If you remember the childhood joy of spending hours with a coloring book and crayons, you may already understand how an art therapy program can benefit a person’s mental health. Technically, art therapy is defined as the application of visual arts in a therapeutic setting.
Illumination Mental Health includes art therapy as part of our integrated wellness programs for mental health.
Reach out to Illumination Mental Health today at 747.285.7504 to learn more about our art therapy classes in Los Angeles, CA.
What Is Art Therapy?
Art therapy is offered as part of our comprehensive treatment programs for mental health that includes traditional therapies such as medication, talk therapy, and group support. Art therapy is about more than simply drawing pictures. Therapists may use guided imagery or artistic themes as inspirational starting points.
Many art forms may be used to express creativity, including singing, dancing, painting, poetry, and more. The point is to help people tap into their creative minds, not to impose rules or restrictions on artistic expression.
Licensed art therapists oversee therapy sessions. They are clinicians who are specially trained to guide and support people through the healing process with art as an aid. Scientific studies have shown art therapy to be effective at helping people access parts of the brain where unprocessed emotions are held.
As with other forms of therapy, healing doesn’t happen in one single moment but in many small steps. Art therapy is not a miracle, but it is a tool to help access and regulate the expression of their feelings constructively. It also provides participants with skills that can serve them for the rest of their lives.
How Can an Art Therapy Program Help Mental Health?
Art therapy is typically used as a complementary treatment along with traditional mental health therapies.
It’s not necessary to have artistic talent to benefit from art therapy. Humans are innately creative, and the idea that you have to be professional at an artistic endeavor in order to benefit from it is a modern commercial concept. Art therapy stresses the process of creativity over the value of the end product.
Mental health professionals agree that art therapy programs offer several benefits, including;
- Improving self-esteem: Art gives participants a feeling of accomplishment and boosts confidence.
- Emotional release: Art is a healthy outlet for expressing emotions and feelings that are difficult to put into words
- Stress relief: Creating art helps people to stay focused on the moment without worrying about the future or reliving the past
- Relieving depression: Creating art stimulates the production of dopamine, a brain chemical that produces pleasurable feelings and can help to battle anxiety and depression
- Self-discovery: Involvement in art can help you identify hidden feelings and bring buried thoughts to the surface
Anyone can benefit from art therapy. The technique is frequently used to help children, but it is equally effective for adults.
Who Should Try an Art Therapy Program in Los Angeles, CA?
Individuals who are struggling with the following conditions may have the greatest results:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Eating disorders
- Stress-related issues
- Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
- Cognitive impairments
Because art therapy is a non-verbal form of communication, it may be especially helpful for people who have difficulty expressing themselves verbally.
Illumination Mental Health Offers a Powerful Art Therapy Program in Los Angeles, CA
At Illumination Mental Health, we encourage residents to break out of old destructive patterns and try new things. Our art therapy program in Los Angeles, CA, offers a new form of self-expression that is fun and unique while still being effective.
Call Illumination Mental Health today at 747.285.7504 to learn more about our art therapy program and other integrative wellness therapies.
