Role Playing a Squiggle: An Adaption of Winnicott's Squiggle Game for Dramatherapy

Abstract

Children are often the vehicle for psychological material that does not belong to them, ghost traumas or ways of being that are not theirs, but are projected into their lives by parents and past generations. This ‘research in action’ summarises some work on a case of a 10-year-old girl where the creativity and playful aspect of the therapist were essential tools for finding the true potential of the patient in treatment.In this particular case Winnicott's squiggle game was used and the concept furthered with various techniques of enactments, story building, and poetry. The aim was to open up the potential self of the patient by regressing to an earlier stage of play.Although some hesitate to use their own associations for fear of trampling on the image enactments and stories of the patient, the spontaneity and playful self of the therapist is, nevertheless, often the key to unlocking the true potential. This way of working may be helpful for children or adults that appear cut off from a deeper connection with life.