Art therapy is an emotional expression without having to use verbal words, which can allow survivors of trauma to feel safer in sharing their experiences. It provides a safe way to approach traumatic memories and puts visibility to suffering. According to researchers, the process of creating art helps with emotion regulation and has been found to have positive mental health benefits, including helping with self-expression, feeling safe, feeling empowered, and having hope and optimism for the future.
Our goal at The Well has always been to provide free wraparound care for the women that we serve, which means complete mind, body, and spirit wellness. We are excited to announce that as of the beginning of August, weekly art therapy sessions, called Mindful Art, began for women at The Well. This is one of the free holistic therapeutic services that we have been patiently anticipating to begin.
We have had a few women begin to participate in the past few weeks’ sessions, and awareness is catching on. Using multiple art mediums mixed with therapeutic exercises, there has been some movement in emotional processing and affirmations. We are grateful and blessed to finally have the space to be able to provide this trauma service for our women. We look forward to the class growing, along with their own hope and optimism for the future!