Art Therapy. Tips? Interested?

[Laycee]

Hi guys,
I've been trying to use art therapy and would like to hear from people that do or have benefited from this. I would also like to use this thread as a good 'log' of the therapy journey for myself and anyone else interested in an 'art therapy buddy' of sorts.

So my first step was a 64 pack of crayola crayons and a notebook about 5 months ago. I have some large coloring pages now, mostly mandala themed, and have splurged on a 160 something crayon box. I'll be getting myself a small art themed gift for the holidays. Maybe another sumie (spelt wrong?) Set because I enjoyed so much about one I had; grinding your own ink for watercolor is just therapeutic and grounding.

Take care all! Spread a smile for someone :) :) :)

 

[Silver.]

I've always done some sort of arting. Along the lines of what you are doing, I use prismacolor colored pencils and I use gel pens. Lately I "art" because my fingers are curled up, quite like an 80 year old piano player's fingers and it's good to keep them moving.
The gel pens are much easier to hold. The prisma colors are amazeballs because you can get at least 4 different shades out of each pencil. It's turned me into a bit of a snob when it comes to other brands lol. When my fingers are able to color and draw, I am able to completely shut off my brain.
Glad to see you have found something that works for you.

 

[Laycee]

Silver,
I hope your not experiencing pain with your hands. Thank you for that info on the shades of prismacolors. I've been feeling that they are the best to go with for color but just couldn't decide. Now I can. I was disappointed with the limited color variations in such a large crayon box. It's fine to be a snob about things that are important to you and your stress level :)

 

[Chiqui]

I do art journaling, I draw, paint and write in the same sketchbook. I like watercolors, ink and pencil work. It has been me anchor, definitly, for all these years. It helps me to ground and I use It as thinking map, too.

 

[EmmaOwl]

Maybe another sumie (spelt wrong?) Set because I enjoyed so much about one I had; grinding your own ink for watercolor is just therapeutic and grounding.

Laycee: I'm trying to figure out what a sumie set could be. Beyond me! If you could clarify....

I color a little with pencils and I like using gel pens too. But I can't draw or even shade with the pencils so I use a coloring book. I think of it as a distraction rather than therapeutic, but maybe those two things overlap - I am very much in need of distraction.

 

[Friday]

@Allie D. :D SUMI-E SOCIETY WhatIsSumie

 

[Friday]

There was a time I sculpted the scenes and images and memories in my mind. There was a time I melted glass into fragments of memory, tokens of what once was: The sun reflecting off water, the dappled shade, passion, love, loss, grief, joy, the smell of the air, the bite of sand on skin. There was a time I lost myself in music, and movement, and being purely in the moment. There was a time that I used both photography and writing to the same yet opposite purpose; one to freeze a moment in time, the other to capture limitless time in a moment. There was a time when art breathed life into the world I was living.

They all seem like a very long time ago.

 

[Laycee]

Being a creative introvert and developing/going through all this PTSD stuff really seems to effect creativity. Sometimes I thought I was just too tired to be creative and also okay with what I'm doing. I think that is part of the problem now too because I sleep more and more.
Music ruins my day though. Any type except a commercial.

 

[Laycee]

So I struggle with people seeing my work. I know it's a self esteem thing, but also a little (probably a lot) concerning personal decisions. Art is personal. On the other hand art should be shown so I'm teaching myself to not hide as well as to be okay with mistakes. I want my skills back, all of them. I have destroyed previous art works and writing projects, all of them, and I understand why. I used my piano playing for physical therapy after I almost had a finger cut off in a bike accident.... to be reduced to coloring books when I had a grasp of creativity and skills for so long before all this makes me really disappointed with myself.

 

[EmmaOwl]

@Allie D. :D SUMI-E SOCIETY WhatI...

http://www.sumiesociety.org/whatissumie.php
Thanks Friday. Embarrassingly, I didn't even think to google it. It seemed like a bunch of random letters to me! ;)

 

[Friday]

to be reduced to coloring books when I had a grasp of creativity and skills for so long before all this makes me really disappointed with myself.

This is when I usually shift genres. (Or sports, for that matter). When I'm used to my body being able to respond in a certain way and it can't (either forever, or without a whole lot of work) adding in the betrayal-selfConscious-disappointment-anger-sadness on top of the natural challenges inherant in doing anything? Is just too much. But I find that if I switch mediums? I'm okay with sucking because I'm a beginner :D Aaaaaand, as I get my self confidence back? Am no longer also fighting the betrayal et al? I can get back into the medium I loved so much before. And, far from it suffering for the long absence, is made richer by the life I've led in the interim.

 

[Lola Nocheprieta]

They all seem like a very long time ago.

@Friday, I find that unbearably sad.

But in your later post you said that the art or activity "far from suffering for the long absence, is made richer by the life I've led in the interim." Do you have a creative outlet you are using now? Is this something you want back in your life? If your answers are no, and then yes, my final question is what is stopping you?

I don't mean to hijack the OP's thread, but I think these questions are relevant. My latest descent down the f*cking rabbit hole has mostly been a huge creative boost for me. Now, when I'm not making something, I know that I'm falling deeper into depression. It's a benchmark for me, and my art reflects how positive or negative I am feeling. My art-for-me tends to be pretty dark; my art-for-others is more hopeful. When I'm not actively working in my art journal several days a week (even if only 10 minutes at a time), I can get into a real slump and then it's hard to get motivated again.

@Laycee, I encourage you to post some of your work, even if it's just coloring pages, on the Media forum. There are a lot of creative people here, and we are a kind, supportive bunch. It's a safe place to experiment with showing your work.