Art Therapy

Art explosion, paint into… Art Therapy! That’s right! Art Therapy!

Why?  “Ummmm”…that little or BIG thing called stress. As if “our” daily lives were not stressful enough balancing the hustle and bustle of managing our careers, our families or whatever else is on that list, we then get to throw a big pile of COVID-19 on top. Not exactly the cherry on top of we all dreamed of.  Two months ago, it was not uncommon to think “If I could only have a few days at home”…fast forward and our idea of freedom of not running errands or sitting in the packed restaurant has been shattered.

Stress as we know it doesn’t exactly improve our lives, rather it has many negative effects on our physical and psychological systems. We may cry, sleep, or in my case, eat too much cake. Result? More STRESS!  My answer? A little bit of old fashioned… Art Therapy. But wait!!! What about me? I can’t create! Listen folks, we have been creating since the times of our childhood. Who can remember playing in the mud making homemade mud pies, or making sandcastles at the beach; and why is it still so satisfying to help our kiddos with those sandcastles?  Art Therapy. Yes. When we create or engage in the creation of our own art forms, we receive big benefits to our noggins, both physically and mentally.  The science is this – when we create, we experience increase neural connectivity in that very special place that deals with inward looking, our memory abilities, and most important, we become connected to ourselves. We self-monitor. This chain reaction produces positive prospective, and positivity leads to better coping skills and more smiles on our faces.

Take a moment, close your eyes, and envision the mustaches you would like to draw on your bosses or in-laws. Think about your emotions, grab a pen and doodle or scribble all your emotions out. Make a collage dedicated to the wonders of your family or turn your quotes into a picture all by itself surrounded by swirls and scribbles alike. Draw your stick figure animal that you love and draw and paint your idea of a perfect day at the beach. Paint while listening to music or draw a wild imaginative invention that you daydream about coming into fruition. The point is, that creating and “Art Therapy” does not mean producing a Vincent van Gogh, rather it means allowing ourselves to express our feelings, reduce our stress, and bring to the front of our brain all the happy things. So get out there and take on some ART THERAPY!