Lorraine Freedle

• Doctor of Psychology
• Black Sand Neuropsychological Services

Children with developmental trauma are at risk for severe and complex behavioral problems, often requiring long-term residential and day treatment. The Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT) is a developmentally-sensitive approach to clinical work with a capacity-building component focusing on attachment, the impact of maltreatment and trauma,...

Using a mixed-method quasi-experimental design this study explores the added value of sandplay therapy with emerging adults (age 18-24) in a residential outdoor behavioral healthcare (OBH) treatment program. Participants were divided into two groups: One group (n=29) received sandplay therapy during OBH treatment. A comparison group (n=29) was rand...

This article explores how sandplay works using the conceptual framework of Bruce Perry's Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics® (NMT). The work of neuroscientist Antonio Damasio on the development of “self processes” is also reviewed in this context, along with the author’s research and practice involving “Sandplay’s Sensory Feedback Loop” and the...

Abstract Sandplay therapy is a cross-cultural, psychodynamic, non-directive, multi-sensory psychotherapy method founded by Dora Kalff. Sandplay is used with children and adults with a range of mental health problems. Despite sandplay’s growing popularity, its empirical evidence base is less developed than more well-known therapies. This internati...

There is a substantial and growing body of evidence demonstrating the efficacy and effectiveness of sandplay therapy in the treatment of children and adults with a wide variety of clinical presentations. This article briefly defines evidence-based treatment and provides an overview of the research base for sandplay therapy in this context. In an er...

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a common disorder characterized by psychological and neurophysiological impairments. Previous studies show that Jungian Sandplay Therapy (SPT) effectively improves anxiety symptoms in individuals with GAD. This study explores whether clinical symptom improvement from using SPT also involves changes in brain fun...

Overview of Wiersma, J. K., Freedle, L. R., McRoberts, R., & Solberg, K. B. (2022). A meta-analysis of sandplay therapy treatment outcomes. International Journal of Play Therapy, 31(4), 197–215. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000180

There is a substantial and growing body of evidence demonstrating the efficacy and effectiveness of sandplay therapy in the treatment of children and adults with a wide variety of clinical presentations. This article briefly defines evidenced-based treatment and provides an overview of the research base for sandplay therapy in this context. In an e...

Children impacted by natural disasters are vulnerable to developing mental health problems including anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders. This field-based study explores the use of group sandplay with students whose lives were disrupted by a volcanic eruption in their community. Participants ( n = 12) included first graders, ages 6-7 whose...

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), a common, debilitating condition, involves psychological and physiological dysfunction. Sandplay therapy (SPT), a multisensory treatment modality, has been successfully utilized to reduce anxiety ratings for individuals suffering from GAD using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) and the General Anxiety-7 (...

Lorraine Razzi Freedle, President of Sandplay Therapists of America, shares her thoughts about the COVID-19 pandemic and discusses the STA's Emergency Action Plan.

The article describes Dr. Kalsched's model of the dissociating psyche, called the Self-Care System (SCS) and its applications to sandplay therapy. The SCS often appears in the material of trauma-survivors as a type of "core complex" of the traumatized psyche. First, Dr. Kalsched discusses this dynamic system and the unconscious archetypal "powers"...

This study explored the effectiveness of the Bonding through Experiential Adventures in Recovery (BEAR) program and the role of sandplay therapy in addressing the complex needs of youth (ages 14-24) with co-occurring trauma and substance use disorders. BEAR incorporated sandplay therapy, adventure therapy, art therapy and recovery-oriented supports...

Abstract Employing a collective case study qualitative approach, sandplay therapy (sandplay) was utilized to study the phenomenological experiences of four adults with moderate to severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and to explore the process of individuation as defined by Carl Jung in these individuals. Participants ranged in age from 22 to 36, co...

The phenomenological experiences of four adults with moderate to severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) were studied using sandplay therapy in a collective case study qualitative design. Participants ranged in age from 22 to 36, completed 12 to 18 sandtrays in an outpatient neurorehabilitation center. Results indicated that the participants expressed...

In this article the author highlights the sandplay process of a 17-year-old, gang-involved youth who was transitioning from living in a group home for juvenile delinquents to living on his own. His use of sandplay reconciles the despair of his abusive and neglectful childhood, to disengage from an identity centered on violence and antisocial behavi...