Mental Illness
and The Effectiveness of Art TherapyStatistics show that 70% of
adults have experienced some form of traumatic event at some point
in their lives and up to 20% of this population will develop PTSD
and go untreated.(How Art Therapy Supports Trauma Recovery,
Douglas Mitchell). Art therapy has been historically proven as one
of the most effective rehabilitation methods. Using art as an
option for recovery, or a coping skill, is not as mainstream of a
recovery method as necessary. Most people, therapists included, are
unaware of the existence of art therapy and its benefits. A larger
gallery of people aware of art therapy and its beneficial effects
will create an increase in its use. By surveying the issues this
form of rehabilitation
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Art has been
used since the beginning of human history as a medium to
communicate thoughts and ideas.(Art Therapy Journal). As society
has progressed and developed, art has shifted from a method of
communication into a method of self expression and symbolism. Art
was only used for these for reasons until around the 1940s when it
first became of therapeutic nature in America and Europe. The first
person to refer to art as therapeutic was named Adrian Hill. He was
being treated for tuberculosis in a sanatorium, in England, when he
suggested art projects to other patients within the sanatorium. The
use of art within this corporation made a difference in several
people's lives, and made coping with the illnesses more convenient.
This example of an influence of art therapy shows that once more
people become more aware of the procedures and customs of art
therapy they are more willing to participate and experience the
beneficial factors. The first art therapy studio was not created
until 1981 by a man named Edward Adamson. Adamson allowed patients
in mental hospitals to create art by their own leisure without
comments or judgments from the public, or other peers. This allowed
the patients to feel temporarily
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The use of art
therapy is not more common for two reasons. The first being that
art therapy has minimal advertising, so it is hard for it to gain
recognition. Second, some people that are struggling with mental
illnesses are limited to believing traditional counseling is the
only way to solve their issues. Those who believe this have a
harder time reaching out, and stepping out of their comfort zone to
experiment with a new coping mechanism. Only half of all hospitals
in the United States have some type of art or creation
program.(The Wall Street Journal). Each hospital in the United
States has an area for psychology, and psychiatric treatment. The
smaller amount of hospitals who are open to, and have, an art
program goes to express that most groups of people are unaware of
artistic rehabilitation. By surveying the benefits that have
impacted those hospitals that do offer a program for creation, it
is safe to conclude that art therapy is a successful way of
recovery. Most hospitals do not offer an art organization because
it is beyond the societal norm when it comes to therapeutic
outlets. Leaving a comfort zone is incredibly challenging for most
people, even more for those struggling with mental illnesses.
Society has created a stigma around mental illness as a whole, that
it is not appropriate and should not be expressed. Every year,
about
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