Utilizing Sandtray With Adolescents in Individual Counseling

The number of mental health disorders in adolescence is growing, and counselors must apply appropriate counseling techniques that meet the developmental needs of this specific population. Counselors are turning towards expressive interventions, such as sandtray, as a way to connect and engage with adolescent clients, who are between childhood and adulthood. Sandtray interventions assist in creating a collaborative relationship between the counselor and client, as well as fostering autonomy and freedom of expression for adolescents in the therapeutic setting. The authors explore the utilization of sandtray as an expressive technique with the adolescent population by highlighting the uniqueness of adolescent development, defining the sandtray technique, and providing a case example from a private practice setting under the service of a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC).