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Recommended: Art therapy essay
What is art therapy? According to the American Art Therapy Association, Art Therapy is an integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, creative process, applied psychological theory, and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship (1). Art Therapy can happen in a variety of places and provide great benefits to anyone that participates, both physically and mentally. Art Therapy is also important because it can help some find who they really are as a person without the use of words. Art Therapy can help improve those suffering from mental illnesses like Depression, trauma like PTSD, Anxiety, and much more. Instead of talk therapy …show more content…
Unlike the usual talk therapy where the person has to talk to a therapist, a child could be overwhelmed by fear and have difficulties expressing themselves in that uptight environment, answering questions directly. Art Therapy comes into play to help those children express their issues since they are naturally more creative and it is, overall, easier for them to do compared to counseling. Art Therapy can help children relieve stress, increase awareness of self, and develop healthy and effective coping skills (Art Therapy Journal 1). Art Therapy can help children with all sorts of problems they could be dealing with including: Childhood trauma, a death of a loved one, learning disabilities, mental disorders, and much more. Children of all ages, nationalities, races and cultures can benefit from art therapy. Programs are developed around a child’s strengths and abilities, so the kid can use the medium even if he or she has never picked up a crayon before (Art Therapy Journal 1). Even though every child is different, Art Therapy is proven to be very effective for the majority of the time. Some children may pour their hearts and mind into an art piece while others could be more timid about it and would need space. How Art Therapy works according to the Art Therapy Journal is that Art therapists provide kids with age-appropriate art supplies and set them free to express themselves. More often than not, the therapist will give the child a prompt to get them started. For example, he may ask the child to draw a house or favorite food. After the pictures have been completed, the therapist will begin to question the child about various aspects of the artwork in an effort to understand what the thoughts or feelings it represents. The therapist will then use that feedback to develop an effective treatment program that will help the child move forward
This approach she felt was prominent during the art making portion of the session. Besides from the art portion of a session, Riley believed the verbal component of art therapy was important. Riley explored the stigma surrounding art therapy and the client's verbal expressions. From the book, Integrative Approaches to Family Art Therapy (Riley & Malchiodi, 1994), Riley states: “Hearing client’s language does not negate the process of looking at the art product. It is a synthesis of two creative means of communication.” Joining these two stories was key in Riley’s
According to Sladyk (2008), interventions following the Psychodynamic Frame of Reference often lead clients to gain awareness of themselves and release what is inside of them (p. 2). This being said, art would be appropriate for Maggie to participate in. Art would allow her to release her emotions, and learn more about herself. Having an intervention of art for therapy would not only relate to the Psychodynamic Frame of Reference, but it would also relate to CMOP-E. Art relates to this model because Maggie would be engaging in a client-centered activity, leading her to learn more about herself, which she would then realize what she enjoys and finds
Experiential family therapy would work best for children ages 3-11, because it involves using techniques like role playing, which will uncover the child hopes, fears of what presently is affecting them. Play therapy technique that will incorporate puppets, finger painting, drawing, and any form of media that will allow the child to show their feelings and excitements. Family art therapy that is used for either adults or children for self-knowledge and recognize what emotional issue they have which in turn can be used in the healing process
If I was an art therapist, I would ensure that no one should be “afraid” of expressing his or herself through art. I believe that art is like a story, where people can open up and draw about their life experiences. Through observing their work, I have a better understanding of what has troubled them and would try to help them encouraging them to continue doing this creative outlet that would eventually reduce the problems they have. I believe art is the language that can be used to communicate with others on a deeper level. I am always open to new creativity, and art therapy is the best method for me to be immersed in this new creativity to have a better understanding of
People from all around the world suffer from many different anxieties and troubles. They turn to things they enjoy so that they can forget reality and be somewhat happy or simply to communicate with one another. Most of the enjoyment is temporary and not sufficient, that is why they continue doing what they do. Creative Arts Therapy, also known as Expressive Arts Therapy, helps those who find themselves completely lost and have nowhere to go or anyone to go to. They can express themselves however they please. In order to better understand arts therapy one must have a knowledge of creativity, emotions and, of course, people.
In the Christine Wood (1990) article “THE BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS OF ART THERAPY RELATIONSHIPS”, Wood reflects on her practice as an Art Therapist on how she introduces both Art and Therapy jointly to potential clients. Wood attempts to demystify the process of starting art in therapeutic sessions. Finally Wood describes how she explores and identifies readiness in a client to initiate drawing therapy to close. My intention is to review Art Therapist Christine Wood’s article and select particular sections of the article that resonate with me the most.
My vision of Art Therapy was very vague. I always thought art therapy was a form of therapy for distressed or abused children trying to tell a story through pictures or drawings. The American Art Therapy Association defines art therapy as a mental health profession that uses the creative process of art making to improve and enhance the physical, mental, and emotional well being of individuals of all ages. Art therapy is a form psychotherapy that has been practiced for over sixty years and it has been promoted as a means of helping people who find it difficult to express themselves verbally (Crawford, et al., 2010). Art therapy sessions usually start with a form of relaxation such as deep breathing , progressive muscle relaxation, or setting an intention for the session ahead (Hart, 2010). Art therapy is used for several different types of people with diverse illnesses such as: Autism Spectrum Disorder, people living with HIV/AIDS, mental disorders and even Cancer. Studies show that art therapy can lead to increased self awareness of self, as well as improved ability to cope with symptoms, stress, and traumatic experiences (American Art Therapy Association). This form of therapy helps these patients express positive feelings that may not be easy to access in the midst of a fear provoking experience (Hart, 2010). Art therapy help people to identify their feelings, and resolve the issues associated with their illness. Although, my lack of knowledge on this therapeu...
For example, adolescents are often forced into therapy by their parents or school as a result of an inability to cope with stress in a socially acceptable way. Patients at this stage are too old to engage in play therapy, where therapists analyze a child’s behavior during play and when presented with toys. Also, patients acting out during adolescence are often too young to obtain the maturity to verbalize their emotions in a socially acceptable form. Art therapy is useful at this stage of development because similar impulses expressed in play therapy are expressed through drawings, meanwhile not requiring verbal communication. Art therapy introduces the mature defense mechanism of sublimation to the patient, guiding them to achieve better self control as they learn to communicate their impulses through art and talking about their art. A particular form of therapy is managed in groups, and adolescents are encouraged to engage in conversation about their drawings while they are creating them. This creates an environment of low anxiety, allowing patients communicate internal conflict and disregard their normal defense mechanisms that are used to conceal these emotions. The defense mechanism of sublimation is apparent in this process, as the use of color, composition, space and shapes to provide an
Sometimes children have difficulty expressing worries and concerns, through words and verbal communication. For therapist working with children, it can be helpful to work with the child through drawing and artwork. Art assessments can be useful in helping to facilitate understanding and discussion of the stress the child is facing in a way that is less intimidating to the child. Below is the background information, summary of scoring, summary of interview and recommondations of a art assessment for a client.
Art can benefit the unhealthy as well. With 34,000 soldiers coming back from Afghanistan as proposed by Barack Obama, there are many who consequently have mental disabilities or post-traumatic stress disorder. To cope with depression, or other symptoms, many doctors have used art programs...
Art therapy began as a natural extension of Freud’s groundbreaking psychoanalytic theories at the turn of the last century. Psychiatrists discovered that visual arts could be used as a tool of assessment, and by the 1940s art was being used not only for assessment, but also in therapeutic applications (Junge, 2010). Two main branches evolved from these early years: art as therapy and art psychotherapy.
One of my personal goals as a recreation therapist is to leave the patient with a memory, because memories and experiences last a lifetime. Art has been the key to help patients utilize motor skills, use cognitively planning, and to execute art pieces. Besides the benefit of helping patients find a new activity that can help reduce boredom and depression when they return home and have to face their new challenges. Patients in turn have something to brag about, and take home
Trauma, as defined by the American Psychological Association, is an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape or natural disaster. In order to process and overcome a traumatic experience, most seek a therapist. This is especially true for individuals who have dealt with childhood sexual abuse. There are different types of therapy and therapists that exist that individuals go to. Art therapy is a kind of psychotherapy that uses art as it’s main technique of communications in order to improve the emotional and mental well being of the patients. It combines the areas of human development, visual art such as drawing, sculpture, painting and other kinds of art and the artistic process with counseling and psychotherapy.
Not only can art help improve a kids education over all, having it taught as a regular part of the curriculum helps children learn to express themselves in a way that is safe and promotes problem solving. There is no right answer in art so it allows the student to explore all options before finding the one
Firstly, children’s cognitive development is greatly enhanced through visual arts. In order for children to produce art, they have to think of an idea, an experience or feeling and construct symbols to express what they know (Isbell & Raines, 2007). Exploration of art materials help children build a knowledge of their physical properties which supports decision-making, evaluation and problem-solving (Edwards, 2010). Moreover, children will have many opportunities to work together in small groups and will then learn to value others’ ideas (Isbell & Exelby, 2001). Since visual arts is a form of self-expression, children can express their feelings through artworks and hence, learn emotional regulation. Small muscle development occurs when children cut, paste, draw and paint while large muscles develop through activities such as creating a large mural (Isbell & Raines, 2007). Therefore, visual arts enhances children’s development in all