Treatments
The creative arts therapies can be used for successful management of anxiety, depression, and trauma, creation of special artistic projects, or to get in touch with your creativity. Here you will find the treatment approaches I use with more information on how to find out more
EMDR
Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing- emdria.org. EMDR is a treatment for PTSD and trauma. Despite definitions of trauma, it’s impossible to say how one event will affect a person. EMDR can be helpful with anxiety and depression as well as single incident and complex PTSD.
EMDR uses bi-lateral stimulation (left/right tapping) to create dual awareness (one foot in the past/one in the present) to help clients re-process distressing memories and negative beliefs. It’s both a desensitization process and one of memory reconsolidation, meaning what you learned from the event back then isn’t what you believe now. We follow that mis-match. You tell your story, both talk therapy and with art and you witness, along with the therapist, what you went through. The process doesn’t have to contain every detail of the re-telling, it’s more important that you feel it and experience the impact it had on your life.
Anxiety, Depression, and Trauma
Who isn’t suffering from anxiety and depression in this unstable world? Additionally so many of us suffer from trauma from our childhoods (or adulthoods) that still affect us in our daily lives. Getting help can be hard but it doesn’t have to be impossible. Neither should it be a dreary slog of misery. Therapy should help you FEEL BETTER. Or at least help you tolerate feelings and states amidst the chaos of life, literally learning to “feel” better.
Here is where creative arts therapies can help. These mental health labels shouldn’t keep you from accessing your creative streak. Whether you have an existing mental health diagnosis, or you don’t know where to start, creative arts therapies can help by unleashing the very best part of yourself, your creativity
Anxiety and mood disorders such as depression and bipolar I and II are managed best through medical interventions as well as lifestyle changes. But taking your meds and getting enough rest is only part of the picture to a healthier you. Getting out of your head: putting paint to paper or acting in an improv can lift mood and help you find new ways to cope with the problems of life
Creation of Special Artistic Projects
Have an idea for a play or show but aren’t sure how to get started? Want to create poetry or a spoken word piece about your life and your experiences but have no idea where to begin?
I can tell you where I start, and it’s at the very beginning, as Maria von Trapp would say. Using breath, sound, movement, text, and visual mediums, I will help you craft a piece of art that speaks to who you are
Whether you are an accomplished artist or a total newbie, creative arts therapies can help you sort through your thoughts, dreams, and plans to help create art that speaks to others and remains true to yourself
Paint, sculpt, sew, scrapbook, dance, act, whatever medium you are drawn to, we can work together to find your metaphors and find meaning
Finding your Creativity
Everyone, and I mean everyone has creativity within them. Studies have shown that you don’t need to be good at art to get tangible benefits. Within our sessions, we will craft a safe space to explore your creativity. I can’t make you into a world renowned artist or famous actor. But I can help you tap into creative impulses that may be long dormant and only need the spark of interest and application of focus to reignite.
Beyond producing concrete artistic work, creative arts therapies helps you craft a more creative LIFE. Once your creativity has an outlet, you will feel yourself moving in more in sync with your life and will feel the power of the artistic flow that rejuvenates spirits and lifts mood
Call, text, or email:
Barbara McGlamery, MA, LCAT
Licensed Creative Arts Therapist
tel: 929-324-6132
email: bmcglamery@gmail.com
Or click on the “Contact” link below