[Guest Post] The Big WHY Behind the Power of Sandtray Therapy

So you’ve heard about sandtray therapy but aren’t sure if it REALLY works. I mean, it’s just playing in the sand right? Also, it’s not REALLY therapy- you don’t even know what’s going on during the session? And isn’t it just for kids?

I know, I’ve heard all of those (and even said them myself at one point). 

Rest easy though. I’m here to tell you WHY all of these beliefs are just a big ol’ pile of crap.

Know why? Because SCIENCE.

Science helps us understand ourselves and our brains better. I always like it when science helps explain something we already knew to be true. 

Like sandtray therapy. For years, we knew it worked but were not REALLY sure why it did. Kind of like gravity. Or weather systems. Or [insert natural phenomenon here]. 

We now can peek inside the brain with fMRI’s and understand how our brain processes information.  Information is processed first with pictures and THEN words and linguistics are attached to it. This makes sense if you think about it- we can process images WAY before we can words developmentally. 

I bet if you think about, this still happens. Ever seen a picture that affected you a certain way in your body and mind but struggled to put it into words?

That’s because information is processed first with pictures and images in the right part of our brain and this information may never get moved to the left part of the brain (where words happen).  The right side of the brain is where all of our early trauma lies as well as our feelings and emotions. 

Seems like the right side of the brain is where the big meat of the therapy stuff lies doesn’t it?

But yet, think about how we normally work in session. We talk left brain to left brain.  We try to get at those inner feelings and trauma that are hampering our client’s growth only through words. More often than not, we feel like we just can’t get what is really going on with just words and feel that there’s more we just can’t access.

It’s not you, it’s not your fault. You are just trying to get at information that isn’t stored with words. It’s like trying to dig a hole with half of a shovel. You may make progress and get there but it’s going to be tough going. 

I’m here to give you the entire shovel. Sandtray therapy is your shovel. It will make your life easier and it will allow you feel more confident in your ability to dig in and get at all of that feeling stuff buried in the right brain.

With sandtray therapy, you can access all of that therapy meat in the right part of the brain and heal it with using images AND words.  When we work in the sandtray, we are using both sides of our brain.  When we get both sides of the brain to come online together, the more our client’s brain integrates. More integration means faster, more powerful progress.

This integration is why adults working in the sandtray get better so much faster and get at insights they normally wouldn’t be able to access during just talk therapy.  It’s because the images in the sandtray naturally tap into the feelings part of the brain, allowing to go straight to the source, right brain to right brain. 

Healing happens right brain to right brain.

Kids naturally use their right hemisphere more during play so you may not get the stark difference you see with adults in the sandtray.  Sandtray therapy goes in the backdoor in the brain to get it ALL to come online so we as therapists can help heal ALL of the wounds, even the deep ones that are too scary to put into words.

Now, you can see that sandtray therapy isn’t just playing in the sand, for adults, or some kind of hocus-pocus.

It’s science. Sandtray therapy is a brain-informed method that works where our client’s hurt lies - in the right brain. 

To learn more about what sandtray therapy is and is not click here for a FREE webinar. It will answer all of those nagging questions, if you’re still not convinced. If you are, then you still need to watch it, it will only reinforce the truth of sandtray therapy’s awesomeness.

Comment below with any questions or observations you have about sandtray therapy. 

How have you experienced progress in therapy through experiential methods, such as sandtray?

Amy Flaherty, LPE-I, RPT has been working with in the outpatient setting for over 10 years and has been in private practice since 2007.  Since learning about sandtray therapy, it has become her passion.  She now has a training institute, Southern Sandtray Institute, where she trains other therapists in this powerful method.  To find out more about the program and if sandtray therapy is right for you click HERE to grab your free webinar about the 5 most common sandtray therapy myths.

Goals of Sexual Trauma Therapy: When Are You "Done?"

Because nothing you can do in therapy can erase the trauma, it can be hard to know when you have helped your client to the point where they are ready to move forward on their own. This video will share with you several major milestones that tell you that your sexual trauma client is moving to a place of healing.

Who are you? Part three.

If you've been following along in this series so far, you know that many counselors, especially new counselors, struggle with SELF-CONFIDENCE. You've also found out that the secret to developing new counselor confidence is marketing. Not advertising, though that can go with it, but marketing. That's because marketing forces you to:

Identify your specific strengths.


Perfect the art of talking about your strengths.


Regularly share your strengths.

Today, let's talk about what that looks like and how you can make it happen in your life. 

First, identify your specific strengths. Remember in the last post when I shared a list of counseling skills I believed I had? This is your turn to do that. In a Facebook comment, one counselor asked if these were the kinds of characteristics one would put in an "about me" page on your website. Absolutely yes! These are the kinds of things people look for when they come to a counselor. And it leads right into my first suggestion when listing your specific strengths, which is:

• Think about explaining your talents to someone who hasn't ever heard of a counselor before. This makes you look at your strengths a whole new way, and it helps you to explain your skills in layman's terms.

When listing your skills, it's helpful to plan on taking at least 15 minutes of uninterrupted time, and writing freestyle and editing later. If you get stuck, think about:

• "What am I proud to offer in counseling that maybe other counselors don't have?" Think in terms of personal experiences, counseling skills (confrontation, listening, reflection) and communication styles. 

The second step of this journey is perfecting the art of talking about your strengths. And there is an art to it! The beginning of developing this artistic strength is identifying the skills, which most of us don't do ahead of time. After you do that, you want to practice sharing why they matter:

• Practice with a loved one or colleague. Pretend they're asking you, "Why would I send a client to you as opposed to this other counselor or no counselor at all?"

Get used to the idea of unashamedly sharing what you have to offer. You're not saying you're good at everything, you're saying what you are good at. Wouldn't you expect your clients to be as proud of their own talents? So lead by example:

• Watch out for minimizing body posture and words, like saying "sort of," hunching or shrugging your shoulders, or otherwise non-verbally counteracting your words.

Third, regularly share your strengths. Practice makes perfect! Get out there. Here's a phrase I used recently, "I can offer killer talks and articles about preparing emotionally for the transition to college." That was a big step for me! What might be a way you can step out there and share?

• Offering a "brown-bag" lunch presentation at your local school for parents or teachers.
• Writing a professional perspective article on a local or current issue. (Why Justin Beiber and every other child star seems to inevitably implode...)
• Starting a small group at your church, local civic center or community college and enlisting the staff of these places to help spread the word. 

This series, as you can probably tell, has been very personal for me, and it's something near and dear to my heart. So I wanted to do something very unique to close it out. I want to hear from YOU, what questions do you have about marketing your way to self-confidence after reading this series? Post on the blog comments, or email me if you want your name kept private (stephanie AT stephanieadamslpc.com). I will answer as many questions as I can in the next blog post. 

Once again, the question is, "What other questions do you have about marketing yourself to new counselor confidence?" In other words: "Where do you get stuck on this issue?"

Cannot WAIT to hear from you. Comment below or email me! 

Names and identities of counselors responding will be obscured unless otherwise requested. 

PLANNING For Client Success

When was the last time you knew someone who followed their New Year's Resolution? If you can't think of an example, you're in the majority. A mere 8% of people successfully follow their resolutions each year. That leaves all the rest feeling discouraged and down on themselves. 

But this shouldn't be surprising news, right? We know better than anyone. Our job, after all, is change, and change is HARD.

During the course of therapy, our clients will "fail" on the path to achieving their goals in a multitude of ways. 

• Fall off the wagon.
• Speak to the destructive ex-partner.
• Overwork, overeat, or overplan. 
• Go off the grid. 
• Hide from the world.
• Explode in anger.

Or any of a dozen other vices they are in therapy to address. 

We know how hard it is to achieve change, both from our personal experience and from watching many, many clients go down the same path. There is no direct ascension in the path to success. Change is like a game of Chutes and Ladders. One spin moves you way up, and another can bring you back down again.

We know that. But our clients don't often know that. 

How many times have you had a client "apologize" to you for messing up on their therapy goals?

Or stop coming to counseling altogether, only to find out later that they did so because they were ashamed for violating a goal they discussed with you?

It is completely unrealistic to expect perfect success, without any setbacks, from anyone trying to accomplish a change in their lives. But clients often see the completely normal up-and-down path of working towards a goal as their own private failure. 

That is why I believe it's important that we go out of our way to disabuse clients of this unrealistic notion of success. Whether they're working towards a New Year's Resolution or trying to achieve another goal, it's part of our job to let them know that they are only able to affect the now.

We can do that by the simple act of believing in them. If someone has believed in us in the past, we may take the power of that belief for granted. But in reality, many people don't have that. Before they come to counseling, they have probably been struggling with this issue a long time. Their family and friends may be sick of hearing about it. Their family and friends may be part of the problem. The belief you have in their ability to change may genuinely be the only strength of belief they have in their life.

Your belief in them can be the very thing that teaches them by example how to believe in themselves. 

It opens the door to teaching them other tools to self-belief:

• Creating opportunities to prove your own strengths.
• "Flipping" the situation: if another person you trusted was facing the same odds, would you be as hard on them as you're being on yourself?
• Rehearsing self-control before a trigger and increasing your ability to avoid temptation.
• Reminding yourself that self-belief is something you can learn. 

Our job is a little like New Year's in a bottle - with every new client we're trying to set them up for success with challenges that are staggeringly difficult to achieve. But by believing in their ability to achieve their goals, we teach them that it is possible...even if there are a few bumps along the way. 

What do YOU tell clients to help encourage them success is possible? Comment below! 

5 Mandalas in 5 Days: A Guest Post By Amy Flaherty

Today's guest post is about a new and creative therapy technique I (before now) knew nothing about! Hence, the guest post by play therapist and creative thinker Amy Flaherty. I know you'll learn a great deal from her, as I did. Thanks, Amy, for sharing! ~Stephanie

The mandala symbol has been around for thousands of years. It is probably best known from Eastern religions as tool for focus, meditation and creating sacred space. But nowadays, they are gaining additional traction in many therapy circles as well.   Art therapy, play therapy and mindfulness communities are finding therapeutic use in this this powerful technique. 

The word “mandala” originates from the Sanskrit language meaning circle.  Sounds simple, but mandalas are so much more than simple circles.  Just in the process of creating 5 mandalas, I experienced an array of emotions, including but not limited to anxiety, despair, enlightenment, fear, delight, and gratefulness.  Quite a large and varied set of feelings to originate from a simple circle! 

I found that for me the power of the mandala lies in its ability to allow one to just be.  Not do or think but just sit with yourself.  For me, this was a scary risk to take.

To fully experience the power of the mandala, I chose to complete 5 mandalas in 5 days.  I believe that in order to endorse a technique to my clients, I need to understand the process of the technique myself.  I came into the project fairly open-minded, given the rave reviews from fellow therapists about the power of mandalas.  However, I must admit I was somewhat nervous about sitting with my thoughts for ANY length of time.  My thoughts, left to run wild, usually end up in a continuous spiral of anxiety. Nevertheless, I decided to give this ancient meditative practice a chance to help with my issues.

Photo Credit arttherapyblog.com

I purchased a mandala workbook pretty cheaply from Amazon.  In addition, I found that many Pinterest boards or websites have them for free to download.   

The defining aspect of mandala is a circle with a smaller circle inside near the middle.  The circle draws the eyes inward and aids in meditation, inspires mindfulness, and harnesses energy.  Some expressive therapists encourage clients to make their own mandalas. I’ve seen some really detailed and inspiring ones created for therapy purposes.

Because I did not feel like I had the time or energy to undertake an art project from scratch, I choose to color the already formed mandalas from my workbook.  I used colored pencils because they are efficient at working with the tiny details in the mandala (make sure you keep a pencil sharpener close)!

Photo Credit Hannah McLain-Jesperson

The instructions to complete a mandala are simple: Just color. No rules, no time tables.  I usually instruct my clients to try to breathe deeply into relaxation and be aware of what comes into the mind.  When thoughts creep in (and they will), notice them and then let them go. 

While I was completing my mandalas, I noticed the several things about myself.  For me, completing a mandala was a lot like meditating.  I got twitchy, wanted to get up, and thought about everything I need to be doing.  The trick, I found, was to keep going...even when I felt like I was going to crawl out of my skin. 

Noticing my thoughts while doing my mandalas often served to provide a magnifying glass for all of my automatic thoughts that try to run me, wreaking havoc in form of anxiety. Here’s some of the thoughts I noticed (and tried not to dwell on) while I was working:

• This is NEVER going to be over
• I’m so stupid for doing this. I could be doing so many more productive things
• Those colors are nice together and I didn’t even try!
• Did I pay the water bill?
• How am I ever going to get everything done?
• Did my friend get the results from her medical test? I need to check on that.

 

And so on and so on…..

Sounds exhausting right?

It was! But oh so worth it!  I was able to notice my automatic thoughts, breathe them out, and return to what I was doing.  It was hard, but I did it.

 Your clients will likely react in a similar vein.  Tell them it just stick with it and just notice what comes up. Clients can use these as a way to practice breathing, being still, or attending to thoughts.

Encourage clients to write and report the thoughts that appear.  These will be excellent fodder for future therapy sessions (I’m sure my therapist will be rubbing her hands together when she sees my list!) 

Here’s a picture of my favorite mandala I created. 

Your mission now? Use mandalas with your clients!  Think of it as another technique in your toolbox. Mandalas have been shown to be effective with the treatment issues ranging from ADHD to anxiety.  I recommend, though, before you assign this as homework to your clients, try a few for yourself.  Notice your thoughts and feelings while creating.  It may be hard, but the insight gained is always worth the effort. 

I’m interested to hear from you about how you've made mandalas work for you in your therapy practice. With what types of populations do you see these having success?

Have you already used mandalas in your practice? If so, what were the results? Please share! 

Amy Flaherty is a Licensed Psychological Examiner-Independent and a Registered Play Therapist in Arkansas. She has been in private practice since 2007 and currently specializes in work with children and the LGBT population. Amy specializes in sandtray therapy and teaches many introductory and advanced sandtray classes. 

Links:

Amazing Coloring Pages

Mandala Madness

Mandala Pages

Free Worksheets For Therapists

So, this week's blog post is a little late...but that's because I had to put in an extra dose of awesome. You're welcome. :) 

On a beginning counselor budget while working with your first practicum clients? Check out any of these websites for free printable worksheets for you to use with your clients! 

Therapist Aid

These worksheets can be filtered by age range and topic (or both). Make sure you click the worksheets tab on top.
Key Assets: Couples Worksheets, Visuals, Charts, and Handouts. 

Autism Teaching Strategies
In addition to excellent resources for those who focus on autism, many of the downloads can be used just as easily for older children and tweens with a variety of social or thought-based disorders. (Click "Free Social Skills Downloads") Games available too! 
Standouts: Poison and Antidote CBT Thought Bubbles Game, Words Hurt, Words Help Worksheets

Click To Tweet!

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Self-Help Strategies 

Though it is cognitive-behavioral therapy self-help strategies, even if you have a different theoretical orientation, you'll still find a lot here. These worksheets are practical, visual, and varied.  Great handouts as well as worksheets. 

My Favorites: Positive Personal Qualities, STOPP Worksheet

Psychology Tools
Home of more specialized tools than many, such as Body Dysmorphic Disorder Formulation and more, these tools are just as helpful for the student psychologist or counselor as they are for the client. 
Quick Wall Decor: Post The Tasks Of Grief or Unhelpful Thinking Styles on your office wall to start a discussion. 

Kim's Counseling Corner

What I like most about this collection is its' diversity: Kim has links from all over the world, colorful behavior charting for children, and in-depth, thought-provoking resources for adults. She also has resources for some divisions that many overlook, like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and more. One caveat: Some of the links require you to click through because direct linking isn't allowed, but that isn't Kim's fault, just the way it's set up with the original creator of the worksheets. 

Keep Up: Subscribe to her email list to be notified when new worksheets are available! Enter your email address on the left and hit the subscribe button. 

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Therapy Worksheets

A whole blog devoted to what this blog post is about - what could be better? Able to offer a great deal, due to the fact it's a regular thing. 

Better Serving Our Soldiers:  Check out this entry focused on worksheets for veterans. 

Positive Psychology Worksheets

Smaller but still noteworthy group because the worksheets are more thorough than most, including references, expected outcomes, pitfalls and more.

Heartwarming Habit: "Bedtime Blessings"

And some more random ones I came across along the way...

Cognitive Mindfulness Workbook (Direct Link To PDF)

Anger Workbook, Part 1 (Direct Link To PDF)

Anger Workbook, Part 2 (Direct Link To PDF)

Enjoy! But don't forget to practice good freebie etiquette - do not sell these worksheets or otherwise use them in a manner inconsistent with the creator's requests. I will disown you. :) 

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Have a resource I overlooked? Post it below! 

17 Game-Changing Questions for Any Counseling Situation

A few posts back, I ran a video blog that (among other things) shared how I think that questions are powerful tools in the counseling office. Since that seemed to strike a chord with many of you, I thought I'd share with you guys my favorite, top-secret, GAME-CHANGING questions that cut through the "story" and get at the heart of the matter. 

These questions will help you turn the session around when it stagnates and show clients that you really "get" them.  If you've ever worried that you might fumble or sound unsure of yourself, memorizing a few of these key questions will help you avoid that. And since questions should always be used with caution, I've also included at the end of this article today 3 Ethical Keys to make sure you're asking questions responsibly and judicially. 

17 Game-Changing Questions For Any Counseling Situation

Background

1. When did this first start?
2. How do you see what happened/is happening?
3. How do you describe yourself? 
4. How would your family describe you?
5. What drives you?
6. What one thing makes you who you are?

Motivation

7. What was it that made you call a counselor?

8. Why is now the right time for a change?

9. What are you doing this for?

10. What possibilities will there be in your life once you no longer are burdened by this issue?

Uncovering the Problem

11. When are you free of [the problem?]

12. What do you feel like when you do not have to deal with [the problem?]

Discovering Barriers to Change

13. What would your life be like if you woke up tomorrow and no longer had [the problem?] (Miracle question.)

14. Who in your life would benefit if you no longer had [the problem?]

15. Who in your life would struggle if you solved [the problem?]

16. What have you tried before to help with [the problem?]

17. What do you think has stopped you in the past from being free of this issue?

Ethical Keys

1. Tone matters. You must never use an angry or judgmental tone when you ask questions, or it will blow up in your face.
2. Spacing matters. Don't rattle off multiple questions at a time. These questions are designed to help you uncover gold. So ask them, and sit back, and let your client lead you straight to the motherlode.
3. Follow-up matters. After you ask a difficult question, it is often helpful to come back to them and assess how it was for them. You might say something like: "Was that scary for you to answer?" "Did you feel concerned about how I would respond to your answer?" Follow-up questions allow you to assess your questions' suitability for a particular client, and to recover from any misunderstandings that might have happened. 

What's your favorite question to ask a client? Why? 

Like this blog post? You might also like:

12 Business Tips For Counselors!

Creating a Counseling Business Facebook Page

Can You Keep Up?

Yesterday, Jessica from the LinkedIn Beginning Counselor Group, posted a great question. She asked if we could recommend any good websites to help refresh a counselor's clinical knowledge/skills and keep us updated on new theories and treatments. I started to type an answer, but soon realized I needed more time to do some research. So I did, and here's what I came up with: 

Psychotherapy.net
A source of continuing education, humorous cartoons, and blog articles, psychotherapy.net was created by Victor Yalom (yes, related to that Yalom, but he has a great deal of talent all on his own) and one of my favorite places to go to brush up on my clinical knowledge. The blog articles are great. Not all of them are theory-based, but the ones that are have great content. I recommend:

Psychoanalysis Is Alive And Well by Kim Chernin, PhD

The Miraculous (Or Not) Efficacy of Solution-Focused Therapy by John Sommers-Flanagan, PhD

Working with the Unemotional in Emotionally Focused Therapy by Sue Johnson, EdD

Counseling.org (American Counseling Association)
Featuring webinars, a great blog, and tons of articles, it may be the best source for clinical development out there. (But that's a member's biased opinion. :)

Webinars include:

Depression: New and Emerging Treatment Strategies

Developing Your Own Integrative Theory of Counseling

The DSM-5: Navigating the New Terrain


The ACA Blog features treatment perspectives from the best and brightest:
The Transformative Power of Metaphor: Three Examples by Anita Knight (Anita consistently writes well in the area of clinical knowledge.)

Recognizing "Change Talk" in Your Clients by Barbara Jordan (On Motivational Interviewing. I have spoken with Barbara and found her to be a counselor and coach of high integrity.) 


Allthingsprivatepractice.com
Though Tamara Suttle excels at writing about marketing, networking, and the rest of the nuts and bolts of private practice, she also writes and hosts some great articles about consultation, supervision and professional development.

Getting The Most Out Of Clinical Supervision (Guest Post by Lauren Ostrowski)

Online Resources For Evidence-Based Treatment In Counseling


APA.org (American Psychological Association) 
Great articles, and CE options if you're looking for it!

Clinical Topics Index 

Free Clinical Psychology Courses 
Courtesy of Open Culture, downloadable Audio and Video Courses from Universities like UC Berkeley and MIT.

Course List
Ones I'd like to check out include, Scientific Approaches to Consciousness, Communication and Conflict in Families and Couples, and The Psychology, Biology and Politics of Food!

Online Therapy Institute
OTI has free resources on online therapy, ethics, research and more. 

Check out the Reading Room
Subscribe to TILT Magazine (Therapeutic Innovations in Light of Technology) FREE

What resources would YOU add to this list? Let us know - comment below! (Hey, that rhymes!)

You can hear directly from Tamara Suttle, DeeAnna Nagel, and myself absolutely free at the Mind Your Own Business Virtual Conference for Private Practice Therapists. Enrollment is free, and we'll start the free training with my training, "How You Are Sabotaging Your Own Private Practice And How To STOP!" airing for free 48 hours starting July 23. Sign Up Here. (Did I mention? It's free.)

Why Counseling Is Like Cooking

Who else is obsessed with allrecipes.com? 

If that doesn't make you hungry...then you're probably a vegetarian. (And if you are...I'm sorry. Look away.) Meatball Nirvana is a staple at my house. If we're having guests over, if we're watching The Godfather, if it's at-home date night...it's one of our favorites. 

One of the reasons it's our favorite is because we took a great recipe and we made it our own. Check out the link above, and you'll note it's written one way. The Adams family recipe has a few things changed:

Instead of sea salt, we use coarse ground kosher salt. It's flavorful without being overwhelming. Neither myself or Tim like the taste of cooked onion pieces, so we use onion powder. Because we already have large salt crystals, we use garlic powder instead of garlic salt. We use 1 or 2 % milk instead of skim. And we use Italian bread crumbs, not simply 'seasoned.' 

If you look at the original recipe, that could add up to some major changes. So when I tell you "try this recipe, it's my favorite!" it's really not exactly my favorite at all. It's where my favorite meal started.

I'm not the only one who does that. If you read the nearly 2000 reviews for Meatball Nirvana, you'll see that nearly all put their own "spin" on it. CookingBug serves it on hoagie rolls. (What?) Jillian skips the milk and puts egg in instead. ItalianTapas does a half-beef half-pork combo and subs some ricotta for the milk. 

How does this story matter to the new therapist? 

• Like cooking, counseling is an ART not a science. The personality of the cook and the counselor matter to the finished result.
• Just like a minor ingredient can make a big difference in taste, as a counselor, you may never know what small thing you said that helped your client move to another level. 
• You're not going to be everyone's cup of tea. Hoagie rolls? Really? That's sacrilege to me. But it works for CookingBug, and more power to them.
• According to Jillian, you have to break a few eggs to get a positive result. So do you have to fumble, and say dumb things once in a while, to become the counselor you're meant to be. 
• Nothing gets cooked - and nothing changes - until HEAT is applied! You as the counselor, and your client, will grow as you make mistakes and face pressure to change.

It's normal to be nervous starting out. You have your preconceptions about how counseling is supposed to be. But your clients? They're just happy to be "fed." It's you who notices every imperfection along the way. 

Take a lesson from your clients and just sit down and enjoy the meal you're sharing together. 

If you liked this article, you might also like Guess What? Nobody Gets You.

What's YOUR favorite recipe, and what do you do to tweak it? Click here to share with us!