“The simple act of creative expression connects us with an inner-self of vitality.”–Doreen Meister, MA, MFT
Meister is an expressive arts therapist who practices out of Oakland, Calif. I recently read an article where she discussed the benefits of art therapy and gave three techniques that you can try yourself.
The article “3 Art Therapy Techniques for Anxiety” talks about the importance of art for calming the nervous system and allowing people to work through things that may be troubling them. Says Meister: “when we’re focused on creating, our minds shift from worrisome ruminations.”
Art Therapy: Another Tool for Self-Expression
I happened to have a sketchbook and box of crayons on hand, so I decided to modify one of the activities from the article: select a crayon, draw a squiggle across the page, flip the page over, decide what the squiggle reminded me of, and turn it into some sort of drawing.
For someone who doesn’t draw, this activity was fun for me. Starting with a squiggle is easy…and there’s no pressure to draw “real art.” I turned my squiggle into a ghost family holding hands by a river. I think they must be fishing in a forest because I think the brown lines filled in with green represent a wooded area of trees. There’s grass on the other side of the river, and they’ve all signed their name: ghost, ghost, ghost, ghost, and ghost.
I also had fun just coloring on a blank sheet of paper. If you haven’t colored for a few years, give it a try. Even writing your name in crayons or drawing simple shapes can turn into a hour of self-expression!
Journal, if you wish
If you want to take it one step further, you can journal about what your picture means to you or how it connects to your daily life.
Read 3 Art Therapy Techniques to Deal with Anxiety at Psych Central for specific ways to use drawing with crayons as ways to deal with anxiety.