Art Therapy Combines Creativity With Mental Health

PITTSBURGH (PTTP) – Art therapy uses the creative process of art to allow clients going through therapy to express themselves in creative ways that they may not have been abel to otherwise. 

Art therapy uses multiple artistic forms of expression to allow clients going through the process of therapy to express themselves in ways they might not have been able to otherwise. Art therapy sessions are very similar to normal conversational therapy sessions and have been proven to be effective in all age groups. 

“Art therapy is wonderful because it does have the ability to connect with such a variety of clients from young children all the way through elderly populations,” stated Stephanie Wijkstrom, the founder of The Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh. 

Art therapy has been proven to improve cognitive and sensory-motor function, enhance social skills, reduce stress, and even develop emotional resilience. 

“When you think about talk therapy, we’re really sticking with more of the left side of our brain, very cognitive and analytical side when we’re just doing verbal processing.” States Kristen Watt, the owner of Pittsburgh Art Therapy Studio. “When we add art into that, we get to switch over to the right side of the brain, so we get this whole new experience of processing things that otherwise might not have really been able to bounce between both sides of the brain.” 

Many people feel that they need to have artistic talent to participate in art therapy, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. 

“Any person that has an interest in art therapy would benefit from it, but also children who are not necessarily the most verbal, or maybe have some concerns about traditional talk therapy or opening up, art really helps to take us outside of our thinking brain and into our doing state.” Wijkstrom continued. 

Studies have shown the effectiveness of art therapy as a practice in all age groups. One study conducted included 66 elderly women with major depressive disorder, and through weekly treatments of art therapy, both depressive and anxiety symptoms were drastically reduced. Another study showed a drop in psychological trauma symptoms and depression in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder. 

For more information on how to get involved in art therapy, head over to https://www.pgh-ats.com/ and https://counselingwellnesspgh.com/ to learn more about getting involved in art therapy in the Pittsburgh area.