Art Therapy Benefits for Anxiety & Stress

/ Life Balance Counseling, Inc./

We are seeing more and more children, teens and adults experiencing an increasing amount of stress and anxiety than ever before. Anxiety and stress can be triggered by work, school, finances, or people. Stress and anxiety may manifest in psychological and physical symptoms, and it negatively impacts ones ability to function and carryout normal day to day tasks. 

One of the tools that I use with my clients is art therapy. Some forms of art therapy are drawing, watercolor or acrylic painting, making terrariums, and various crafting exercises. Art therapy encourages self-expression and creativity that is not typically expressed in our conventional environment. Art therapy can relieve stress and be helpful in combination with talk therapy. Sometimes it can be anxiety provoking for clients to sit and talk as a person stares at them, but if they are allowed to utilize art while talking, it helps the client feel relaxed and able to process their current challenges. Art can also help those that are not ready to verbalize their stress and anxiety they are experiencing. 

There are so many benefits of art therapy from relaxation, stress relief and rewiring the brain. The insights into your stress and anxiety will increase and you will also increase self-awareness about what is triggering your stress and how you can avoid those anxiety triggers.

The best part is that you can practice art therapy outside of the therapy office. If you had a challenging day at work or school, you can spend some time doing one of your favorite go to art activities to help alleviate some of your symptoms. Be mindful in the moment and enjoy the activity at hand. 

Our therapists at Life Balance Counseling incorporate various art therapy techniques in sessions because we have seen the positive benefits on our clients overall ability to manage stress, anxiety, depression and self-esteem. If you feel like you are struggling with anxiety and stress management and want to give Art Therapy a try, please feel free to give us a call at 888.234.7628 or email info@lbcounseling.com. We are here to help you live the life you want to live!