Older children, teens, and adults can benefit enormously from understanding their own nervous system, but a lecture rarely lands. This 4-hour training shows you how to use sand tray and other experiential prompts to make Polyvagal Theory come alive for your clients.
You will learn directive sand tray activities designed to help clients see, feel, and explore their states of activation and regulation, build insight into how their body responds to stress, and begin to practice new patterns.
These activities work beautifully with skeptical teens, creative adults, and any client who needs a more tangible way to "get" what is happening inside them.
This is not a moment-to-moment co-regulation course; it focuses on giving your clients lasting nervous system literacy through hands-on experiences, while also weaving in therapist self-care practices so you stay inspired and grounded.
☀️ Bring Polyvagal Theory to life. Learn how to translate complex nervous system concepts into visual, experiential exercises your clients can immediately connect with.
☀️ Help clients recognize and shift their states. Use sand tray and symbolic tools to guide clients in identifying activation, regulation, and freeze responses and finding their own pathways back to safety.
☀️ Support hard-to-reach clients. Discover creative approaches that open up insight and engagement for teens and adults who struggle to connect through talk alone.
☀️ Stay grounded yourself. Explore simple, therapist-centered practices that keep you regulated, creative, and connected as you guide clients through this work.
☀️. Leave with tools you can use right away. Gain practical, directive activities you can easily integrate into trauma, anxiety, or stress-focused sessions.
On-Demand Format: Video Recorded Class
Self Paced Therapist Training
4 Non-Contact APT CEs
4 NBCC CEs (On-Demand)
$99
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this 4 CE course, participants will be able to:
🍎 Describe the different parts of the nervous system essential to Polyvagal Theory and how to explain them to older children, teens, and adults.
🍎 Explain how experiential sandtray activities can be used to teach nervous system awareness rather than immediate in-session regulation.
🍎 Identify at least five directive sandtray prompts for exploring and mapping different nervous system states with clients.
🍎 Demonstrate ways to integrate psychoeducation, reflection, and symbolic sandtray work to build clients’ nervous system literacy.
🍎 Apply self-care strategies from the training to support your own regulation and creativity as a play therapist.
Continuing Education Credit
This course is designed to meet APT and NBCC standards for professional continuing education. It provides 4 non-contact continuing education hours (if viewed on-demand) in the area of Skills & Methods.
Participants will complete interactive learning activities, reflection prompts, and a post-training evaluation to receive a certificate of completion.
Materials Needed
If you have access to a sandtray, you are encouraged to use it during the training; otherwise, you may observe live demonstrations from the (pre-recorded) webcam in the counseling practice sand tray rooms.
☀️ Play therapists and creative arts therapists curious about sand tray
☀️ Therapists interested in creative ways to calm the nervous system
☀️ Therapists wanting to make PolyVagal Theory applicable and simple to understand
☀️ Play therapists who want to learn strategies to keep things calm in the play room
☀️ Therapists who want to feel more balanced themselves
☀️ Curious counselors, social workers, psychologists'
Whether you are brand new to sand tray or have decades of experience, you will find fresh insight and inspiration in this training. Watching real sand tray development unfold brings the process to life, offering new ways to see, reflect, and deepen your clinical work.