International Journal of Play Therapy, 2(1), pp. 33-48 Copyright 1993, APT.Inc.

PLAY PSYCHOTHERAPY OF A
PROFOUNDLY INCEST
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ABUSED BOY: A JUNGIAN APPROACH

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John A.B. Allan &

Sarah Lawton-Speert
Department of Counseling Psychology
University of British Columbia

ABSTRACT: A Jungian play psychotherapy approach to the treatment of a

profoundly sexually abused mother-son incest victim is described. Emphasis is
placed on (a) the therapeutic alliance, (b) a teleological approach; that is,
following the child's play as it unfolds and, (c) the differences between acting-
out and acting-in. The play evolved through the following stages: Symbolic and
verbal disclosure in the first session; terror and rage; sexual, urination,
cleansing, and nurturant themes followed by ego and superego development
and latency aged play.

The sexual abuse of infants and children has been occurring since
time immemorial. When the first author started his psychotherapeutic
practice some 28 years ago, there were always a few children on his
caseload who had been sexually abused. Now one-half of his practice
consists of sexually abused children. Though in the past 10 years our
knowledge and research base about these children has vastly improved,
much remains to be done in the realm of successful treatment. This
paper reviews some of the literature on the sexual abuse of children,
describes aspects of a Jungian play psychotherapy treatment paradigm
and then gives examples from the successful treatment of a profoundly
abused child.
 34 Allan & Lawton-Speert

POST-TRAUMATIC PLAY

Sexual abuse of children is often revealed dramatically in

pathological patterns of play. Terr (1983) defines post-traumatic play as
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a type of play observed in children who have undergone a psychic

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trauma which is so intense that ordinary coping mechanisms and

defenses are insufficient to prevent the child from being overwhelmed
by pain and anxiety. Some of the characteristics of posttraumatic play
are: (a) compulsive repetition, (b) unconscious link between the play
and the trauma, (c) literalness of play with simple defenses and (d)
failure to relieve anxiety.
Jones (1986) describes post-traumatic play as consisting of
compulsive, repetitive, unimaginative activities in which the child is
oblivious to the presence of the therapist. The child appears cut off
from reality and in a world of his or her own, absorbed and mesmerized
by the play. Jones notes that post-traumatic play may be observed after
the first few weeks of treatment:
The therapist initially allows the child to reenact these
sequences, but as therapy progresses, more active
techniques are required. One approach is to identify the
type of feelings which seem to precipitate such play, and
then to reflect this to the child. The aim is to help the child
become more aware of his/her emotional feelings and allow
these feelings to be ventilated, because post-traumatic play
serves to defend the child from recalling intolerable
emotions and memories. Later on, the abusive act itself can
be interpreted and/or discussed with the child, (p. 379)
Traumatic sexualization as described by Finkelhor and Browne
(1985) refers to a process whereby a child's sexuality is shaped in a
developmentally inappropriate fashion as a result of sexual abuse. This
is especially so when a child is repeatedly seduced or abused and
rewarded by the offender for sexual behavior that is developmentally
inappropriate. Finkelhor and Browne noted the following behaviors:
sexual preoccupation; masturbation and compulsive sex play; and
displaying knowledge and interests that are inappropriate to their age
such as wanting to engage school age playmates in sexual intercourse or
oral-genital contact.
 Jungian Approach 35

Green (1978) notes that child incest victims are faced with the
particularly difficult task of trying to integrate the loving and hostile
aspects of their parents. In order to cope with threatening internal and
external parental images, the child has to excessively rely on such
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primitive defenses as denial, projection and splitting. This can explain

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why some children completely support their parents' denials and

rationalizations and reflects the child's need to protect himself or herself
from the awareness of the actual and internalized destructive parent.
The image of the "bad parent" is denied and projected onto another
person. This protects the child from murderous rage and maintains the
fantasy of having a "good parent".
PLAY THERAPY
Play is a natural treatment vehicle for young children as it allows
them to externalize trauma and to work it through at their own pace.
Waider (1979) believes that painful and traumatic experiences result in
strong emotions that are too large or too difficult for the child's ego to
assimilate immediately. These unabsorbed or incompletely absorbed
experiences impede psychological growth resulting in impaired ego
functioning. Play therapy provides a safe and protected space where
the child can enact, ingest, and assimilate trauma slowly over time. The
child divides overwhelming experiences and emotions into small
quantities and handles them through play. In situations where the child
was the passive recipient of trauma and neglect, the child can now be
active in relationship to expressing feelings and mastering the
environment through play.
Mann and McDermott (1983) describe play therapy as the
treatment of choice for abused and neglected children. They have found
play therapy useful, if not essential, to prevent the crystallization and
internalization of the effects of sexual and physical assault, rejection,
and neglect, into the personality structure of the child. They find that
play is especially useful, since most abused children, even more than
children in general, express their innermost feelings and fantasies much
more readily through action then verbalization. Play also permits the
necessary distancing from traumatic events by the use of symbolic
materials. This is critical, because to the abused child, adults are
unpredictable and always potentially dangerous.
 36 Allan & Lawton-Speert

Mann and McDermott (1983) emphasize that play techniques must

be sharply modified, sometimes in a way which would be considered
nontherapeutic with nonabused children. They suggest that:
Some children may first have to be taught how to play.
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Because of their distrust in adults, an inordinate amount of

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time must be spent in establishing a therapeutic

relationship; food may be needed to engage the child in
therapy. Once a relationship has been established, rage at
unmet needs for nurturance tend to come to the fore with
great intensity - and a prolonged phase of regression and
dependence must be tolerated (p. 306).... Emotional
abreaction in a supportive atmosphere often relieves the
paralyzing anxiety of these children. When it is mastered
(the acute, traumatic reactions), its symptoms - expressed in
hyperactivity, impulsivity, and aggressivity - often diminish
and work can proceed to improve the child's self-esteem and
distorted object relations.
Only then, the therapeutic focus can shift to improve
self-esteem, help the child develop a realistic view of him or
herself in relationship to others, and foster a sense of
identity separate from his parents' unrealistic expectations.
Lastly, the therapist helps the child adjust to the givens of
his present situation, which may include placement away
from home. (pp. 298-299)
In regards to stages in play therapy, In and McDermott (1976)
have observed the following patterns: Phase 1: Establishing rapport and
learning how to play; Phase II: Regression and abreaction of the
trauma; Phase HI: The testing of real relationships, developing impulse
control and self esteem; IV: Termination. We will use these
recommended stages as a framework for describing the play therapy of
a profoundly sexually abused boy.
JUNGIAN PLAY PSYCHOTHERAPY

There are three main components to Jungian play psychotherapy:

1. The nature of the therapeutic alliance.
To Jung (1966) it was important that the therapist relate to the
client on a person-to-person basis and that there be an existential
 Jungian Approach 37

encounter between two people. In working with children (Allan, 1988)

the therapist takes his or her sense of direction from the child. If the
child wants the therapist to sit, the therapist sits, observes, and
comments. If the child wants the therapist to be active and play, the
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therapist plays. However, if the therapist does not feel like playing, or
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wants, after a while, to stop playing, he or she says this to the child.
Though the therapist plays the part the child assigns, the therapist still
maintains 'an analytical attitude' (Schaefer, 1983) and at times,
comments, reflects, and interprets behavior, stepping aside from the
role, making the reflection, and then stepping back into the role.
2. Theoretical belief.
Jung (1966) believed in the regenerative ability of the human
psyche; that despite trauma, given a therapeutic relationship and an
appropriate setting, the psyche knows how to heal itself. From his
perspective, the transference relationship activates the self healing
potential that is embedded in the archetype of the self (the central
organizing principle in the psyche). The self healing potential then
directs the child into activities in the playroom that have relevance for
the child's growth. Initially, this might be to areas of play that surface
the child's wounds and later then move the child into healing activities
and emotional growth.
3. The therapy.
The therapy occurs in a playroom which acts as a safe and
protected space where, with the use of appropriate toys, dramas unfold.
In this unfolding process, the children go to where they need to go and
the therapist follows. Jungian therapists differentiate between acting-
out and acting-in (to use Ekstein's 1966 terms). For example, if a child
wishes to take off his clothes and urinate in the playroom, we would let
the child do this if we felt it was a therapeutic act (acting-in). If it was
an angry act and had at its root a testing of the limits (i.e., acting-out),
we would set the limits, and reflect and interpret the act, and work with
the emotions that were activated. Just exactly how does the therapist
determine the difference between acting-in and acting-out? This is
difficult even for the experienced therapist but by using concepts of
transference, countertransference and awareness of his or her own
bodily sensations, the therapist is usually able to discriminate whether
the play will be 'therapeutic work' or a plea for limits and controls.
 38 Allan & Lawton-Spcert

CASE STUDY
Developmental History
Kim was born in late spring, 1982. He has an older half-brother
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(Tim) who was born in the spring of 1981, and an older brother, by a
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third father, who was given up for adoption at an early age, before Kim
was born, and who suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome.
Kim and Tim were raised initially by their young single mother
who supported herself by working as a prostitute. She demonstrated
the following severe parenting deficits: leaving the children alone for up
to three days on a number of occasions; neglect of the children in terms
of adequate cleanliness, clothing and medical care; physical abuse of the
older child and sexual abuse of Kim; and a transient lifestyle where she
moved from one hotel to another. Because of these problems, both boys
were taken into temporary care in a foster home when Kim was four
months old for a four-month period and then returned to the birth
mother for another two months. After additional abuse, when Kim was
10 months old, the boys were apprehended for a second time by the
Ministry of Social Services, after which they were made Permanent
Wards of the Court. They lived then in one foster home for thirteen
months until their present adoptive family (mother and father) took
them into their care in 1984. In foster care, both boys banged their
heads against the walls very hard. They became frantic, screaming and
banging on the table when they saw someone begin to prepare a meal.
Initially Kim would work himself up to such a state that he could not
recognize the bottle when it was offered to him. The foster mother had
to rub the nipple over his face for a time until he would grab it. When
the meal was served, the boys would eat ravenously, and during most
of the time Kim was in foster care he refused to chew his food. The
foster mother also reported that one night, a new six-year old foster girl
(who had been sexually abused by her father) got into Kim's bed and bit
his penis so hard that teeth marks were seen on it.
Kim was 23 months old when he began living with his adoptive
family. He was formally adopted at 37 months old. The adoptive
mother had decided she wanted to adopt the two boys after having seen
them briefly in the hallway of the Social Services Department. The
adoptive parents had been trying to have children for 12 years. The
adoptive family included the mother and father and a very involved
 Jungian Approach 39

extended family: two of the mother's younger sisters and her mother.
Both maternal aunts and the grandmother were involved in caring for
the two boys. The mother is a cook and the father is a bus driver. Both
parents are from Italy and Italian is spoken at home. Language
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development was extremely delayed in both boys, neither of them

speaking at the time of initial placement in the adoptive home. Italian
became their first expressive language. Major behavioral problems
were experienced both at home and in daycare centers. Because of
violent, aggressive and sexual outbursts, both children had to be
supervised constantly. They repeatedly broke items at home and at
school. After having various daycare placements, both boys were
referred to our clinic for treatment. This paper describes just the play
therapy of the sexually abused boy (Kim) though both the adoptive
parents and the older brother were also treated on a regular basis for
two years.
Behavior at the Start of Treatment
Kim was four and half years old at the start of treatment and his
diagnosis on DSM-HIR was 295.12: Schizophrenic Disorder:
Disorganized type. His behavior was characterized by incoherent and
disorganized speech and his affect alternated from being very flat to
high pitched screeches. It was very difficult to carry on a coherent
conversation with him; he would not answer questions, he changed the
topic of conversation or would simply walk away and play with toys.
He thought toy snakes were real and would bite him. His language was
bizarre, illogical, and rambling. He was self-absorbed in his play and
did not relate appropriately to other children or adults. Much of this
behavior was sexual in nature. He masturbated frequently, he tried to
urinate anywhere he wanted to (playground, floors, etc.), and was
frequently involved in sexual play. He tried to touch women's breasts
and genital areas as well as men's. He put his hand under girls' dresses
and said: "Let's make sex here." He had disruptive sleep patterns and
would wake up numerous times every night screaming, shuddering,
and having nightmares. He would then start to fight with his brother
and wake up other members of the household.

Stages in Treatment
The following sections describe Kim's behavior during play
therapy. For purposes of discussion the material is presented by stages.
 40 Allan & Lawton-Speert

In reality, though, there was some over-lapping of themes. The therapy

was conducted by Sarah, a second year Masters student who was in
regular intensive supervision with Dr. Allan. Each session was
videotaped.
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Initial Stage. The first session was characterized by symbolic

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verbal disclosure. Following introductions to the therapist (Sarah), and

an explanation of the use of the playroom ("This is your time to play
more or less as you wish"), Kim slowly walked around the room,
touching the toys and whispering quietly to himself as to name the
objects. After 3-4 minutes he came across a small doll, took the doll's
clothes off, then put the doll between his legs and started moving the
doll up and down between his thighs and said: I'm like that." He then
moved the doll away, walked over to the therapist, put the doll against
her thighs, moved the doll up and down again and said, looking up at
Sarah: "Let's make sex. Sex hurts." Sarah was shocked and before she
could respond, Kim moved on to the other toys. In supervision, she
said she wished she had responded with something like: "You're like
that. You've had sex with adults and sex hurts."
The dominant affect during the 2nd through 7th session consisted
primarily of terror and rage. After the first session, Kim became
terrified of being alone with the therapist in the playroom. At first, he
would refuse to go in - whining, screaming, and running away. The
therapist held Kim's hand and reflected his feelings: "You don't want to
go in the play room with me... you're afraid to be in there alone with
me... you're afraid of what you may do. . what I might do". The
reflection did not help reduce his anxiety so after five minutes the
therapist picked him up and took him into the room saying: "I know
you don't want to come in but it is important to me that we spend our
time together in the play therapy room".
Once in the room the therapist had to stand against the door to
prevent him from running out. He attacked her: spit, swore, threw
water and toys and would yell frequently, "I hate you. I only love my
mummy". Then he threw a heavy block at her head and said: "I can
break your head" and tried to hit her in the crotch. The therapist
defended herself from being hurt and reflected his feelings: "You love
your mum but you are really mad at me. You feel she is 'good' and I am
"bad*. I think it's frightening for you being in here alone with me".
When he got out of control in a destructive way (i.e. hit the therapist or
 Jungian Approach 41

tried to destroy the toys); the therapist held him and said: "Kim, it's all
right to be really angry at me but I can't let you hit me or break the toys.
When you are calm I'll stop holding you." When the therapist felt Kim's
rage diminish, she slowly relaxed her hand and arm pressure so he
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could play again. He would play for a few minutes and then get very
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violent and aggressive again. Sarah would hold him, sometimes for 20
minutes, before he would relax again. Some of the rage seemed to stem
directly from fear of being alone with a woman in the playroom.
During this period of time, he occasionally went in the playroom with
one of the male preschool teachers and did not show this reaction.
As the sessions progressed, the anger slowly diminished so by the
time of the seventh session he was able to respond to limits ("You can
yell at me but not throw the doll in my face") and testing the rules
became less frequent. In the calm period, his play consisted of some
nurturing activities where he would be "the baby" and Sarah his mother.
Middle Stage. Though sexual themes were present at the start of
treatment and throughout the first few sessions in an aggressive way,
seductive and erotic play began to emerge during the seventh session
and continued off and on for the next three months of treatment. These
sessions also contained distinct sub-themes of cleansing, urination, and
baby play which are described below.
It seemed that once trust and rapport had been established, Kim
felt safe enough to work on deeper issues. One day during play he
turned to the therapist and said: 'May I take my clothes off?" She
replied: "You're wondering whether you can take your clothes off in
here?"
Kim: "Yes, I want to. Lock the door."
Therapist: "It's important for you to do that and you want to feel
safe?'
Kim: "Yes."
Therapist: "I'm wondering if you would like to take the clothes
off the dollies?"
Kim: "No, I want to take mine off."
Therapist: "Okay then."
Kim then quickly locked the door and took all of his clothes off.
He stood in the middle of the room with an erection, approached the toy
shelves, picked up a snake, put it between his legs and said, "It tickles."
He went over to the therapist who was sitting on a child's chair,
 42 Allan & Lawton-Speert

straddled her from the side by her waist and said, while moving his
hips back and forth, said:
Kim: "Make sex with me. Do it now."
Therapist: "You want to have sex with me but it's not right for
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adults to have sex with boys. I can hold you on my lap

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[sideways] and hold you that way if you like."

At this point the therapist lifted him up and moved him sideways to
her. He quickly got off her lap and moved over to the sand box and
started rubbing wet sand on his genitals. At first, the sand was used to
stimulate himself. He was angry and frustrated that she would not have
sex with him. Slowly the wet sand became a cleansing agent and he
would wash not only his genitals but his whole body. The play during
this period of time had a definite pattern to it: he would take off his
clothes, act coyly or seductively with the therapist, get angry when she
did not respond sexually, and then stimulate himself briefly with toys
(i.e. place the snake or a motorcycle between his legs). The therapist
would reflect his actions and feeling and add: "You're mad at me
because I won't have sex with you ... You know you don't have to have
sex with an adult to feel love." During the sexual play, the therapist
would: (a) clarify the situation and set simple limits as in the above
example, (b) witness his play but say nothing, and (c) reflect and
interpret. The purpose of this was to allow the child to re-enact sexually
in the playroom what he needed to, to provide understanding, to help
him move through his sexual trauma without reinforcing his sexual
acting out, and to help provide a new denouement so that when Kim
becomes close to an adult, the situation does not have to become sexual.
Cleansing and washing were major themes of his play for 8
months. His brief sexual play would occur when he was totally naked
and would be followed by washing rituals. He would start by washing
his genitals with water, then with sand and finally sprinkle talcum
powder on them. Later, he would fill a small tub with water and say:
"wash my bum" while sitting in the tub and then he would wash his
whole body with soap. After five months of intermittent washing play,
he came into the playroom one day and announced: "I won't take off my
pants today." He then took his shirt off and proceeded to wash his chest,
his hair, his eyes, his ears and then pretended to wash the therapist's
hair and ears. Some weeks later he started washing the dolls, the toys,
and the walls and windows of the room and would only take his socks
 Jungian Approach 43

and shoes off and powder his feet. In one session he asked the therapist
if she wanted to powder herself: "It's real nice. It'll make you feel better.
It's medicine."
Water and washing are symbolic acts of cleansing and
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purification. The therapist would reflect this during the play: "Your
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genitals are clean now...your bum is well washed and clean... the
windows are washed and we can see clearly now."
Throughout the above sequences, every now and again Kim
would engage in urinary play. At first, when naked he would ask:
Kim: "Can I go to the bathroom in here?"
Therapist: "You want to pee in this room!"
Kim: "Yes."
Therapist: "You can use the toilet in the cloakroom."
Kim: "No, I want to go here."
Therapist: "Okay. Where do you want to do it?'
Kim: "In the tub" (i.e., a small plastic water tray).
He put the tub on the floor, insisted that the therapist not look, and then
urinated into it. He then would say:
Kim: "I love it. I want to drink it... It's yucky."
Therapist: "You have mixed feelings about your pee. Part of you
loves it and another part thinks it's disgusting."
Kim: "Yes."
Therapist: "You think pee is good for you?"
Kim: "Yes. Can I drink it?"
Therapist: "I understand your wish but I can't let you do that
because pee is the body's waste and we don't drink it. But
you can drink from the clean water from the other tub and
pretend it's medicine."
Kim: "Okay. Can you throw this out?" But suddenly he got
mad at her, picked up the tub and tried to dump it on her.
In other sessions, the urination into the soiled tub of water
continued. He would swill it around with the baby bottle and then pour
the soiled water from the baby bottle onto his arms, legs, hands, into his
ears and wash himself with it. He still tried to drink the water every
now and again, saying, "it's medicine" but would stop on request
without anger. These enactments were done in a deep trance-like state,
After about three months, there was a change as one day he said: "Pee in
this tub. Drink from this one" (i.e. clean water). Later he would pee in
 44 Allan & Lawton-Speert

the tub and leave it alone, pushing it under the table. After another
three months of treatment, when he wanted to urinate he would
announce: "I want to go to the bathroom", leave the therapy session by
himself, go to the washroom and then come back three minutes later.
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The urination play then moved away from his body to the toys:
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animals would urinate on other animal's faces and then, in play,

defecate on the therapist's face. The therapist responded: "The baboon
really wants to pooh on my head. He really wants to make a mess on
me." Later, Kim would have the animals bathe after urinating and
defecating. He labeled one water table dirty and the other clean. He
had the "bad" animal bathe in the dirty water and the 'good' animal
bathe in the clean water. We felt some of this play (pouring water and
urine in the therapist's and his ears) was an enactment of urinary play
that his birth mother had engaged in with him. He kept associating the
pouring of urine as tickling. We wondered whether someone had
actually urinated on him and into his ear. However, the main point is
that he worked this experience through with very little interpretation.
After eight weeks of treatment (16 sessions) some very intense
baby play emerged. He would fill the baby bottle with water, and carry
it around in his mouth, alternating biting and sucking. He regressed
and enacted a lot of normal healthy infant play. He raised the tone of
his voice and started to speak in staccato baby talk. He called the
therapist "Mum" and would say: "Mum feed me... Mum burp me...
Mum put a clean diaper on me. .. Mum play ball with me." For half an
hour, at a time he would crawl around the floor like a baby, chasing the
ball underneath the furniture. The therapist would enact the mother
role at times like this: "Oh my baby. You are dirty. I must clean you
up" and, while he was dressed, she would pretend to wash him, talcum
powder him, and put a real cloth over his genitals and bottom area.
"Now you are all clean." Later he did all the washing, powdering, and
diapering himself.
Ambivalence and fear were strong throughout this period. He
would cuddle and drink from the baby bottle, suddenly get up, and
throw sand at the therapist. At times, he would carefully feed her
"medicine" from the bottle, then suddenly try to pour the water over
her. The therapist would reflect: "Part of you wants to take care of me,
feed me and look after me and another part of you wants to attack me
 Jungian Approach 45

and mess me up. You kind of love me and hate me at the same time.
That must be a bit scary for you."
Following this, Kim began to show longer periods of tenderness
toward the therapist. He would want her to be the baby and to feed her,
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comb, wash and put a barrette in her hair. Later, she had to play at
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becoming sick and he would have to "fix her". He began asking many
questions about her personal life. In play he would say: "Let's go over
to your house." However, at this stage he often did not arrive (was
blocked by his "real mom") or only stayed a few seconds. After these
visits, he would get mad and throw sand or water at the therapist or try
to break toys. The therapist would reflect: This is hard for you Kim.
You feel torn between two 'moms'. You feel if you love me, your mom
(adoptive) will feel hurt and get mad at you." He then started to swear
profusely at his mom and when the therapist reflected back his anger,
he said in a detached way: "No, I'm not angry. I love my mom."
Slowly, Kim began to get more control over his emotions. After
five months of treatment, he did this by telling the therapist what to
feel: "Sarah, you cry and I'll get angry at you." Sarah would cry at the
start but Kim became very upset: "No more playing. You be Sarah and
I'm Kim." Later he would say: "Be mad. Be mad at the doll because she
took her pants off." When the therapist got mad at the doll he would
laugh and say "Do it again." Soon the scripts became more involved:
"I'm singing in church and then I start to sing in a silly voice. Get mad
at me and tell me not to do it." At first he would laugh when the
therapist told him to stop and later he would say in a serious voice:
"Okay, okay, I'll sing nicely". He would also set up other scenes where
he would pretend to break toys or do something wrong and say: "Make
me go to church." Then he would go to the corner and be quiet for a
minute. At another time he would play with the anatomically correct
dolls and be very nurturant and caring for five minutes and then
suddenly switch into highly sexualized behavior. Then he would look
at the therapist and say:
Kim: "Tell me: Don't kiss her bum!"
Therapist: "Don't you kiss her bum."
Kim: "Why? Why not?"
Therapist: "Yes, you're wondering why not... why do you think?"
Kim: "Because it's not right."
 46 Allan & Lawton-Speert

Therapist: "Yes. It's not appropriate but you can pick her up and
rock her and kiss her cheeks and lips. That's the right way to
show affection."
As can be seen by the above play scenarios, Kim slowly began to
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develop some superego functions and inner controls and these were
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noticed by his teachers and adoptive parents.

Termination Stage. After a year of treatment, much of the
therapy centered around themes of horses, dogs, cars and houses. First,
he rode the therapist as the horse, and later he became the horse. In
some sessions, the horse would be wild initially, and had to be secured
tightly, and then he could be tamed. Sometimes a wild dog would rush
in and bite the horse's leg or the car would be driven too fast, get out of
control, and crash. Eventually, the car, the dog, and the horse came
under control, and both his ego and superego functions grew.
Sometimes he would ask a "friend" to go on the car outings with him
and the therapist. He seemed to enjoy driving the car the most, and
began to appreciate his own power. He was very meticulous in the way
he constructed the car out of large blocks and used small chairs as seats.
He would drive the therapist and the dolls to the new house where he
would build would repair the broken telephones and the stove.
At about this time, Kim's need to be strong and competent
surfaced. He was able to cope with his fear of rubber snakes (toys he
had been terrified of previously). He did not need anyone's help. He
became the hero saving the therapist from a variety of calamities. At
times, he played Santa Claus giving gifts. One week he taught the
therapist how to fly. Later, he was Superman and Mighty Mouse and
saved the therapist from sudden fires. The therapist was small; he was
big. He tried to carry the therapist, but did not want her to be able to lift
him.
Towards the end of treatment (after 18 months), he started to
involve the therapist less in the play activities. He would now take his
imaginary friends off in the car with him and he would play with the
animals without involving her. life seemed less threatening: the
attacking animals had changed into pets and he would feed them and
take care of them. There were no longer any sexual themes in his play
and when he came across naked dolls in the playroom he would simply
comment: 'They should have their clothes on." He would dress them
and play out family scenes - getting up, eating, going to work or school.
 Jungian Approach 47

Occasionally, he would talk about fights at home with his brother or

mum. There were no longer unpredictable outbursts. The therapist felt
he related to her in a warm, caring way as a real person now, Sarah, not
as his mother. His behavior improved significantly at school and at
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.

home. He was seen as a play leader with other children (i.e., an initiator
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.

of imaginative socio-dramatic games) and did not act out in a sexually

inappropriate way. His parents found him responsive and affectionate
at home. He was integrated in a regular kindergarten class, where the
children were a year younger than he. However, certain severe learning
difficulties were detected and he was scheduled to receive more
learning assistance time.
SUMMARY
The treatment of profoundly sexually abused boys and girls
remains a difficult and challenging professional task. This task is more
complex when incest occurs in infancy and is of a seductive nature
without physical brutality. The therapist is faced with many ethical
dilemmas as the sexual material starts to emerge and to be re-enacted in
the play. Questions arise about limit setting and how to help the child
move through and beyond these early sexual traumatizations into
normal play. Jungians believe strongly that the psyche knows how to
heal itself and that children "go to where they need to go to" in their
play. Bearing these principles in mind, the authors followed the child's
lead through themes of terror and anger, sexual and urinary play into
themes of nurturance, cleansing, ego and superego development, and
finally into age appropriate latency play. When sexual material surfaces
in play therapy, the therapist should seek out and maintain supervision
or consultation for the duration of enactment stages. Also, it is very
important that the sessions be videotaped so the material can be fully
understood and handled appropriately.

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 48 Allan & Lawton-Speert

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Green, A.H. (1978). Psychopathology of abused children. Journal of the
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