Anxiety & Depression 

• Grief and loss

• Low self-esteem

• Childhood emotional wounds

What is Sand Tray Therapy? 

Sand tray therapy can help create a picture of what can sometimes be hard to explain with words. It can help externalize what the brain and body might be thinking and feeling. During sand tray therapy, you will use a tray filled with sand, a collection of miniatures, including people, animals, and buildings, as well as almost anything you can imagine. The collection of miniatures serves as a tool to create a scene of your thoughts, feelings, and experiences. You do not need to be an artist to create a scene of your experience; this process occurs naturally. During sand tray therapy, you gain insight into your inner world in a space that feels safe to explore without the need to describe every detail of the trauma. 

Sand Tray Therapy is a powerful tool that can be helpful in a variety of situations:

• Processing trauma without having to talk through every detail

• Exploring emotions that feel hard to name

• Working through inner conflicts, stuck patterns, or memories

• Gaining insight into your healing journey

Integrating EMDR and Sand Tray Therapy 

EMDR and Sand Tray therapy are both effective therapeutic approaches. When combined, they can lead to even deeper healing, especially for individuals who have difficulty expressing their feelings or recalling distressing memories in traditional talk therapy.

1. Engaging  Both Sides of the Brain

EMDR helps reprocess distressing memories by activating both sides of the brain through bilateral stimulation. Sand tray therapy, on the other hand, utilizes symbols to tap into the creative part of the brain, enabling individuals to express emotions and memories that are difficult to put into words. When we combine both approaches, we allow the brain to process distressing memories while using imagination and logic naturally. This helps people feel safe and grounded to engage with their trauma in a secure environment. 

2. Processing without Sharing Every Detail of the Trauma 

For many adults, thinking about their trauma seems dangerous and, at times, even impossible. The thought of going back in time and recalling painful memories can feel overwhelming and can sometimes stop people from attending therapy. One of the empowering aspects of utilizing EMDR and Sand Tray therapy is that it allows people to share about their experiences using symbols and to share as much or as little as they want about their traumatic experiences, putting them in control of their healing journey. 

3. Establishing Safety and Grounding 

To process traumatic experiences, safety and trust are essential. Sand tray therapy can serve as a tool to help people create a world that feels safe to them, which can then be integrated when reprocessing with EMDR. When we use symbols to represent an experience or scene, it allows the brain to reprocess the memory without feeling that one is reliving the trauma.

4. Reaching a More Profound Healing and Understanding 

Combining EMDR and sand tray therapy enables individuals to express their experiences and create a visual representation of their strengths and challenges. EMDR does not remove the trauma; instead, it helps people remember their experiences without feeling overwhelmed, allowing them to feel more in control of their emotions.

What to Expect in Session 

If you are new to Sand Tray therapy or EMDR, you may be wondering what a session might look like. 

1. Safety and Connection 

As your therapist, my initial goal is for you to feel safe and comfortable in my office. I believe that the therapeutic relationship is essential in the therapeutic process. Therefore, the first few sessions will focus on building trust and safety. To do this, I will invite you to check in with your body to see how you are feeling. I will also ask you to create a scene in the sand tray that represents a calm or safe space. I will help you practice relaxation techniques, mindfulness, and deep breathing, all of which are designed to establish a sense of safety and trust in our sessions. 

2. Exploration of Challenges and Distressing Memories 

Once we have established safety and trust, I will invite you to explore in the sand tray challenges in your life. This will help me learn more about you and the challenges you may be facing. To do this, I will ask you to create a scene in the sand that represents a challenging experience, emotion, or thought. I might also ask open-ended questions to help us gain a deeper understanding of your experience. 

3. Processing with EMDR

After we have identified distressing memories or traumatic experiences, we can reprocess them using EMDR. I will guide you through bilateral movements, which may include eye movements, tapping, or auditory cues, while you focus on the memory or scene you created in the sand tray. The sand tray will serve as a tool to help you stay grounded and facilitate changes during the processing. While you are reprocessing memories, I will pause the bilateral movements to check in with you and allow you to make adjustments in the tray as your memory evolves.

4. Closing the Session 

After processing our memories, I will check in with you to see how you are feeling. I’ll also invite you to examine your sand tray and notice any changes or insights you’ve gained. We will conclude each session with a grounding exercise to help you feel calm and relaxed.

A Journey to Deeper Healing 

Healing is a journey that looks different for everyone. There is no right or wrong way to do it; what matters is that you find safety in a therapy approach that allows you to explore and reprocess traumatic memories in a way that feels secure and comfortable for you. For some individuals, this may involve more than one therapeutic approach. EDMR and Sand tray are powerful tools that offer the safety and trust needed to go deeper. If you think EMDR and sand tray therapy might be a good fit for you, don’t hesitate to contact me. I’m happy to support you in your journey towards healing. 

References 

Homeyer, L., & Lyles, M. N. (2022). Advanced sandtray therapy: Digging deeper into clinical practice. Routledge. 

Shapiro, F. (2001). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy. Guilford Publications. 

Van der Kolk, B. A., & Pratt, S. (2021). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma—books on Tape.