By Rapinder Kaur
Children: help them with
• difficulties in adjusting to the loss of a family member
• separation and/or divorce of their parents
• the birth of a sibling
• hyperactivity
• physical handicaps or emotional & behavioral issues
Adolescents help them with
• unresolved conflicts in familial relationships
• blocks in their development
• learning disabilities
• physical handicaps
• substance abuse
• eating disorders
• identity issues
Other benefits include but are not limited to:
- Art Therapy provides individuals with control over their communication, they can draw and share verbally what they wish; non-verbal communication is more comfortable than attempting to put ambivalent feelings into words.
- Art Therapy can provide the client the feeling that they are speaking in their own voice in their art.
- The clients Art is respected.
- Art Therapy focuses on establishing trust and comfort with individuals, building a safe environment for them to express themselves in.
- Art Therapy helps individuals develop better interpersonal and communication skills.
- Art Therapy encourages them to feel respect for themselves as well as others.
- Art Therapy allows individuals to problem solve through the advantage of externalizing their problems and taking a fresh view of them from a distance. They can experiment with change on the art product before they risk making a change in reality.
- Use the art as a safe outlet for feelings such as fear, guilt, pain, rage, anger
- Encourage them to think about their future and make informed decisions