Self-Reflection Through Art

Welcome to the blog!

Anna and I have been friends for decades, and we’re really excited to take on the new adventure of working together at Kildaire Counseling. Each of us comes with a different clinical background and a variety of tools we enjoy. We had the chance to sit down together this weekend, and after going through a bit of tedious but necessary paperwork, we got out the fun stuff.

I pulled out a new item I got just for Kildaire Counseling: The Guided Art Therapy Card Deck and our brushes and acrylic paints.

I incorporate painting, drawing, sculpting, scribbling, building –you name it– into as many sessions as possible depending on the desires of the client. Expressive arts are central to my life and something I have always done naturally day to day. But… this doesn’t mean I’m a “good” visual artist! You don’t have to be, either! Paint is something I regularly play with. I doodle and scribble almost constantly whenever I have paper and a writing instrument. It’s not always the product (let’s be real, I throw 90% of it away). It’s the soothing, kinetic motion of keeping my hands busy while my thoughts and feelings are engaged that I’m after. More often than not, the release of energy through making messy art provides a real emotional detox.

Anna and I spent a soothing couple of hours on one or two activities in the card deck designed for promoting relaxation. Our goal wasn’t to make a masterpiece, but to follow the prompt and unwind in a way that would also give us some personal insights. I got to play with symbols and the concept of doing something “wrong” that actually produced pleasing results. We both got to have fun and light up with other new ideas.