Play therapy is a developmentally appropriate way to help children communicate and work through their experiences. For young people, play is their natural language — through toys, games, art, and storytelling, they can show and process things they don’t yet have words for. A trained play therapist creates a safe space and follows the child’s lead, helping them make sense of big feelings, build coping skills, and feel understood.

Sand tray therapy is a powerful form of expressive work that uses a tray of sand and a collection of miniature figures. Clients of any age build scenes that represent their inner world, often revealing thoughts and emotions that talk therapy alone can’t reach. Because it’s hands-on and symbolic rather than purely verbal, sand tray can be especially gentle for processing trauma. Both approaches are central to our work in child and adolescent therapy.

When the whole family is affected, play and sand tray work often pairs well with family therapy, so parents and siblings can support the changes happening in session.

If your child struggles to talk about what’s bothering them, shuts down in traditional talk therapy, or is working through something frightening or confusing, play and sand tray therapy can open a door that words can’t. Teens and adults benefit too — sand tray, in particular, helps people of any age access and process experiences that feel too tender or tangled to put into language.

Several of our therapists are trained in sand tray and play therapy, including Blake Adams, CSW, Natasha Griffiths, and Harris Moriarty, CMHC. During intake, we’ll match your child or family with the right therapist and approach.