Improving Mental Health: Art as Therapy

What Can Art Therapy Treat? 

Art therapy for mental health is proven effective to help an assortment of common conditions: 

Art Therapy for Anxiety 

Anxiety disorders are one of the most common conditions found among 40 million adults each year. We all experience anxiety now and again, but with conditions like generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder or stress disorder, symptoms — like racing thoughts, persistent fear or dread in normal situations, or panic attacks — can consume one’s daily functioning.   

If you suffer from an anxiety disorder, it welcomes the chance to channel these moments through art. For many people, the simple of act of creating something is enough to cultivate mindfulness and bring some semblance of calm to an anxious mind, positive outcomes that translate into subsequent art and talk therapy sessions. Studies show that a dozen art therapy sessions help the emotional dysregulation of an anxiety disorder — effects that remain in place after a 3-month follow-up. 

Art Therapy for Depression 

Depression is intricately linked to anxiety in more ways than one. Even when you haven’t been diagnosed, it’s easy to relate to the symptoms. In fact, about 21 million adults have experienced at least one depressive episode, notes the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. One symptom of depression is a sense of disconnectedness — not just from others, but yourself — and a loss of meaning in the things that once brought joy.  

Painting through the pain is truly and seamlessly one of the mental health art ideas that can unearth the brightness that depression can bury. You might take a camera and begin snapping photos of the candid scenes in nature that bring sunshine to the gray cover that depression casts. Or you might journal and elucidate hopefulness when life seems hopeless. Through art, uplift yourself away from depression to the ideal place you see yourself. 

Art Therapy for Trauma  

Seventy percent of adults (more than 223 million people) in the U.S. have experienced some sort of traumatic event at least once, according to the National Council for Behavioral Health. It can originate from childhood/sexual/physical/emotional abuse, accidents and natural disasters, exposure to war, or suffering loss. Pent-up, deep-seated trauma that becomes a disorder can leave emotional scars that are difficult to put into words.  

Mental health art therapy aims to help you revisit traumatic memories at your own pace, creating your own safe space to process traumatic memories, sensations or feelings you’ve been unable to speak about. Studies show that mental health art is indispensable as a complement to regular trauma therapy and even mimics some of the same outcomes — art making, notes one report, is said to involve bilateral stimulation, a key component of EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, a popular trauma therapy.  

Types of Art Therapy for Mental Health  

The beauty of mental health art therapy is that no one single medium or approach is better than another. There is no “better” in art or art therapy — just different shades of expressiveness that invite alternative ways of communication that transcend the limitations of verbalized language, notes the American Art Therapy Association. 

“Art therapy engages the mind, body and spirit in ways that are distinct from verbal articulation alone,” notes the group. 

Painting or Drawing 

Visual arts like painting and drawing create immediate, fluid pathways to express yourself since they tap into parts of the psyche that may be harder to explore in talk therapy due to traumatic memories or repressed feelings. Some sessions may be freeform, where your therapist asks you to paint or draw what comes to mind in the moment. Other times, you might focus on a particular emotion, experience or mental narrative.  

On a canvas or paper, there are no rules. You might reach for watercolors and find the combination of shapes and forms you create flow in unexpected, abstract ways — and soon, some of the pieces of past, unresolved trauma begins to mentally fall into place. Or you might try sketching with pencil, charcoal or marker to draw anything from simple lines to something more detailed. Step back and consider what it represents. You may find that certain colors or patterns repeat, offering insight into emotions you might not have been fully aware of.  

Photography 

When you draw or paint, a canvas is a blank slate to tap into your own wellspring of creativity. Photography is also a visual medium, with a distinct difference: you’re capturing what already exists in the world but with your own perceptive filter in place. Depression, anxiety or behavioral disorders can send one’s internal focus off track, but through a camera lens, you gain a literal new perspective. 

Pick up a camera and start looking through the viewfinder. What piques your curiosity? What looks interesting or inspiring to you? Embark on a nature walk or venture through the city. Snap what you see. Taking photos allows you to slow down and observe your environment — and yourself — differently. You might find yourself drawn to snapping pictures of textures, faces, nature or street scenes that reflect how you’re feeling in the moment. Through visual arts therapy, your images can then become a starting point for conversation and reflection. 

Music and Dance Therapy  

Not all art is visual, and you may find that other modes of expressive arts therapy, like music or dance and movement therapy, also speak to you in profound ways, reaching emotional states below conscious awareness that might be difficult to mine during psychotherapy.  

Music therapy can look however you want it to look. You might listen to certain pieces of music, hit a drum, sing or even write your own lyrics. The vibrational and auditory power of sound means you feel it in your body, a vehicle to release pent-up emotions, tensions or trauma deeply rooted inside. Your therapist will analyze your verbal and nonverbal responses, helping them understand your emotional state and tailor the session. 

Likewise, dance therapy encourages you to use your body as a way of processing and expressing emotions. In a group session, every participant might move their bodies differently, releasing the emotions, tensions, past experiences and trauma we hold inside ourselves. Music and dance are ways to reconnect with your body, your mind and your soul. Unlike a conventional dance class, the focus is on authentic expression in the moment rather than technique or performance.