Table 4.

Representative symbols and their phenomenological meanings.

Symbol	Frequency of appearance	Participant interpretation	Associated psychological meaning
Bridge	12	Moving from difficulty to safety	Transition, growth, hope
Tree	14	Growing stronger over time	Personal development, resilience
Mountain	9	Challenge that must be climbed	Perseverance, achievement
River	8	Emotions that keep moving	Adaptation, emotional flow
Sun	15	Better days ahead	Hope, optimism
Animal characters	16	Representation of self	Identity exploration, coping
Storm/cloud	13	Worries or fears	Emotional distress, uncertainty
Path/road	11	Life journey	Future orientation, progress

Associated meanings reflect participants’ own explanations of their symbols during interviews and reflective dialogue and should not be read as fixed or universal interpretations of these visual motifs.