Healing traumatic nightmares using sandplay therapy.

Nightmares are a common and distressing symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), yet frequently resistant to treatment. The relationship between traumatic experience and dream imagery can be complicated and ambiguous. While some nightmares re-enact trauma in a literal way, others may be related to traumatic events much more metaphorically.The presentation will demonstrate the application of sandplay therapy with a refugee client suffering from severe PTSD symptoms, including debilitating nightmares and strong avoidance. The case study will investigate the effectiveness of sandplay as a non-verbal expressive treatment modality in uncovering, processing and managing traumatic nightmares without posing the risk of retraumatisation.

Recorded at the NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors (STARTTS) 
10 August 2011, New South Wales, Australia.
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