Abstract
This study is a case study of a middle-aged woman's sandbox therapy using Kohut's self psychology. This study was conducted from December 17, 2013 to December 31, 2021, for a total of 47 sessions, about 8 years. This study aimed to analyze the life journey of a middle-aged woman in her early 50s to understand self, selfobject, and narcissistic needs, and to explore self-awareness, self-regulation, interpersonal relationships, and personal growth. To verify the effectiveness of the sandbox therapy, we took photos and records of each session, and analyzed the changes in the entire session by dividing them into psychological stages. The psychological change process was found to be relationship building, transformative internalization through optimal frustration experience, and cohesive self-construction. The relationship building process was represented by 'my happy home' in episode 1, 'family party' in episode 16, and 'grandma I want to be with' in episode 30; the transformational internalization process was represented by 'exciting amusement park' in episode 2, 'real me' in episode 4, and 'three trips' in episode 35; and the cohesive self-construction was represented by 'child playing in the ditch' in episode 3, 'changed me' in episode 24, and 'opera' in episode 46. Through the empathic relationship with the counselor, the participants projected and expressed their narcissistic needs in the sandbox without defending them, and gradually internalized them through the optimal frustration experience, and came to understand and accept themselves by confronting their frustrated narcissistic needs by viewing them objectively through the sandbox they created as a result of their frustrated needs, self-object creation, and childhood regression. From cohesive self-construction to self-reinforcement, self-recovery, and self-love expression, the participant experienced healthy self-objectification in the sandbox, gradually strengthening the self and changing self-regulation. The significance of the study is that through this process, the subjects were able to increase self-awareness, improve self-regulation, improve interpersonal relationships, understand and balance their own growth, recover and integrate into a healthy self in their late and mid-life journey, and experience a second maturity.
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