Sand Tray Therapy at Banyan Tree Counseling & Wellness

Some experiences are hard to put into words - especially whe emotions feel tangled, when memories come in flashes, or when you've spent a long time "powering through." Sand tray therapy offers a gentle, creative way to explore your inner world without needing the perfect language. 

In sand tray, you use a tray of sand and a collection of small figures and objects to create scenes that reflect what you're carrying - your relationships, stressors, hopes, fears, identity, or parts of your story that feel stuck. Your therapist helps you notice themes, meaning, and shifts that emerge, at your pace and with your consent.

What is Sand Tray Therapy?

​Sand tray therapy is a therapeutic approach that uses sand and miniature figures as a way to express thoughts, feelings, and experiences. You might create a scene that represents something happening in your life right now – or something deeper that you’re still making sense of. Sometimes the scene is symbolic. Sometimes it’s very direct. Either way, it becomes a tangible “snapshot” of what’s going on inside.

Sand tray can be used with children, teens, and adults. It can be powerful for people who feel like they "shut down" in traditional talk therapy, or who have learned to intellectualize feelings to survive.
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What Sand Tray Can Help With

Sand tray can support many concerns, including:
  • Anxiety, stress, and feeling overwhelmed
  • Depression, numbness, or disconnection
  • Trauma and complex trauma (including relational trauma)
  • Grief and loss
  • Life transitions and identity exploration
  • Family and relationship patterns
  • Self-esteem and inner-critic work
  • Neurodivergence (e.g., ADHD/autism) - when verbal processing feels draining or limiting

You don't need to be "artistic," imaginative, or creative to benefit. If you can pick up an object and place it somewhere in the sand, you can do sand tray.
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What a Sand Tray Session Looks Like

Your therapist will invite you to choose from a variety of miniature (people, animals, nature objects, symbols, structures, etc.) and create a scene in the sand. There's no right way to do it.

Depending on your needs and preferences, your session might include:
  • Quiet time for creating, with minimal talking
  • Gentle questions to help you reflect on what you made
  • Noticing emotions, body sensations, and memories that come up
  • Exploring patterns, relationships, boundaries, or power dynamics represented in the scene
  • Identifying new possibilities - what feels safer, what feels hopeful, what wants to change

Some clients like to process as they build. Others prefer to build first and reflect afterward. We'll follow what feels supportive for you.
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Why Sand Tray Can Be So Effective​

Sand tray works because it gives your nervous system a different pathway for expression. Instead of having to "think your way through" everything, you can externalize what's happening internally - and see it with some distance and compassion.

Many clients find sand tray helpful because it can:
  • Access emotions and memories that feel unreachable through words alone​
  • Reduce pressure to "perform" therapy the right way
  • Support trauma processing in a paced, contained way
  • Help clarify patterns in relationships and self-protective strategies
  • ​Strengthen self-understanding, agency, and self-compassion

Is Sand Tray Only for Kids?

Not at all. While sand tray is commonly used with children, adults often find it surprisingly powerful - especially if you've done a lot of talking about your experiences but still feel stuck. Sand tray can help you connect the dots between insight and felt change
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What If I Feel Nervous or Self-Conscious?

That's normal. Many people worry they'll do it "wrong" or that it will feel silly. We take that seriously - and we don't rush it. Sand tray is an invitation, not a performance. You'll never be pushed to share more than you want, and you're always in control of the pace. 
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If you're curious about sand tray therapy, we'd love to help you explore whether it fits your needs. Sand tray can be used as a primary approach or integrated into broader counseling work.
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Learn more about our sand tray specialist

Gail Herbert, MS, LPC, LCMHCA

Winston-Salem office
At Banyan, we offer a compassionate, creative way to explore what words alone can't - helping you make meaning, find grounding, and move toward healing at your own pace.