One powerful tool we use is Creative Art Therapy.
Creative Art Therapy is more than just drawing a
picture or making a collage; it’s a therapeutic approach that utilizes the creative process to explore
emotions, improve well-being, and foster growth.
Creative Art Therapy isn’t about creating masterpieces; it’s about using art materials as a bridge to
explore your inner world. A professional art therapist acts as a guide, creating a safe and supportive
space for you to express yourself freely through various artistic mediums like painting, drawing,
sculpting, and even movement.
Unlike a traditional art class where the focus might be on technical skills, Creative Art Therapy
delves deeper. The therapist uses your creative process and the resulting artwork to gain insight into
your thoughts, feelings, and experiences. This can be especially helpful when words fail to capture
the complexity of what you’re going through.
Whether your little one is struggling with social anxiety or your teen is navigating identity exploration
(or you as a parent are looking for a new way to overcome emotional stress), Creative Art Therapy
can be a powerful tool for self-discovery, emotional expression, and growth.
Creative Art Therapy can help people across the lifespan with a wide range of challenges, including:
Mental health issues like anxiety and depression
Traumatic experiences
Grief and loss
Relationship challenges
Self-esteem and body image issues
Developmental disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder
Stress and burnout
Chronic pain and illness
According to the American Art Therapy Association, Creative Art Therapy has tons of benefits,
including managing pain and helping people feel more in control of their lives. Here are a few other
ways that Creative Art Therapy can help.
Increase self-awareness and self-expression
Relieve stress and anxiety
Develop coping skills
Process difficult emotions
Resolve conflicts in relationships
Remember, each person’s therapy journey is unique. There are plenty of other ways that Creative Art
Therapy can help you learn and grow.
Create Emotions Monsters.
Kids can get creative by drawing and painting personified versions of their emotions, like a grumpy
thundercloud for anger or a playful sunshine for happiness. This helps them identify and understand
their feelings, and even develop coping mechanisms by giving the “monsters” silly hats or friendly
faces.
Engage in abstract expression.
By providing large canvases, paints, and music, you can encourage your teen to express themselves
through abstract art. This allows them to release emotions in a non-judgmental space and explore
their inner world without the pressure of words.
Start a feelings jar.
Each family member can create artwork representing different emotions, like a sad raincloud for
sadness, a bright sun for happiness, or a fiery volcano for anger. Place these in a decorative jar and
use them as a conversation starter to identify and express family members’ feelings in a safe, non-
judgmental way. When a family member is feeling a certain emotion, they can pick the corresponding
artwork from the jar and discuss it.
Words to live by collage
Teens can be vulnerable to harsh, judgmental environments where they don’t feel they can be
themselves.
They may suppress their real character to avoid censure from their peers; this is why it’s essential for
teens to identify their core values and identify who they think they are.
It’s crucial when working with teens to create coping strategies that they can come back over to time
and let them know that their ideas, feelings, and values will change with experience.
The Words to Live By activity helps teens to visualize their core values through creative collage.
Here’s how to teach this activity:
You will need:
Old magazines, newspapers, picture books, and scrap paper
Markers and colored pencils
Scissors and glue
Cardboard or thick paper for the base of the collage
This activity can be carried out with a group or one-to-one
Process:
1. Asking participants to take a moment to reflect on their core values. For younger teens, you
may want to discuss what we mean by values by asking them what some of the things they
feel strongly about are. What do they feel good about when they practice certain behaviors or
see others behave?
2. Once participants have a good idea of their values, invite them to take a mindful minute. Start
by asking them to close their eyes and turn their focus to their breath. Now ask them to let the
words associated with their values freely flow into their thoughts. What are these words? What
are the related images, colors, and shapes that feel connected to these words?
3. Once participants feel ready, invite them to begin selecting images, words, phrases, or colors
from the magazines and newspapers. They will use these to compile a collage that they feel
reflects their words to live by. This can be image based or entirely abstract; it’s all about how
their words make them feel.
Zentangle drawing
Drawing patterns that allow your brain to enter a peaceful flow
state reduces anxiety and helps promote a feeling of peace,
slowing down time and allowing you to focus on the present
moment.
Zentangle was created with the promise that anyone can do it,
even if they don’t think they can draw well enough to create
something beautiful. Drawing Zentangles creates a feeling of
accomplishment and helps to pass the time in a thoughtful,
healing way.
For many of us, when we think of art, we tend to think it’s not for us. Perhaps you think you aren’t very
creative, but there’s more to it than merely being ‘good at drawing.’
Allowing our brains the freedom for free expression, even by doodling, can have a wonderful impact
on how we process, retain, and share information.
