Art Therapy to Clear Your Mind

My father painted that old mill, and the orange barn below, in the last six months of his life. And what’s amazing about it is that I had no idea he could paint. I don’t think he knew he could, either.

For most of his life, he was a banker by day and a musician by night. He played and mastered the saxophone, clarinet, guitar, flute and even the bagpipes. He was a “bon vivant” who was constantly trying new things, joining a new club, picking up a new hobby, or instrument. But Alzheimer’s Disease robbed him of those talents, of the many languages he spoke and even of his capacity to read.

And yet, amazingly, in those last few months, guided by the therapists at the medical center where he was being cared for, he discovered painting and his final artistic creations were beautiful, peaceful and a wonderful visual expression of his inner self. Through his art, he let us know that he was still in there, and that he was at peace with the disease that was gradually stealing his life from him.

 

Benefits of Art Therapy

Art Therapy is not only used to treat patients Alzheimer’s Disease. It can also be used to treat anxiety, depression, emotional processing, insomnia and it’s an excellent way to relieve stress. It encourages self-exploration and trauma-processing.  

Whether you’re the next Picasso, or someone who likes finger painting and doodling, an increased awareness of self is developed through the act of making art. The self that emerges through the creation of art in art therapy is enhanced and stabilized, and enables you to cope with challenges, stresses and trauma. Basically that means that expressing your creative side and busying your hands are two of the best ways to manage anxiety and its symptoms, making art therapy a great option for sleeplessness.

Art Therapy for Insomnia

Fifty to 70 million Americans report having some kind of sleep disorder. And if you’re one of them, it’s likely you’ve already tried turning off your devices an hour before bed, set-up your bedroom oasis and eliminated coffee after 2 p.m.  And yet, you’re still sleepless.  No matter how exhausted you are, the minute your head hits your pillow, your wheels start spinning and you can’t seem to quiet your inner worrier and her team of overzealous planners.

You’ve tried journaling, but it’s not really your jam. It could be that you’re too private to write down your every thought for fear that someone from your household might read and misconstrue those thoughts or that you simply don’t enjoy writing all that much.

Have you tried doodling or making a collage? You don’t need to be an artist in the traditional sense of the word or have any sort of visual arts training to liberate your mind and put yourself to rest with art. Art Therapy is about the process, not about the end result.  According to the Ontario Art Therapy Association, “making art is inherently therapeutic and takes into consideration thoughts, feelings, behaviours and spirituality.”

Types of Art Used In Art Therapy

This post contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. Read our full disclosure here.

Painting, Drawing, Writing, Sculpture, Collage, Photography and Textiles can all be used in Art Therapy. Most of us are familiar with painting and drawing, even if our experience with those mediums might date as far back as elementary school.  Sculpture, collage and working with textiles require a little more planning than say, iphonography, but they’re all equally helpful at helping us disengage from stressors and relax.

Here are some of my favorite forms of Art Therapy.  They don’t require any training, a minimum of art supplies and yield beautiful, cathartic results:

Collage

A collage is a work of art made by sticking various different materials such as photographs and pieces of paper or fabric on to a backing. Collages are great for setting intentions and goals (vision boards or dream boards) and expressing moods and feelings (mood boards).

You don’t have to be able to draw or to have any particular training to make a collage. All you need is some old magazines, postcards or images you like, scissors and glue. You can also cut and paste images digitally if you’re making a vision board for a design project but if you’re doing it to free your mind so you can find sleep, avoid using a computer or your phone. Staring at a device’s flickering blue light completely defeats the process.

In 2008, Oprah Winfrey famously called into NYC’s Power 105.1 Radio Station and told Ed Lower that she created a vision board after speaking with Michelle Obama at a political rally.  She said, “I was speaking with Michelle (Obama) and Caroline Kennedy and Maria Shriver – we were all doing a big rally out in California. At the end of the rally Michelle Obama said something powerful, ‘and I want you to leave here and envision Barack Obama taking the oath of office.’ I created a vision board. I had never had a vision board before. I came home, I got me a board and put Barack Obama’s picture on it and I put a picture of my dress I want to wear to the inauguration.”  Her vision board many not have been the deciding factor in Barak Obama’s victory, but it certainly made people explore the power of setting intentions and visualizing their goals.

Drawing

If your artistic talent goes beyond stick figures, hearts and flowers, that’s great. But it’s not necessary. You get just as much benefit from filling in white spaces in an adult coloring book or drawing Zen Tangles on a random piece of paper.

Adult Coloring Books

Coloring books saw a growth in popularity in the 2010s. They reportedly bring people a sense of their childhood, reduce anxiety, create focus, and relieve stress and anxiety much in the same way meditation does.  Concentrating on coloring helps replace negative thoughts and images with pleasant ones.

Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Colouring Book, by Johanna Basford,  is one of the world’s bestselling adult colouring books. The book takes you through a garden created in beautifully detailed pen-and-ink illustrations and includes pictures to colour, mazes to solve, patterns to complete and lots of space for you to add your own inky drawings. Use felt tip pens to add a splash of colour or a black pen with a fine nib to create your own doodles and details.

Zentangles

Zentangles are small pieces of abstract, black and white art created by drawing repetitive patterns, called tangles, on a small square piece of paper.  They are typically done on a 3 ½” x 3 ½” paper “tile” using a pencil and a black pen but the size of the artwork actually can be any size and color can be added as well. You can also draw an object, anything – a flower, a heart, even your name – and proceed to filling the spaces with lines and patterns.

Zentangles are fun and relaxing to create. The process of creating a Zentangle is a form of “artistic meditation” as you get more and more engaged in making each pattern, deliberately focusing on drawing one stroke at a time. It’s beginner-friendly art for which and you don’t need any special artistic talent to get started. All you need is paper, a pen, and a pencil.

Zentangle Basics, Expanded Workbook Edition: A Creative Art Form Where All You Need is Paper, Pencil, & Pen is a great book to get you started with drawing basic patterns. It includes 25 original tangles with step-by-step illustrations to get you tangling in no time.

Make Art To Silence Your Inner Critic

So, the next time you’re sleepless, if you not up for journaling, you might just want to grab a pad and pencil, or your favorite pen, and start drawing.  Making art can help you get in touch with your feelings, be more accepting of yourself, overcome fears and allows you to leave your troubles on the page so you can have better, more restful sleep.

Have you tried drawing or making zen tangles to clear your head? How’d it go?

You might also like: Top 10 CBT Workbooks: Self-Therapy To Rewire Your Brain