Presentation Description 

Monday, October 19, 2026   1:00 - 3:00pm PDT  /  4:00 - 6:00pm EDT
For Asia: Tuesday, Oct 20, 2026 / Click here for time zone converter

This presentation will introduce participants to Focusing and Sandtray, along with their integration with expressive arts. It will include a brief overview of the historical and more recent legacies that have provided the foundation for these approaches to be respected and practiced in the field of psychotherapy. Both directive and nondirective approaches will be presented, along with recommended materials for practicing Sandtray in therapy. There will also be a brief discussion on how Focusing, Sandtray, and Expressive Arts Therapy are experiences that foster neural integration within the body-brain, and how that is a critical ingredient to cultivate wellbeing.

An experiential component will be offered, including: Focusing to access a felt sense, extending and deepening it through Sandtray, and allowing the embodied call to unfold further through expressive arts. The presentation will conclude with an opportunity to ask questions or share about curiosities.  

Note: Due to the expansive nature of these topics, please be aware that working with Focusing or Sandtray requires more than this kind of introduction and is more about dipping one’s toes into the landscape, rather than swimming in the deep ends.

If you cannot attend the Live presentation via Zoom, the recording will be available for you to watch at your convenience for up to 2 months!

About the Presenter

Deborah Armstrong, Ph.D., LMFT-S, RPT-S, REAT, REACE, CFP, has been practicing as a family therapist specializing in expressive arts and play therapies for over 40 years, and is a Certified Focusing Professional (TIFI). She coordinates the MA in Expressive Arts Therapy at Bennington College, as well as directing and practicing out of The Mindgarden Centre. Deborah began to work with sandtray in therapy while in her practicum/internship training during graduate school. She was introduced to and trained in Focusing by Dottie Higgins Klein, clinical director of the Family and Play Therapy Center in Philadelphia, who was trained by Eugene Gendlin and John Wellford. She is on the Working Board of Global Association for Interpersonal Neurobiology Studies (GAINS), and gets great pleasure out of sharing these practices with anyone who has an interest in discovering therapy practices that grow and repair us from the inside out with gusto.

Registration Details

Please register with your preferred contact email– this will be your account email, where you will receive all communication about the presentation. If you have taken a course through our FOAT Online School, please register with your existing account!

For scholarship/work study inquiries please contact us by October 1, 2026.