18th Edition

Hey y'all,

I think it's time to get real...

My name is Nikki, and I'm the voice behind the Sandtray Ally that hits your inbox every other week! Like many of you, I am a dedicated sandtray therapist, brain nerd, miniature collector, and all-around mental-health enthusiast.

I work super long and weird hours to accommodate my client's equally weird schedules, and I too, have been hit hard by the changes and fatigue that COVID has brought into our lives...

For me, this has meant coming in early, staying late, finding extra spots in the already busy schedule for my chronic clients, whose symptoms are only getting worse due to isolation, fear, and increased depression caused by the pandemic and other major issues our society is facing in 2020.

And if that isn't hard enough (compassion fatigue, anyone?), I also have two toddlers, a husband, parents, three dogs, and a household to maintain...and let me tell you...some things have had to fall off of my plate.

My cup is full, my tank is empty, and at the end of the day, I cannot intake one. more. piece. of. information.

^ Literally me after an 10 hour work-day, coming home to wrangle toddlers, ensure everyone is fed and my family's emotional needs are met, and crawling into bed wondering if I remembered to eat today ^

This is a text I sent to Amy...Can you spot all the things that exemplify being a therapist in 2020??

• the ever-hopeful "life is good" wall art that honestly makes me cry-laugh
• a sink full of dirty dishes (i'm not really even sure how many days those have been there, tbh)
• blue-light glasses for those long hours doing telehealth and documentation on top of at least 3 days of dry shampoo
• my first bite of food since breakfast happening at 8:51pm...and it's cheese bread!
• and the goofy look on my face that says "it is what it is"

I can't be the only one, right?!

As exhausting and crazy as life has become for therapists in 2020, I wouldn't trade my job for anything in the entire world. I love my clients, and it's an honor to be entrusted with their wellness and to walk with them through their hardest moments. Although the work may be heavy, Sandtray therapy is a gift, and I am grateful to be able to share it with my clients.

So, even though life (therapy, the world, everything) might feel like this...

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