Sand Tray Scrapbook: Bipolar Disorder
The first tray is from a session with a child with diagnoses of Bipolar Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, and Mental Retardation. He stated he didn’t want to come to the session that day, but would do a sand tray. Completed his tray and walked out!
The next two trays were completed by a child with normal intellectual functioning and a diagosis of Bipolar Disorder. He has a life time history of rageful and out of control behavior that has only begun to get under control in the last 12 months. He is now 12 years old.
Interested in sand tray therapy? Please feel free to add your comments and send in your own pictures. Include a brief note about each picture. Email jcwilburn@gmail.com
The next two trays were completed by a child with normal intellectual functioning and a diagosis of Bipolar Disorder. He has a life time history of rageful and out of control behavior that has only begun to get under control in the last 12 months. He is now 12 years old.
Interested in sand tray therapy? Please feel free to add your comments and send in your own pictures. Include a brief note about each picture. Email jcwilburn@gmail.com
Posted by Gary at 12/19/2008 10:35 AM 
Categories: sand tray scrapbook, sand tray therapy, Bipolar Disorder
Categories: sand tray scrapbook, sand tray therapy, Bipolar Disorder
Given the size of the photos, I would love to have more written detail about the figures used, as well as the therapist's take on the trays. Regarding the second tray, the figures against the right and left sides of the trays seem to be looking toward the center, where there seems to be a number of figures contained. If this is the case, it would suggest to me that the containment of the sand tray is allowing the child to look inward at his own containment of feelings. Alternately, the center of the tray could be viewed as a defence against the dragons (rage), etc. I would be interested in knowing if this was the first, second, or later tray of this child. The next tray shown by the same child has two sides separated by walls. The center suggests growth (the presence of green, leafy trees), as well as the potential for bridging the two sides(horizontal axis). This bridging is on the vertical ego-unconscious axis, as are the trees, suggesting growth and reconnection.
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The figurines are in the 3-4 inch range, except for the gargoyles, which are about 2 inches tall. This child has been struggling with idendity issues, particularly around issues of "good" and "evil"; he tends to identify with the villians, but I think is showing some ambivalence in this tray.
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