Expressive therapy

Expressive therapy, also known as expressive arts therapy or creative arts therapy, is the use of the creative arts as a form of therapy. Unlike traditional art expression, the process of creation is emphasized rather than the final product. Expressive therapy is predicated on the assumption that people can heal through use of imagination and the various forms of creative expression.

Types

Some common types of expressive therapy include:

• art therapy
• art and dementia
• dance therapy
• drama therapy
• music therapy
• writing therapy

All expressive therapists share the belief that through creative expression and the tapping of the imagination, a person can examine the body, feelings, emotions and his or her thought process.

Expressive therapy is an umbrella term, which is synonymous with creative arts therapy. NCCATA.org is the (United States) national umbrella organization.

However, expressive arts therapy is its own therapeutic discipline, an inter-modal discipline where the therapist and client moves freely between drawing, dancing, music, drama, poetry, etc. IEATA.org is the governing body for expressive arts therapy.

Although often separated by the form of creative art, some expressive therapists consider themselves intermodal, using expression in general, rather than a specific discipline to treat clients, altering their approach based on the clients' needs, or through using multiple forms of expression with the same client to aid with deeper exploration.^[1]

Expressive arts therapy is the practice of using imagery, storytelling, dance, music, drama, poetry, movement, dreamwork, and visual arts together, in an integrated way, to foster human growth, development, and healing. It is about reclaiming our innate capacity as human beings for creative expression of our individual and collective human experience in artistic form. Expressive arts therapy is also about experiencing the natural capacity of creative expression and creative community for healing. (Appalachian Expressive Arts Collective, 2003, Expressive Arts Therapy: Creative Process in Art and Life. Boone, NC: Parkway Publishers. p. 3)

Films

The documentary I Remember Better When I Paint is an international film which documents the positive impact of art and other creative activities on people with Alzheimer's disease. The film demonstrates how expressive therapies bypass limitations.^[2]

References