What Art Therapy Can Do for Your Child

On February 22, 2013 the Buckeye Art Therapy Association, joined together in association with Capitol Consulting Group, Inc. in an effort to help pass legislation to create an art therapy license in Ohio. The Buckeye Art Therapy Association aims to regulate the practice of art therapy by establishing credentials and licensing standards for art therapists. The proposed legislation defines art therapy as the use of art media, images and the creative art process to help evaluate an individual’s development, personality, interests and concerns in order to reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, develop social skills, manage behavior, reduce anxiety and increase self-esteem. The legislature moves in hopes to expand art therapy throughout Ohio in hopes to create an outreach in children throughout area school systems with recent concerns of the increase of bullying in schools. However, many want to know what Art therapy is and why there is a need to expand into schools.

What do you do when a loved one has died, a parent, a friend, or even a pet? Or what do you do if an issues has plagued your body? What do you do if you need someone to talk to someone to help you answer all the questions you are unable to answer on your own? Therapy Statistics show that in two of the largest cities in America prove the following: in New York City alone it shows that there are 4,478 licensed psychologists having one psychologist for every 1,868 people, and in Los Angeles County 4,143 licensed psychologists, or one for every 2,380 people in 2010. Across the country thousands of adults flock to psychologist each year to “talk” or work out deep rooted issues. However, only half of that number are children. Children suffer from illness, mental health problems, and other issues ranging from problems at home, to most recently the rise in bullying. Children have been engaging in Art therapy for years however, little research has been placed in media to show how art therapy is helping children throughout the nation.

Many have asked what Art Therapy is, according to the American Art Therapy Association art therapy is the therapeutic use of art making, within a professional relationship, by people who experience illnesses, trauma, or challenges in living, and by people who seek personal development. Through creating art and reflecting on the art products and processes, people can increase awareness of self and others cope with symptoms, stress, and traumatic experiences; enhance cognitive abilities; and enjoy the life-affirming pleasures of making art. Registered Art therapist Catherine Rogers Jonsson, explains that children need to learn to identify feelings and how to express them in socially acceptable ways. Leading children in these methods such as drawing, finger painting, and sculpting can serve as an excellent way to help children express themselves in times of turmoil in their lives, such as a divorce, or traumatic event.

 

One example of Art Therapy is a drawing by Tamara Obradovic drawn when she was 9 years old titled America is crying featured in The Day Our World Changed: Children’s Art of 9/11. 9/11 has become a traumatic and sad event in America history and although many were affected among them were children. This drawing by Tamara depicted sadness, but most importantly it opens the eyes of others around her, this image according to art therapists the drawing has served as a way to assist children like Tamara with cognitive growth and emotional control over a traumatic experience such as 9/11.

Among children the main areas of mental distress common among children and young people mental health problems will usually bring about complex set of emotions which even adults have difficulty understanding let alone a child. Children suffering from mental distress may be unable to understand what they are experiencing and why they are feeling the way they do, often keeping their thoughts and feelings hidden away as they are unaware of the help available to them. Children find it quite difficult to take these emotions or feelings and verbalize them appropriately for anyone to understand. When this happens many turn to art therapy, however, there are so many mainly parents who are unsure what art therapy is and rather or not it is having an impact on their child.  

However, assisting children with cognitive growth and emotional control can be done through traditional methods of psychology. How does art therapy specifically help children in a new or different way than what traditional methods have been able to do? Art therapy includes a series of different techniques that are used to assist children, the primary goal is always to help each student reach his or her fullest potential. In recent years art therapy has become increasingly recognized and appreciated by education administrator valuable related pupil service that supports and improves the well-related pupil service that supports and improves the well-being of children and adolescents in educational settings.

With the rise of interest in expanding art therapy into schools Deb Shoemaker MAAT, ATR-Registered Art Therapist explains that some techniques that she uses for children are varied and individualized, please click here to view her interview detailing different techniques she uses for children, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF5fI9915SI....

 

Selecting the appropriate technique is always recommended by art therapists mainly because the closer you can select a technique that is crafted for a specific child the greater effect it will be on the child. The rise of bullying in schools has brought about many children using drawings such as a drawing by 12 year old Camryn with words stating “treat people with respect!!! Please. I am begging you!!” However, art including drawings, and paintings are not art therapies limitations. In addition as Shoemaker stated in her video the use of Legos has been used to encourage children to somehow put the pieces back together in divorce cases. In the case of pulling children have engaged in videos and movies depicting stories that advocate non-bullying in schools such as the film titled Bully that later brought about different controversies prior to and soon after the film release date in 2011.

The need for art therapy besides traditional methods is important because of the response that children give when they are able to express themselves through more than just words. Art therapists often achieve outcomes more rapidly than traditional psychotherapy by helping to represent a client’s emotions visually and then reflect on what was created. During or after a creative drawing or painting an art therapist takes the time to skillfully discuss the work of art with the child. Asking questions such as why they decided to use certain colors, if they included drawings or paintings of people, who are the people that were included, and what they see in the drawing. Children who are suffering from illnesses and see the inside of an hospital several days in a row often draw images of the outside world, what they will do when they are able to go out and play.

Although there are not many documents showing studies on how children are benefitting from participating in art therapy many are seeing enough benefits in the school setting. School psychologist are moving to the use of art therapy in their session with troubled and children having problems at home. They often spend time coloring with children and talking about their day, the belief is that children are able to verbalize feelings by distracting the child with something that they take interest in like coloring. The American Art Therapy association believes that in the school setting, art therapy provides opportunities for positive experiences that translate into enhanced classroom functioning and increased ability to benefit from educational services. Art therapy can be tailored to support academic and social/emotional requirements. School art therapists’ work with teachers, parents, school counselors, and school psychologists to coordinate art therapy referral, assessment, and treatment.