Art Therapy
What is Art Therapy
Art therapy is a mental health service that uses arts and imagination to facilitate and encourage self-expression and the exploration of emotions, behaviors, and thoughts within the context of a professional therapeutic relationship. The use of art materials, symbols, and metaphors can support the safe exploration of complex feelings and experiences that may be difficult to put into words or to make sense of. Art therapists are professionals trained to accompany you and your creative exploration. In Canada, Art Therapy training includes a recognized graduate-level education in the field and a minimum of 700 hours of supervised clinical experience.
Canadian Art Therapy Association (2017) What is Art Therapy? https://www.canadianarttherapy.org/what-is-art- therapy/
Canadian Art Therapy Association (2017) What is Art Therapy? https://www.canadianarttherapy.org/what-is-art- therapy/
What to Expect
Weekly individual sessions of one hour, Wednesdays or Thursdays.
A culturally sensitive, trauma- informed, and person- centered approach. Exploration through various media and techniques, such as painting, drawing, collage, sculpting, printing, poetry, puppetry, storytelling, or roleplay.
A culturally sensitive, trauma- informed, and person- centered approach. Exploration through various media and techniques, such as painting, drawing, collage, sculpting, printing, poetry, puppetry, storytelling, or roleplay.
Art Therapy Can Help With
- Emotional regulation
- Sensory processing Self-expression
- Self-esteem
- Self-growth and discovery Reconnecting implicit and explicit memories
- Building trust and connection
How Art Therapy Can Help with Trauma
Traumatic memories are stored in the sensory (implicit) part of the brain, disconnected from their (explicit) narrative contexts.[1] This is why talking about trauma can be difficult, or even impossible, and it can overwhelm the senses. [2] Because of this, the sensory character of the artmaking process and the manipulation of art materials is especially beneficial to address the impacts of trauma.[3] Through art exercises designed to foster bilateral integration and mind-body-brain connections, Art Therapy can help in reconnecting implicit and explicit memories.[4] The contained exploration offered during Art Therapy can assist individuals in sensory processing and emotional regulation, while symbols and metaphors can become channels of expression when words are unavailable. [5]
[1] Tripp, T. (2007). A short term therapy approach to processing trauma: Art therapy and bilateral stimulation. Art Therapy, 24(4), 176-183
[2] Van der Kolk, B. (2015). The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. New York: Penguin Books.
[3] Malchiodi, C. (2012). Trauma informed art therapy and sexual abuse in children. Handbook of child sexual abuse: Identification, assessment, and treatment, 341-354.
[4] Tripp, T. (2007). A short term therapy approach to processing trauma: Art therapy and bilateral stimulation. Art Therapy, 24(4), 176-183.
[5] Malchiodi, C. A. (2008). Creative interventions and childhood trauma. Creative interventions with traumatized children, 3-21.
[1] Tripp, T. (2007). A short term therapy approach to processing trauma: Art therapy and bilateral stimulation. Art Therapy, 24(4), 176-183
[2] Van der Kolk, B. (2015). The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. New York: Penguin Books.
[3] Malchiodi, C. (2012). Trauma informed art therapy and sexual abuse in children. Handbook of child sexual abuse: Identification, assessment, and treatment, 341-354.
[4] Tripp, T. (2007). A short term therapy approach to processing trauma: Art therapy and bilateral stimulation. Art Therapy, 24(4), 176-183.
[5] Malchiodi, C. A. (2008). Creative interventions and childhood trauma. Creative interventions with traumatized children, 3-21.