Can wellbeing initiatives such as befriending, arts and crafts or gardening be just as beneficial as a talking therapy like CBT? On the one hand, demand is constant and CBT has boomed, within the NHS and beyond. But on the other hand, doubts have started to be raised, and it’s now believed cognitive behavioural therapy,Continue reading “Either/Or”
Tag Archives: therapy
Nature On My Mind
When you think about nature helping mental health, what picture comes to your mind? Would it be time spent in a garden, or time photographing or drawing something in nature? A walk on a sunny day, looking out for wild flowers and trees? Or perhaps enjoying sport outdoors, like cricket or windsurfing? Back in 2016Continue reading “Nature On My Mind”
Question Time
What is the best way to use art and creativity to help mental health? Is there even one best way, or are there many, each one as different as the individuals experiencing mental health issues? Is it best to focus on art expressing thoughts and feelings, maybe visualizing a scene or using colour to sumContinue reading “Question Time”
Deeper Than Words
Trauma has so many different roots and forms. Looking up synonyms for trauma, I found words like pain, damage, disturbance, hurt, scars, wounds and shock. Some people will retreat inwards, into silence. Others will want to talk, to emote. Some will experience trauma bonds, wanting to relive what happened. I recently read about the experiencesContinue reading “Deeper Than Words”
Picture The Scene
Do you ever visualize a scene, a place or an experience in your mind, maybe reliving it from memory, or creating it in your imagination? It might feel real or remote or even dream-like. And it might have a strong impact on wellbeing. Recently I heard someone describe the use of visualization within therapy forContinue reading “Picture The Scene”
Stable Sense
I see two horses several times a week on my walks as I climb the hill next to their field. While I have never ridden or spent time with horses, as I’ve always lived in rural areas they’ve been familiar sights, part of the background of my life. And I particularly like donkeys. Many peopleContinue reading “Stable Sense”
Art As Tool
The more I experiment with art for wellbeing, the more possibilities emerge. I’ve written before about “art as refuge” and “art as tool” – the two distinct ways I feel art can help wellbeing. Art as refuge is the more familiar of the two to me, and I still think this has immense impact byContinue reading “Art As Tool”
Thoughts On Paper
There’s one specific way to combine art and wellbeing which stands out, and that is bullet journaling. No, there are no limits to the diverse ways we can all experiment with art and creativity to boost our wellbeing, and all do help. Bullet journaling stands out simply because it focuses on how we think andContinue reading “Thoughts On Paper”
Think Art
As I think about how art can help mental health and wellbeing, two distinct ways emerge. One way sees creativity as a positive to focus on, as refuge or haven, space away from the everyday and from specific issues. The other uses creativity directly to address and work through those issues, to express thoughts, feelings,Continue reading “Think Art”
A New Song
When I told someone that I would be writing about singing, music and Parkinson’s Disease, she asked: “But why would music help Parkinson’s?” And her response struck me, because it’s true that the part music can play in many illnesses is far less well known than, say, its impact on dementia. Through recent years soContinue reading “A New Song”
Medley 