When I am feeling down, I listen to uplifting music to lift my spirits. When I want to calm down, I listen to Indian classical instrumental music (eg. santoor or flute). Many times, I look at contemporary Indian Art – either in real art galleries or on virtual art galleries on the web to improve my mood.
I particularly like the paintings with vibrant colors or ones which present a calming landscape using soothing colors. After my daughter was born, I was so happy that I wrote a poem for the first time, and also did a water-color painting though I had not picked a brush for over 15 years. In our classical music, we have ragas for the morning and ragas for the evening and for different moods and emotions. We also see the classical dancers express different emotions through the use of their eyes and body language.
BBC News reports the positive benefit of art on the recovery of patients as researched by Dr. Staricoff. “Art has many many benefits. Art in every form could be a therapeutic factor in a self-care basis.” She said that one experiment she carried out involved studying patients going in for day surgery. One group was exposed to art and music. The other group had nothing. There was a significant effect on the blood pressure, heart rate and in the consumption of oxygen. There was a 48% reduction in the hormone cordisol which is linked to stress. “Art is also beneficial in mental health as it induces well-being and triggers memory, diminishes aggression and has a beneficial affect on behavior.
Well, since the last few decades, creative art therapy is becoming a formal discipline in psychotherapy. The creative arts therapies include art, dance, drama, music, story-writing and poetry. ‘These therapies use arts modalities and creative processes during intentional intervention in therapeutic, rehabilitative, community, or educational settings to foster health, communication, and expression; promote the integration of physical, emotional, cognitive, and social functioning; enhance self-awareness; and facilitate change.’
These therapies have been consciously and unconsciously practiced in India since the Vedic days. Sri Hanuman used the manjira, Vishnuji used the mridang, Sri Krishna used the flute to influence other people. Shiva’s tandava was a great example of the use of dance to achieve a goal. Art in temples was used to create the right atmosphere and spiritual environment. Use of music in healing was exemplified in the story of a brothers love on Page 15 of the July/Aug/Sep 2005 Journal. A 3 year boy was able to heal his little baby sister by singing to her as she lay dying in the ICU. It was the miracle of a brothers song.
Art therapy uses the creation or viewing of art to help people discover and express their feelings. Unlike art for art’s sake, which focuses on the finished piece, art therapy (oil, acrylic, water-color paints, clay, charcoal, pastels, or other art materials) focuses on the process of creation itself. Art therapists believe that the act of making a piece of art triggers internal activity that contributes to physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. For people who are not able or ready to create art, going to an art museum or looking through art books or virtual art galleries can also be helpful. Simply viewing art refreshes the spirit and promotes relaxation.
Child psychologists and family therapists often use art therapy because children have a hard time putting feelings into words. Art therapy has also become a vital part of the activities offered in many nursing homes, long-term-care facilities, and hospices.
Art therapy helps healing in various ways. The aesthetic quality of the work produced can lift a person’s mood, boost self-awareness, improve self-esteem and increase self-confidence. Also, research shows that physiological functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration, slow when people are deeply involved in an activity they enjoy. In addition, making art also provides an opportunity for someone to exercise their eyes and hands, improve eye-hand coordination, and stimulate neurological pathways from the brain to the hands.
Because art therapy uses a language other than words, it is often employed in treating patients with physical or emotional illnesses who have difficulty talking about their fears and hopes, or about their anger and other strong emotions. The creation of art helps people get in touch with thoughts and feelings that are often hidden from the conscious mind.
Stress reduction is also a significant benefit. Studies have shown that repressing strong feelings can lead to a buildup of stress, and that stress can intensify pain and intensify the symptoms of various diseases. Because art therapy helps people access their unconscious mind and release pent-up emotions, it has been found to be very useful in treating those suffering from stress and stress-related ailments.
Art therapy is also used as treatment for behavioral problems, and often serves as an ancillary treatment to psychotherapy. It is frequently part of inpatient psychological treatment programs, including those for drug and alcohol abuse.
Patients recovering from trauma or serious injury often find art therapy particularly beneficial, as do people with chronic illnesses, such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. BBC again reports that Art Therapy can combat the depression often felt by people with Alzheimer’s Disease, researchers have claimed.
A study in Brighton has shown that half of Alzheimer’s Disease sufferers who took part showed a significant improvement in their symptoms by the end of the ten-week course. It is thought that the therapy may act as a release for trapped emotions. Art therapist, Finlay McKinlay said patients taking part in the course thought it was rather strange at first, but they gradually started to make steady progress.
Dr Jennifer Rusted, said art therapy had two significant effects on those who took part. She said: “The first was that within a session they became much more relaxed, much more sociable. The second thing that we found was that their depression scores as rated by the people who worked with them decreased markedly over the ten weeks of the course.”
Art therapy may not be an exact science, but has proven merit. It is now a recoqnised profession of reaching and touching emotions and feelings through artwork. The goal of art therapy is to heal. The results can be very positive.
Sources: Principles of Art Therapies by Daniel Brown, several web-sites on this topic, BBC News Research etc.
