Art therapy
My art therapy concept
Art therapy is a practice-oriented form of therapy that uses the materials and forms of expression of fine arts and enables access to the inner emotional world through artistic design and creative work. My art therapy approach refers to the art or art pedagogy-based approach of art therapy, in the form of a resource- and solution-oriented process in which artistic-creative action, experimentation with different materials and aesthetic experience itself becomes the direct source of knowledge and insight and new possible solutions revealed. As part of a protected therapeutic relationship, I accompany the client in this design process, support them in reflecting on the process they have experienced and look at the resulting work together with them. The therapeutic relationship is enriched by the designed work, which makes needs, feelings and desires visible more easily than words. An interpretation of the work process and the designed work is only made by and with the client. It is not about an evaluation of the work according to aesthetic standards. No artistic talent or ability is required.
Art therapy can be used to support psychiatric and psychosomatic illnesses, such as depressive episodes, adjustment disorders, anxiety disorders and eating disorders or cancer and dementia. In addition, it can be used sensibly for personal development, self-awareness, relaxation, resource activation, conflict processing and stress management. Art therapy is a complementary offer to classic medical care. It does not replace medical treatment and psychotherapy. In the case of a mental illness, art therapy is possible as an accompaniment to prescribed psychotherapy and in consultation with the person treating you.
The focus of my art therapy work is in the field of oncology and the insecurities and changes in life that cancer brings with it, as well as coping with the disease. In addition to appropriate further training in this area and years of accompanying people with cancer as relatives, my own experience as a cancer patient made the possibilities and effects of creating art with this disease clear to me. The diagnosis of cancer and the existential fears associated with it, as well as the consequences of medical treatments, severely affect the lives of patients. A resource-oriented art therapy can support the coping with the illness, strengthen the experience of autonomy, open up scope for action and thus contribute to improving the quality of life.