Margoliash, Elizabeth
REBIRTH THROUGH SAND
Journal of Sandplay Therapy, Volume 7, Number 1, 1998
KEY WORDS: sandplay therapy, clinical example, depression, attachment, body, feminine, self, immune system, pain, asthma, osteoarthritis, abandonment, loss.
ABSTRACT: Case referral from Child Protective Services of a 39 year old single parent of two children, manifesting symptoms of depression. Her goal in therapy was to “feel better about myself”. She reported early childhood illnesses as the first of three children. She was “parentified” due to her family situation and physically abused by her stepmother, with her core issue that of unsatisfactory mother attachment. The mermaid manifested symbolically, flowing between the instincts and the unconscious. The unicorn suggested a safe passage. Cotransference is explored, as experienced as exhaustion in the therapist.