{"id":2726,"date":"2014-08-29T11:51:36","date_gmt":"2014-08-29T19:51:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.touchalifekids.org\/?p=2726"},"modified":"2014-08-29T11:51:36","modified_gmt":"2014-08-29T19:51:36","slug":"what-is-art-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/what-is-art-therapy\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Art Therapy?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We are starting a new blog series on art therapy by our Art Center Director, Ally Root. Ally is passionate about the ways in which the creative arts can bring healing, and she will be sharing her thoughts here along with projects that she has completed with the children at our Care Center in Ghana.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Ally<\/a>

Ally and Francis with art created in Connor Creative Art Center.<\/p><\/div>\n

“Art is a powerful tool in communication. It is widely acknowledged that art\u00a0<\/span>expression is a way to visually communicate thoughts and feelings that are too\u00a0painful to put into words. Creative activity has also been used in psychotherapy and\u00a0counseling not only because it serves another language but also because of its inherent\u00a0ability to help people of all ages explore emotions and beliefs, reduce stress, resolve\u00a0problems and conflicts, and enhance their sense of well-being.” (The Handbook of\u00a0Art Therapy, Malchiodi, 2003)<\/p>\n

Many of the children living at the Touch A Life Care Center<\/a> were sold or willingly\u00a0given up by their parents, sent to live in harsh conditions where their basic needs were not met. They were forced into working long hours in dangerous conditions, and often times were physically and\u00a0emotionally abused. Many of the children at the center struggle with the after-effects of\u00a0trauma, abuse, abandonment, loss, and unstable attachments to their primary caregivers.\u00a0Touch A Life is committed to helping the children overcome some of these challenges\u00a0they face in order for them to grow into healthy and productive adults. One way this goal\u00a0is achieved is through art therapy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Art therapy can span cross-culturally and include visual, movement, musical, dance, and\u00a0performance arts. The process addresses various cognitive, behavioral, and social issues.\u00a0Art is a non-threatening and safe way for children to explore their emotions and identities\u00a0in relation to themselves and others. Offering children who once were in bondage\u00a0a\u00a0chance to have creative freedom opens doors for them to have a brighter future. Particularly with children, it is challenging to reach them through traditional verbal\u00a0methods of therapy. It is for this reason that art therapy can be of great value. Art is a\u00a0vehicle of expression and communication that transcends verbal barriers. Studies have\u00a0shown that traumatic memories are stored in non-verbal areas of the brain. In order to\u00a0overcome the pain and anxiety associated with traumatic events, it is important to address\u00a0traumatic topics in a sensitive way. Art has the capacity to do just that. Trauma-based art\u00a0therapy allows the child to slowly tap into these painful memories and work through them\u00a0by engaging the artistic process at their own pace, and with appropriate support from the\u00a0therapist.<\/p>\n

Living and working in Ghana has taught me that every child is an artist<\/a>. I saw each child\u00a0evolve and grow over the three-month period that that I was working with them at the Care Center. Art is\u00a0universal, and all children should be able to benefit and prosper from being creative as\u00a0well as receiving adequate clinical care.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We are starting a new blog series on art therapy by our Art Center Director, Ally Root. Ally is passionate about the ways in which the creative arts can bring healing, and she will be sharing her thoughts here along with projects that she has completed with the children at our Care Center in Ghana. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat is Art Therapy? - Touch A Life<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/what-is-art-therapy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What is Art Therapy? - Touch A Life\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We are starting a new blog series on art therapy by our Art Center Director, Ally Root. 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