Content

    1. Interview with Ana Gomez

    2. Quiz

    1. A Multimodal Approach to EMDR-Sandtray-based Therapy: Defining Complex Trauma and Dissociation, by Ana M. Gomez

Interview with Ana Gomez

Richard Hill interviews child and trauma therapist Ana Gomez about her integrative clinical approach that unites EMDR therapy with sand tray work, grounded in interpersonal neurobiology, polyvagal theory, mentalization, and a strongly relational therapist stance. Gomez explains how symbolic play and “avatars” in the sand provide distance and safety, allowing children (and adults) to process traumatic material implicitly without being overwhelmed, then gradually “own” their experience. She describes rhythms of healing, titration of affect (e.g., “two drops or a spoon”), somatic invitations, and the therapist’s self-connection, resonance, and curiosity as core to the work. Gomez also outlines her highly experiential trainings (thousands of miniatures; joint trays with caregivers) and shares clinical vignettes illustrating shifts from “trauma time” toward agency, regulation, and healthier relational patterns.

  • Explain how combining EMDR with sand tray therapy supports dual attention, symbolic processing, and safe access to traumatic material.

  • Describe why distance, metaphor, and “avatars” in the tray reduce overwhelm and enable gradual ownership of difficult states.

  • Define “trauma time” and identify interventions (repeated creation/dismantling of trays, titration, somatic cues) that promote temporal integration.

  • Identify the therapist stance emphasized by Gomez: self-connection, resonance, curiosity, compassion, and attunement to the client’s shifting rhythms.

  • Apply titration strategies for children (e.g., negotiating “how much” to feel, companioning, sensory/somatic invitations) to keep arousal within window of tolerance.

  • Discuss the role of caregivers and joint trays in revealing relational dynamics and scaffolding corrective relational experiences.

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