art therapy

January 31, 2019

HEALING POWER OF ART

ART THERAPY
A Coloring Exercise

Stamp: Budding Peony #D1831 www.cindysplace.CTMH.com
So over the past year, we have been discussing with our MIND BODY LIVE audience the importance of art as therapy and the calming and healing factors it plays on our minds and thoughts and eventually our bodies. So this issue we are going to attempt to put into practice what we have been talking about, and it will hopefully accomplish the following things for us.


So, download the image and print it out. Have a coloring session on us, and if you really love the image as I do, you can purchase this stamp set from Close To My Heart. The stamp set is named Budding Peony #D1831 and it can be ordered through my website. www.cindysplace.CTMH.com

  1.  If your hands are actively engaged in a writing or coloring exercise, you are not eating.
    2.  If you are engaged in a new activity in which you have not done before, you are more inclined to be paying attention to what you are doing. In other words more FOCUSED on the activity in front of you and not food.
    3.  When you are coloring you don’t want to mess up your paper, your coloring or your work, so you will not be eating at that time either …… DUH.

March 7, 2018

Healing Power of Art

Paint brushes and IV tubes may not seem to have much in common, but the arts are increasingly touted as a form of healing that can be as relevant to a patient’s well-being as medication. And nearly half the healthcare institutions in the U.S. have implemented arts programs.

Apart from empowering patients, practicing an art form while sick may improve certain symptoms – like lowering blood pressure. It also fulfills a patients’ instinctive need to express their feelings about what is going on in their bodies.

Studies have shown that painting and drawing can relieve pain in pediatric cancer patients and that dementia patients who practice music may improve their memory. Preliminary research on the potential economic benefits of hospitals’ arts programs shows that participating patients have a lower readmission rate and are more compliant with taking their medications.

Arts programs may also improve the hospital’s working environment: Studies have shown that nurses report less stress when patients are involved in art projects. According to a 2009 report by the Global Alliance for Arts and Health, 45 percent of the country’s health care institutions (mostly hospitals) have art programs – predominantly through art displays and performances, bedside activities, art carts, and healing gardens.

The country’s first programs began in the 1970s and 1980s – at academic medical centers such as Duke and the University of Michigan. Jill Sonke, one of the authors of the Global Alliance report, says their rise coincided with the recognition of holistic medicine.

“The arts went along with that so perfectly,” says Sonke, who directs the Arts in Medicine Program at the University of Florida, one of the country’s first programs.

Also a professional dancer, Sonke runs a UF program called Dance for Life, in which patients with neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease improve their mobility and balance.

Sonke is careful to distinguish between art therapists and artists working in hospitals. “Art therapists are mental health professionals who use the arts to assess and address patients’ therapeutic goals,” she says. “Professional artists are not clinicians; they partner with caregivers to help meet clinical goals.”

For patients, working with artists is often relaxing and enjoyable, she says. “It gives patients a deep sense of caring that someone would spend time attending to them as a human being.”

As we can see, art therapy often has a mystical effect on people with varying conditions that uplifts their hearts and minds which can ultimately result in their overall well-being. The next time your loved one is having a bad day, think about lifting their spirits with the ARTS.

August 31, 2017

Healing Power of Art

Scrapbooking

Memories are some of the most important pieces of information that we can hold in our brains.  They are proof that we lived through experiences, both good and bad.  On days where we may feel a little lost, and we’re in need for some mental clarity, a memory to look back on can be the perfect solution.  This explains why it is so common to take pictures of ourselves, as well as the ones we love on days where we feel our best.  If you are a person that likes to take a lot of pictures, or if you are just looking for some peace of mind, then scrapbooking may just be your type of activity.

Scrapbooking is a low stress activity that involves pictures, paper, scissors, glue, and most importantly: memories.  Like any type of art, there is no right or wrong way to make a scrapbook, so you have all of the freedom in the world to let your creativity soar.  If you’re not quite sure how to approach it, then a good way to start is to look through your photos, and find one that stands out to you on that particular day.  Think about how that memory makes you feel, and create a whole page in your book dedicated to it.  Add some words that describe how you felt that day, and soon you’ll have a beautiful piece that you can look back at whenever you need to.

Scrapbooking comes with a number of mental benefits, including memory improvement.  As we get older, it is not uncommon for our memories to go, so having scrapbooks to look back on strengthens and exercises the brain, helping it remain the most powerful organ in the body.  This makes it an excellent activity for elderly individuals to do, as it serves as a way to communicate with both yourself and others when suffering from illnesses such as Alzheimer’s and Dementia.  It can also increase self-esteem, reminding you that you are loved and accomplished, all while helping you feel relaxed and focused.   

Another great thing about this activity is that you are not limited to just one type of memory.  Your scrapbooks do not necessarily have to be the big vacations you went on (although that is an excellent idea for a one.)  Your book can have memories as mundane as driving your kids to soccer practice, or it can even be just a simple selfie with your best friend.  As long as that memory makes you feel something that you want to remember for the rest of your life, then you should put it in your scrapbook.  

Although it is important to always be in the present, sometimes it isn’t a bad thing to look back at the past, and smile because of the things that happened to us in our lives.  As long as you don’t get hung up on the past, you can admire your memories, and allow them to remind you that your life has meaning.  If you want to turn your memories into art, then take out all of those old craft supplies, and scrapbook to your heart’s content.

If you are interested in starting your crafting journey, please visit cindysplace.ctmh.com, a Close To My Heart representative who will be more than happy to help you get started.

 

July 31, 2017

Healing Power of Art

Art Therapy Pick: Collaging

Art therapy is a form of expressive therapy that focuses on using the creative process of making art to improve your overall well-being. Anyone can participate in art therapy, you don’t have to be the next Picasso, just let your creativity flow and see how free it can make you feel.

This month’s art therapy pick is collaging. Although many think of collaging as something children often partake in, it is actually something that is done by people of all ages for many different reasons.  It is easy, and it does not require any artistic skill whatsoever.  All you need is some paper, scissors, glue, and all of those old magazines that you couldn’t bring yourself to throw away.  

Art is a form of expression, and it’s meant to evoke all sorts of emotions that challenge the way we think and feel on a day to day basis.  For example, collaging can be as simple as seeing a picture of a woman screaming in a magazine or painting, then thinking to yourself, “I can relate to that.”  If the stress of life is bringing you down on a particular day, or if an image just speaks to you, then add it to your piece.  

There are a number of mental benefits that come with collaging.  Similar to many forms of artistic expression, collaging provides a “symbolic release” of emotions.  We may not know that we feel certain things until we have created something that reflects them. The emotions that your own creations evoke may end up surprising you!

Collaging has become very popular among therapists with clients of all ages who have trouble expressing their feelings with words.  Unlike painting or drawing, you do not need experience to make something beautiful or meaningful.  This is great because it creates a judgment-free environment where individuals of any age can participate in the therapeutic activity. Collage alone or with friends, and create that piece that speaks louder than words.

If you are interested in starting your crafting journey, please visit cindysplace.ctmh.com, a Close To My Heart representative who will be more than happy to help you get started.

June 30, 2017

Healing Power of Art

Art Therapy Pick: Pottery Sculpting

Art therapy is a form of expressive therapy that focuses on using the creative process of making art to improve your overall well-being. Anyone can participate in art therapy, you don’t have to be the next Picasso, just let your creativity flow and see how free it can make you feel.

For this month’s art therapy pick, we will discuss sculpting. Sculpting involves expression through the use of your hands with clay. Working with your hands creates a distraction for your brain, leaving you to feel mentally calm and clearer. When you are in “the zone” of sculpting your brain experiences the same benefits as if you were meditating. Creating art provides you with a sense of accomplishment this feeling leads to a dopamine increase. Dopamine boosts your motivation, focus, and enables you to resist impulses. When you engage in art therapy, your brain is creating activity through different cells within the brain.

Hands of young potter, was produced on range of pot.

Improve your overall well-being with art. Try sculpting today!