Expressive Arts Counseling in San Antonio
Using Art in Counseling
Expressive Arts Counseling is a broad term that describes any mental health treatment that uses some form of art as a therapeutic tool. The types of art can include hands-on activities like drawing, painting, using clay, making crafts, or collaging. Expressive arts can also include poetry, books, music, or movement to help you understand yourself and your life a little better.
Some examples of ways I incorporate expressive arts into my sessions:
Creating vision boards
Drawing your happy place
Making a comic strip
Analyzing song lyrics
Using coloring books
Book discussions
What’s the difference between art therapy and expressive arts counseling?
Expressive arts counseling focuses on many different types of creative outlets and will incorporate a combination of them. Art therapy tends to focus on one particular art form.
In Texas, to provide “art therapy,” the therapist must have special training in art and be certified from an accredited art therapy program.
“Be open to what the world is telling you. Life is nothing more than a stream of experiences — the more widely and deeply you swim in it, the richer your life will be.”
— Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi