Creativity in Therapy

Inspiring therapists and counselors to be more creative

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Music and Mindful Art

  Making art that responds to music can increase sensory awareness, facilitate mindfulness, and encourage emotional expression. Last week’s guest post from music therapist Maya Benattar discussed the value of deep listening to music with our clients in session or for our own self-care and processing as therapists. This week I want to share about pairing music with art-making for another creative approach. A simple but powerful art therapy activity that you can do with clients is … [Read more...]

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Tree of Strength Art Directive

All of us have strengths that get us through difficult times, but we sometimes have trouble recognizing that they are there or remembering to draw on them. As therapists, we often spend time helping our clients to identify these strengths or build up their coping strategies. We want them to know that they can successfully get through a difficult time by using their inner talents and strengths, leaning on the support of others, and taking positive steps to cope with their emotions. In addition to … [Read more...]

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5 Tips to Jump-Start Creativity

How much time do you make for your own art and creativity? As creative therapists, it is essential that we make time for our own art. We cannot help our clients through creativity if we are not practicing creativity in our own lives. And art-making can be a great means of self-care, which is so important to prevent burnout and compassion fatigue. But sometimes it can feel hard to find time for art when we have so much else going on in our lives. Or we can feel tired and uninspired to do art. … [Read more...]

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Grounding Techniques

Grounding techniques help someone to come back into their body and the present moment when they are feeling overwhelmed with distress. I recently heard it described as helping your brain get “back online” after it’s been overwhelmed. When clients have trauma memories, have panic attacks, or feel overcome by strong emotions, I find that grounding can be an essential tool for helping them to take control of their mind and emotions. There are a few things that can help grounding be more … [Read more...]

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Process Art in Therapy

Although most people think about art as pictures or sculptures that look like something or communicate a particular meaning, there can be a lot of benefit to process art. Art therapists will often remind clients that it’s the process that’s important, not the final product. Process art means that the focus of the art is on the experience of making the art, not the resulting art piece, and may even be thrown away afterwards. As the mother of a toddler, I’ve been immersed in the world of … [Read more...]

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