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Cracking Open the Self: The Symbolism of the Egg


In therapy, certain symbols emerge with profound significance, often carrying messages from the unconscious that words cannot yet express. One such symbol is the egg, a universal image of potential, transformation, and rebirth.


From a Jungian perspective, the egg represents the Self—the totality of the psyche striving for wholeness. In SandPlay therapy, as described by Barbara Turner, the egg often appears as a container of the unconscious, holding within it the possibility of psychological growth and integration.


The Egg as a Symbol of the Self in Jungian Thought:


A client once placed a small, egg at the centre of their SandPlay tray, surrounded by figurines of water and trees. When asked what the egg represented, they hesitated, sensing its importance but unable to articulate its meaning. This moment reflected what Carl Jung described as the emergence of the Self—the deep, often unconscious drive toward individuation.


In mythology and alchemy, the egg is seen as the cosmic egg, the source of creation. Jungian analysis suggests that in dreams or symbolic work, an unbroken egg may represent latent potential, while a broken egg can signify transformation, a necessary rupture that allows the next stage of psychological development. The client, struggling with a sense of fragmentation and a fear of change, instinctively chose to protect the egg, mirroring their real-life resistance to personal transformation.


The Egg in SandPlay Therapy: A Vessel for the Unconscious


The egg is a powerful container of psychic energy in SandPlay therapy. Over multiple sessions, the client repeatedly incorporated eggs into their tray—sometimes intact, sometimes hidden, and eventually, cracked open. One day, they placed a small golden egg at the bottom of a deep well in the sand.


When invited to reflect, the client realised this buried egg represented a hidden or neglected part of themselves, something both precious and inaccessible. In alchemy, the golden egg is associated with the Philosopher’s Egg, symbolising the true Self waiting to emerge. In this moment, the SandPlay process revealed a deep inner truth: the client’s fear of breaking the protective shell was also preventing them from fully stepping into their own potential.


What I Do in Session

When an egg emerges as a central symbol in therapy, I meet it with curiosity and sensitivity, knowing it holds deep personal meaning for the client. Rather than rushing to interpret, I focus on holding and containing their process, allowing the symbol to unfold in its own time. Depending on the client's readiness and emotional state, I might:

  • Simply witness its presence – Sometimes, the most powerful work comes from allowing the egg to exist in the space without analysis. I hold the process rather than direct it, trusting that meaning will emerge if and when the client is ready.

  • Invite exploration through active imagination – If the client feels drawn to engage with the symbol but struggles to articulate its meaning, I might encourage them to close their eyes and visualise it. I ask gentle questions: What’s inside? What would happen if it cracked? How does it feel to hold it? This deepens their relationship with the image without imposing an interpretation.

  • Observe how the egg shifts over time – I pay attention to whether it remains intact, gets hidden, or eventually breaks open. Tracking these changes can reveal unconscious movements in the client’s process, though I don’t push for explanations.

  • Hold space for fear and resistance – If the client expresses a fear of breaking the egg, I sit with that fear rather than trying to resolve it. What does it feel like to hold something fragile? What is being protected? By containing these emotions rather than analysing them too quickly, I create a space where transformation can happen organically.

  • Notice when emergence becomes possible – If, at some point, the client can imagine the egg hatching, I reflect on this as a moment of potential growth. But rather than framing it as progress they must embrace, I acknowledge their own pacing—sometimes, even imagining a crack is enough.

My role is not to force meaning but to offer a container where symbols, emotions, and shifts can be held safely. The egg, like the client’s process, will unfold in its own time.


Breaking Open: The Fear and Gift of Transformation


Transformation often requires a breaking point. In Jungian psychology, breaking an egg in dreams or imagery can signify a necessary rupture—the ego’s resistance giving way to deeper self-awareness. Over time, the client moved from protecting the egg to allowing it to hatch, symbolising a shift from fear to acceptance of growth.


The final session in which an egg appeared was striking. Instead of a closed, hidden, or broken egg, the client placed a hatching egg in the sand tray—an image of life, emergence, and new beginnings. No longer trapped in the tension between preservation and destruction, they had come to recognise that true transformation is not about loss but about becoming.


Through this process, the client experienced what both Jung and Turner understood well—that the egg is more than a fragile shell. It is a vessel of profound potential, and when the time is right, breaking open is not the end of something, but the beginning.


Dr. Joanna Naxton, PhD


I am a psychotherapist and researcher specialising in self-injury and emotion, with a specific interest symbolism, and therapeutic transformation. My work delves into the impact of existential issues, and the role of therapeutic spaces in fostering healing and growth.

The client featured here is fictitious, designed to illustrate symbolism and therapy, rather than any real description of clients processes.


For further reading check out my latest publication: The hidden emotions of therapists: An autoethnographic exploration of working with clients who self-injure


 
 
 
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