This study presents a case of sand play therapy for a 47-year-old woman distressed by her hatred
towards her own mother. A total of 25 sessions of sand play therapy were conducted for 9 months starting
from April, 2011 and 17 sand trays were analyzed in 3 parts through analytic psychological framework -
the initial part (1-11 sessions), middle part (12-22 sessions) and final part (23-25 sessions). The initial part
(1 ~ 11) is the stage of regression, absence of maternity, and negative maternal complex. The middle part
is the stage where with the support of the therapist, the energy level went up and the ego of the client was
strengthened and her maternity, femininity, and masculinity level went up. Shedding the negative maternal
complex, she learned how to discipline her son. The final part is the stage of inner insight into her life,
integration and rebirth of ego. This case study shows that with the help of the sand play therapy the
client’s ego was strengthened, negative maternal complex disappeared and her maternity, femininity, and
masculinity was developed and she was able to properly discipline her son. The significance of the study
is that sand play therapy can contribute to the process of the individuation of middle-aged women and also
provide implications of the potentials as an effective method to deal with child rearing problems of
dysfunctional family.