Ways to Heal From Past Trauma with Art

Art work is an excellent means of self-expression, and many people use art this way, but how many people know that art can be used to manage anger and heal from past traumas. Art just for the fun of it is not what we are discussing though. Art as a simple pleasure might keep you from losing your mind, but art as Anger Work is something else. It is a more active way to express your anger through what you create or do. Many examples of anger or other strong emotions can be found from the greatest artists, painters, musicians, and dancers, but the rest of us can focus our anger and thereby heal, as well. Being a great artist isn't a requirement either.

Kids and others not so young really benefit Art Anger Work. They may create a descriptive image with their angry feelings, or they may create and then destroy some piece of art. It is best to let your anger flow as you create paintings, for example. One victim of sexual molestation may design abstract drawings dominated in black tones. Another may create a jumble of body parts expressing the confusion and disconnectedness he feels. One of my clients years ago, who was very upset at a former counselor who used to eat potato chips during their sessions and had even slipped into a nap during a counseling appointment with the client on one occasion. To express this anger she drew a caricature of her former therapist lounging on the couch with cookie crumbs all over her. Her eyes were heavily lidded, and a little balloon above her head read ?Want a cookie?? My client drew herself on the other couch as a nondescript naked body with a huge knife sticking out of her guts and blood pooling on the floor below her. She was very careful to include the plaque that hung ironically on her former counselor's wall: it read ?It?s Never Too Late To Have A Happy Childhood.? In this one drawing the client was able to express her desperate need for help and her anger at feeling neglected by the therapist.

To start your anger work through artistic expression, let your creativity go. Who knows, perhaps you will create some items worth selling someday. A couple of professional artists with whom I have worked with over the years have changed their style of artistic expression after getting into Anger Work. They often feel even more connected to their pieces because of the intense level of self expression.

Some other modes of artistic expression you may want to explore are those of expressive dance, creative movement, and creative visualization. This could even be in the form of a creative work-out routine. For example, as a survivor of rape or sexual abuse you may create a special work-out routine as one of my clients did. There were three movements to her routine. The first was a straight, strong punch forward at eye level, imagining that she was punching her attacker in the face. The second movement was a swift, powerful kick upward, imagining that she was kicking the attacker in his private parts. The third movement brought her arm up over her head, then down in front in a swift swinging motion where her clenched fist met her open palm like a hammer, finally symbolizing her crushing the attacker?s private parts between an anvil and a large, metal hammer. She repeated these movements in sequence for 15 to 20 minutes at a time several times a week, or whenever she felt the victim mentality taking hold of her again. She found it helped her move from a place of fear into a sort of dance that tells a story, the way a ballet does. You do not need to have special training to do this. It is your story. As a whole being, body, mind and spirit, you can express your experience with yourself as the only audience. Creative movement is not the same thing as expressive dance. It can be one, simple, repetitive movement or a series of movements that have symbolic meaning to you.

Creative Visualization is another tool, a sort of art form in your mind, which you can use. You can pretend that you are a lion ripping up the person who hurt you, or you can imagine a cleansing fire burning away all the evil in a person and leaving behind only that which is good and worthy of remaining. Use your imagination and visualize symbolic scenes which will help you heal.

One idea for enjoyable way to use creative visualization. Find a metaphor that works for you and visualize yourself rising above your current problems. You can pretend that you are hiking on the path of life and your particular problems are vines trying to grow around your ankles and keep you from climbing to higher ground. Visualize yourself overcoming that challenge by stomping on them, hacking them up or simply climbing over them.

Any number of art activities or creative visualizations can serve as Anger Work for you. Relax and let yourself go. Keep trying until you find one that works, or many! What is important is that you do find effective ways to do your Anger Work so that you can live a more peaceful, joyful life.