Art therapies make use of artistic methods to treat psychological disorders. Art therapy is a technique rooted in the idea that creative expression can foster healing and mental well-being. In addition to growing creativity, art therapy benefits mental health in many other ways. Creating art can help increase the brain’s release of dopamine and improve the artist’s self-esteem, which are both integral to fully treating many mental health disorders. It is an excellent way of self-expression, healing and communication since years. Individuals living with mental illness often expressed themselves in drawings and other artworks, which led many to explore the use of art as a healing strategy. Since then, art has become an important part of the therapeutic field and is used in some assessment and treatment techniques.
1.Types of Creative Therapies
Art is vast term which cannot be caged within the bars of pencil and paper. It includes other skills like Dance Therapies, Drama therapies, expressive therapies, music and writing therapies. Dance is the psychotherapeutic use of movement to promote emotional, social, cognitive, and physical integration. Drama therapy is an embodied practice that is active and experiential. Music therapy is the use of music to address the physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs of a group or individual. It employs a variety of activities, such as listening to melodies, playing an instrument, drumming, writing songs, and guided imagery.
2.Process of Treatment
Art works may be analysed, what they have made and how it makes them feel. Through exploring their art, people can look for themes and conflicts that may be affecting their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Art therapy can help people express those thoughts, emotions, and experiences that may be difficult to speak about. The use of colour, spatial arrangement, and composition were analysed. The drawings ultimately helped health care professionals better appreciate how each woman understood her condition and provided insight on how to best to approach each case. An art therapist uses art materials and directives to activate sensory responses and generate imagery that is directly connected to emotions. This process helps one to re-experience emotions in a way that allows them to organize their feelings and form a narrative around an overwhelming experience.
3.Techniques of Art Therapy
The ultimate aim of art therapies is to provide relief from the psychological distress, explore themselves, find new ways to gain personal insight, develop new coping skills, discover emotions, improve self-awareness, cope with stress, boost self-esteem, and work on social skills. Techniques used in art therapy can include: Collage, Colouring, Doodling, scribbling, Drawing, Finger painting, Painting, Photography, Sculpting and Working with clay.
4.Uses of Art therapies
Art therapies can be used to treat for a variety of disorders. It is often used with other techniques like group therapy and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT). Some conditions that art therapy may be used to treat include: Aging-related issues, Anxiety, Cancer, Depression, eating disorders, Emotional difficulties, Family or relationship problems, medical conditions, psychological symptoms associated with other medical issues, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Psychosocial issues, Stress and Substance use disorder.
5.Benfits of Art Therapies
Clients who have experienced emotional trauma, physical violence, domestic abuse, anxiety, depression, and other psychological issues can benefit from expressing themselves creatively. Some situations in which art therapy might be utilized include: Adults experiencing severe stress, Children experiencing Behavioral or social problems at school or at home, Children or adults who have experienced a traumatic event, Children with learning disabilities, Individuals living with a brain injury and people experiencing mental health problems. People with mental health problems: Certain studies and institutes recommend art therapy for people suffering from schizophrenia and other related conditions. People who find hard to be vocal about their feelings or have learning difficulties, art therapy is great for them. You use creative parts of your brain, which helps you to manage stress levels and restores a sense of personal identity. Creative art can help distract and calm people as well as improve their communication skills. Prisoners are often recommended to use art therapy to help their feelings in a healthy way. Art therapy helps in expressing feelings, it can also help patients to regain their sense of freedom and control. People who cannot express their feelings can use art therapy to show their emotions without any verbal communication.
6.Effectiveness
The current review takes a positivist perspective and relates to the measurement of effectiveness reported in quantitative studies that have been conducted in the field. Since the field of art therapy is still young, the scope of research is limited and the quality of research is diverse, which makes it difficult to create a comparative review that presents the knowledge in the field and draws thorough conclusions. Art therapy, facilitated by a professional art therapist, effectively supports personal and relational treatment goals, as well as community concerns. Art therapy is used to improve cognitive and sensorimotor functions, foster self-esteem and self-awareness, cultivate emotional resilience, promote insight, enhance social skills, reduce and resolve conflicts and distress, and advance societal and ecological change.
7.Misconceptions about Art Therapy
Creativity is not a criterion for appearing for art therapies. People of all ages including children, teens, and adults from any background regardless of any artistic skills can benefit from it.
art therapies are not art classes. It lets people to introspect. People are able to focus on their own perceptions, imagination, and feelings. Clients are encouraged to create art that expresses their inner world more than making something that is an expression of the outer world. Art therapists have special skills and training in using visual media in counselling, which can be very helpful when working with people whose ability to communicate verbally is compromised. Most of the work that I do includes a lot of verbal processing: talking through feelings and seeking solutions together based on the art. I’ll talk more about this in
8.Enviorment
These therapies do not need any professional settings with a lot of sophisticated tools. They can be conducted in simple and a variety of settings. Inpatient offices, private mental health offices, schools, and community organizations are all possible settings for art therapy services. Additionally, art therapy may be available in other settings such as: Art studios, Colleges and universities, Community centres, Correctional facilities, Elementary schools and high schools, Group homes, Homeless shelters, Hospitals, Private therapy offices, Residential treatment centres, Senior centres, Wellness center and Women’s shelters.
9.Enrollement Procedure
Seek out a trained professional. Qualified art therapists will hold at least a master’s degree in psychotherapy with an additional art therapy credential.
While art therapy may not be covered by your health insurance, there may be certain medical waivers to help fund part of the sessions. Your insurance may also be more likely to cover the sessions if your therapist is a certified psychologist or psychiatrist who offers creative therapies.
Speciality should be asked the professional before-hand. Not all art therapists specialize in all mental health conditions. Many specialize in working with people who have experienced trauma or individuals with substance use disorders, for example.
During the first few sessions, your art therapist will likely ask you about your health background as well as your current concerns and goals. They may also suggest a few themes to begin exploring via drawing, painting, sculpting, or another medium.
Be prepared to answer questions about your art-making process. As the sessions progress, you’ll likely be expected to answer questions about your art and how it makes you feel. For example: What were you thinking while doing the art? Did you notice a change of mood from when you started to when you finished? Did the artwork stir any memories?
10.Art Therapy as a Profession
Art therapy is an on-growing field which might be a great opportunity as a career option. Start by checking with your state to learn more about the education, training, and professional credentials you will need to practice. In most cases, you may need to first become a licensed clinical psychologist, professional counsellor, or social worker in order to offer psychotherapy services. In the United States, the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc. (ATCB) offers credentialing programs that allow art therapists to become registered, board-certified, or licensed depending upon the state in which they live and work. According to the American Art Therapy Association, the minimum requirements: A master’s degree in art therapy, or a master’s degree in counselling or a related field with additional coursework in art therapy.
