Community Week
Hello! My name is Sabrina Ghattas, or
MyEmeraldTears , and I'm writing an article to bring forth a little more exposure on the benefits of emotional expression in art. This article will cover the basics on why it's important and healthy for us to use art and visual representation as a coping mechanism, for both our body and mind, as well as serving as an introduction to art therapy to hopefully perk your interests.
So what exactly is art therapy anyways?
Art therapy might be one of the terms you hear thrown around a lot as "holistic" treatment for various illnesses and afflictions. It has a weird kind of reputation, and being one of the more obscure types of therapy, maybe your view on it is a little jaded, or at least half-informed.
If I asked you to picture a scene with art therapy involved, you might think of a quiet room, almost completely empty, being alone with a therapist as they ask you introspective questions about something they told you to draw. Maybe you imagine this person saying a lot of things you don't understand, maybe it makes you uncomfortable or unnerves you. You may imagine forking over a bunch of money for an hour session, where some might feel like they learned something, but others feel as if they wasted their time.
But these misconceptions stray from the beauty of what art can do for one's overall health and wellness, both inside and outside of a therapist's clinic.
Whatever you may think of it, art therapy isn't just what the stereotype makes it out to be. It actually has a large basis in psychology, neurology, and biology, and a lot of proof that backs up why
creating a visual representation of what's inside of is a very healthy way to handle our everyday emotions! Take these pieces, for example:
(Artwork by me, Valedus, and icycreep respectively.) Whether or not you relate to the particular mood or idea each piece expresses, there is no denying that they come across as powerful examples of a display of emotions that could not be illustrated in otherwise normal ways. (E.g. speaking)
All of the artists displayed here and throughout this journal have used the tool of art as a way to visualize the unexplainable, and as of such, all have had a cathartic response towards both working, and finishing their pieces. As a result, we all can confirm that even the smallest speed-paint, or by contrast, a piece that has taken a meticulous amount of work, has and can help us in various ways. We can express our emotions, soothe our mind, or at the very least, take another step closer to understanding what's inside of us and how to handle it.
And in the end of the day, that's one of the most important components of art therapy, and really, art in itself.
Both the creation of art and the final product of it stimulates a connection from the inside of your brain to the physical world. Every piece that someone makes is a
projection of their internal thoughts into a concrete form that can be psychoanalyzed by both themselves, and others, in an effort to grasp and understand the inner workings of an otherwise subconscious mind.
In the end, there is no
real definition to art therapy. Throughout the history of the practice, psychiatrists, therapists, psychotherapists alike have all debated on a universal term to describe this growing phenomenon, but how can you define such an overwhelmingly diverse subject?
At the end of the day, art therapy is individualized, as art in itself impacts all of us in unique and special ways.
Here are some more examples of art that the artists drew for emotional relief.
So why should I care?
You may think that art therapy is secluded to those who have some type of mental illness, like OCD, depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, DID, etc. But the truth of the matter is, art therapy is used to help
anyone who wants to get a better understanding of themselves, work through negative emotions or achieve a certain goal, whether or not those may be physical or mental improvements. Which means even a completely healthy individual can benefit from simply sitting down and drawing whatever comes to mind, both through the process of creating the art and observing what was drawn after.
"So why should I care?" you may be asking? "I'm not going to go to therapy," you may say, "I don't need it." But that's fine! Even someone who doesn't "need" therapy can benefit from these practices, because
the benefits of emotional expression are not only mental!
There is a concept in psychology that's called "Mind-body-medicine." You may have heard this term in a relatively popular TV show by Bill Moyers, called
Healing and the Mind. What this term means, essentially, is that the health of the
physical body is tied to the health of the
brain. Have you ever had a very stressful day at work, school or at home, filled with lots of challenging aspects and moments of anxiety, until you went to bed, exhausted and worn down? Have you then woken up the next day with a nasty cough, a fever, or some kind of cold? Well this is because
stress and negative emotion actively reduce your body's ability to fight off infections and diseases, as well as weakening it and causing many different upsets throughout otherwise normal biological functions. The study of neurology, the neuroendocrine system, and the immune system is called (and brace yourself because it's a doozy of a word)
psychoneuroimmunology.
Fancy terms aside, experts in the field of psychoneuroimmunology have often times propped up the use of art as a relaxation/coping method. While stress is just one example of a detrimental emotion that art therapy can help with, its one that has many negative side effects on our body, some you might not even realize comes from such a normalized emotion.
Stress can lead to weight gain, indigestion problems, heart palpitations and chest pain, persistent fatigue, hair loss, muscle weakness, headaches, and so much more. Naturally for people who suffer from mental illnesses related to stress and anxiety, these symptoms are more likely to manifest, as the severity of the mental pain is translated into the severity of the physical side effects. But this doesn't change the fact that
any amount of stress affects our body, whether mild, or severe, and we can all take steps to reducing the damage it does both to our mind, and our health.
And remember, stress is
one example in a world of unfortunate negativity and pain. While I haven't and won't go into too much detail about the science and evidence behind art therapy and the reasoning for its practice, it's important to note that the
ability art has to change our lives is under appreciated and underrated.
Here are even more examples.
How can I start now?
If you don't have the ability to ask or see a therapist, that's okay! While the best results come from being with someone who's trained in the field, it doesn't mean your options are completely and utterly limited by your financial status or schedule. Just by taking out a piece of paper, opening a new canvas, or whatever you use to do art, and drawing/expressing whatever comes to you subconsciously, you're helping yourself and starting to deal with any suppressed emotions that are pent up inside of you. Even if you can't think of anything, and the only thing you've done for a couple of minutes is stare at a blank canvas, you're
still helping yourself. Because in those moments where you're trying to look deep into yourself or trying to think of what to draw, what you're not feeling is stress, negativity, anxiety, melancholy, or whatever else you may suffer through. Instead, you're promoting a deeper look into yourself, and a greater understanding of what helps you, and what hurts you.
(An example of a quick painting I had done to get a lot of weight off my shoulders. It took no less than an hour, and helped me quite a bit to process the emotions I was feeling at the moment)
Are there any things I should be aware of?
Let me make one thing clear:
Art therapy is only as good as the participant can make it out to be. Its success varies greatly.
For people who don't have any kind of crippling illness and want a way to better their lives and their health, doing art, expressing emotions, venting, looking back at pieces, all of these methods are great tools towards helping them achieve their particular goal. In fact, it might just be the only thing that they need. If that's the case, great! If not, that's also fine!
Some people don't gel with different types of methods. As of such, the success of art therapy is varied. While it can most certainly help anyone in mild situations, unfortunately for more severe cases, sometimes its not the only answer. I can very easily use myself as an example: I'm on 200mg of Zoloft for many reasons, I see a psychiatrist every week and go through various types of strenuous and draining therapy to help me deal with my mental illnesses. On top of it, I'm studying for a major in art therapy and have had many experiences throughout my life that have helped formulate my views and knowledge on this topic.
However, for me, doing art, psychoanalyzing my work, and handling stress, panic, etc. through visual expression, and any other facets of art therapy works remarkably well, yes, but is otherwise limited in what it can do to help me. It certainly has produced many positive results in my life and my emotional healing, but there are a lot of times where art-based healing is
not the only answer, and additional tools are required
. My life is one of them, yet I'm not ashamed to admit it.
While it has very solid grounds in the scene of therapy and general life quality improvement, art therapy deals with a part of the body we do not fully understand yet— the brain. To take everything with a grain of salt is always a smart response; but at the same time, we all can benefit from doing a little bit of art, a fact that has not been refuted by science and psychology alike.
No matter how old, young, how afflicted or happy, no matter what we go through as individuals, or who we define ourselves to be, there is no denying that art is an important tool of human expression dating far back beyond millenniums, and can benefit all of us in its own unique way. The first step towards any type of recovery and healing is to try; and who knows, maybe you yourself may find that art therapy helps you more than you would have ever expected before. Thank you for reading this article, and I sincerely hope that this helped you, either in understanding more about art therapy, or providing otherwise unheard/obscure resources to help with any kind of problem you may be suffering with. I wish everyone who reads this a happy and healthy life. 
- MyEmeraldTears
