What is Art Psychotherapy?
It can be difficult for us to express ourselves all the time with language. When we create, we can find different ways to explore, feel and understand our experiences.
Art psychotherapy is a form of therapy where a person can use art materials and sometimes use play and stories to help them understand and learn to cope with difficult experiences, thoughts and feelings. This means the art psychotherapist will creatively support you to reach your goals.
Art psychotherapy offers a space to use both verbal and non verbal communication. The art materials and art making can help to make sense of feelings, conflicts, concerns , abilities and interests. Whether you are going through big life changes, experiencing worry, anxiety, stress, feeling low or depressed or unsure of exactly how we feel. Art psychotherapy offers a chance for you to make sense of the difficulties being experienced and to express yourself in a safe and confidential space.
Find out more about the services I offer:
“Art is the greatest asset to mental health I have; it has this amazing ability to go under the radar and it goes down little pathways which are un-trodden and yet it’s still a very legitimate way of thinking and feeling and getting on with your life.”
- Grayson Perry
Why Art Psychotherapy?
Language can be incredible limiting. When we create it offers the opportunity to go beyond words, to come back to our sensing selfs. Creativity, therefore enables space to communicate at a much deeper level than words alone can offer.
We can often get stuck in the left side of our brain, our thinking, logistical side. Whilst this is part of processing, we cannot always think our way out of our experiences. We need to feel, to feel into our bodies. After all, we are both thinking and feeling beings. Evidence suggests that traumatic memories get stored in the form of images and pictures in our bodies. Often without words or understanding.
In Art Psychotherapy we look to bring our bodies back into the conversation. They have a story to tell too. One which we may not of even been aware of until we gave it the space to be seen and heard. Within Art Psychotherapy we therefore work to first and foremost to regulate the nervous system and finding new ways to resource ourselves in balance with both the mind and the body.
Book a free 15 minute consultation to see how art psychotherapy may be able to support you and your needs.
‘The gift of an image is that it provides a place to watch the soul.’
— James Hillman
Art psychotherapy offers:
Emotional regulation and grounding.
Integration of experience.
Self expression and self perception.
Emotional release and reframing.