Sand Tray Therapy: Utilizing Indigenous Objects With Traumatized Haitian Orphans

This study explored the experience of seven female Haitian orphans using a particular form of sand tray therapy. All seven orphans experienced the traumatic events of the earthquake in 2010. Natural disasters, terrorist incidents, poverty, and war make trauma a common experience of children throughout the world. This phenomenological study explores sand tray therapy as a universal form of play, which is the language of children. Sand tray therapy is a common therapeutic form of sand play. Recent literature has revealed a need for therapeutic interventions for the mental health needs of children worldwide. This study explored the possibility of using sand tray therapy as an effective and accessible intervention that might fill the gap in cross-cultural therapeutic experience with children, as well as being a tool for therapeutic processing of trauma. The study replaces traditional miniatures commonly used in sand tray therapy with objects that are accessible from the child's own environment.