Coping with the stress and pain of cancer and its treatments can often be daunting and discouraging. Many patients who have tried art therapy to help with coping and stress have found it to be calming, relaxing and even encouraging. Art can help you deal with the pain that often comes with treatments and medications. By focusing your mental attention on expressing your feelings through art, you create an almost soft cushion for your brain to learn to cope with what your physical body is experiencing.
To get started using such a great coping tool you will need only pencils, or paints and a paintbrush. If you have never painted or drawn before, don’t be intimidated. Art therapy is not about being a fine artist. This is about your expression, the way you want to say what you are going through. There are no rules here except to let your emotion flow through your artwork. It is simply expressing feelings and emotions which are very difficult to put into words. You can choose to work with an art therapist or you may experiment with using art as your therapeutic tool by yourself.
To help find your creative flow, have a friend or family member bring you books about creating art from your local library or bookstore. You can also research ideas through various websites and online artists’ websites and blogs. Your idea can be as simple as you need it to be or as complex as you desire. At times, you may choose to work on a piece for quite some time allowing it to develop from the stages of your experience and journey. Remember that this is your journey, your outlet and a coping mechanism for your stress and physical or mental pain.
Art therapy can be very cathartic in that it can truly help you to see your situation with fresh perspective. It can help you gain a measure of emotional healing which will carry you through this difficult and daunting time in your life. Allow it to speak healing and hope to you, let it enable you to see beauty in each and every day even in the midst of suffering.
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About Our Author
Laura Miller
