- DTCare in Ukraine | Mental Health -

Art Therapy: Clinical Psychological Support

Expanding Art Therapy Resources for Trauma in Ukraine

In the fall of 2022, DTCare met with the head of the Ukrainian Charity Fund to offer support for the Ukrainian veterans to seek, not only what their current ongoing needs are, but what they expect their future needs will be further into the conflict. As the war's end is not yet in sight, Ukrainian citizens must work toward how to best live while still in conflict. The highest need has become accessible mental healthcare. Before the Russian Invasion, compared with other European countries, Ukraine bore a great deal of mental illness, particularly with a high prevalence of depression, alcohol abuse, and suicide rate. Mental health disorders were the country’s second leading cause of disability burden and affected up to 30% of the population, according to Leah Kuntz for the Psychiatric Times.

In particular, psychiatry and mental health care was used as a tool of repression during the Soviet era, leading to those who opposed the Soviet regime being labeled as ‘mentally ill’, and imprisoned in psychiatric hospitals. Current barriers to mental health care in Ukraine include diminished trust in the psychiatry system, stigma, and lack of awareness and understanding. High stigma and shame prevent people from seeking help or forcing them to do so anonymously, as they fear being ostracized by their communities and reducing their chances of employment opportunities. As our President and the Head of the Ukrainian Navy Charity Fund discussed what best method for accessible mental healthcare would be beneficial, art therapy stood above the rest.

How art therapy meets the UN’s sustainability goals

Goal 3: Good Health

Art therapy helps improve an individual's physical, mental, and emotional well-being. It is beneficial for people of all ages and helps with a range of health issues like anxiety, depression, trauma, and chronic pain. Art therapy promotes self-expression, reflection, and healing, which allows individuals to improve their overall health and well-being. It also encourages self-care, stress management, and coping skills, making it an effective tool in meeting the UN's sustainability goal 3 of promoting good health and well-being for all.
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Goal 4: Quality Education

Art therapy promotes social inclusion. It can address the UN's sustainability goal 10 of reducing inequalities by providing a means of communication for marginalized and disadvantaged individuals who may struggle to express themselves through traditional means. It offers a safe and non-judgmental space for diverse communities to express themselves creatively and explore their emotions. Art therapy can also promote well-being and mental health and contribute to a more inclusive and equitable society.
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Goal 5: Gender Equality

Art therapy utilizes creativity and artistic expression to promote mental well-being, especially for women and girls. Art therapy can be crucial in achieving the UN's sustainability goal 5 of gender equality. It can empower individuals to explore their feelings, develop a deeper understanding of their identities and strengths, and challenge gender stereotypes. Art therapy provides a safe and inclusive space that promotes self-confidence and relieves mental health challenges. Overall, it is a valuable tool for achieving gender equality and promoting a more inclusive and equitable society.
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Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities

Art therapy promotes social inclusion. It can address the UN's sustainability goal 10 of reducing inequalities by providing a means of communication for marginalized and disadvantaged individuals who may struggle to express themselves through traditional means. It offers a safe and non-judgmental space for diverse communities to express themselves creatively and explore their emotions. Art therapy can also promote well-being and mental health and contribute to a more inclusive and equitable society.
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Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Insitutions

Art therapy uses creative mediums like painting, sculpting, and writing to promote psychological healing and self-expression. It helps individuals cope with trauma, develop empathy, and build strong connections, contributing to a more peaceful and just society. By promoting mental and emotional well-being, art therapy can also help prevent violence and encourage conflict resolution. It is a valuable tool for achieving the UN's 16th sustainability goal of peace, justice, and strong institutions.
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"Russia's war is not just a war of physical aggression, but also on Ukraine's mental health." - Ilya Timatchenko, BBC

DTCare Core Art Therapy Practices & Ethics

1.

Our therapists respect clients’ right to choose their own life direction, treatment options, and therapy goals. The therapists guide clients to make informed decisions, promoting their autonomy.

Respecting clients’ right to choose

2.

Therapists are required to maintain exceptional professional conduct that nurtures a safe environment and does not harm to individuals, families, groups, and communities.

Maintaining professional conduct

3.

Our therapists and therapy practices promote the clients’ well-being by helping to improve their personal circumstances. We enhance client welfare by identifying practices that actively benefit others.

Nurturing client well-being

4.

Therapists uphold five pillars of ethical behavior: integrity towards individuals, honesty in their dealings, accuracy in their relationships, faithfulness to their promises, and truthfulness in their work.

Behaving ethically

5.

Our art therapists are committed to treating all individuals with fairness and decency. Equal access to mental health support is ensured across all therapy programs and services.

Treating clients equally

6.

Therapists cultivate clients’ imaginations to further their understanding of self and those around them. They support creative processes that enable decision-making, problem-solving, and healing.

Cultivating imagination

Why Art Therapy?

“Individuals, especially young children and teenagers, face traumatic experiences that are too painful to put into words. In this case, non-verbal therapy methods, such as art therapy, will help.” - Nicole Porter, life.nv.ua

Art therapy utilizes creative techniques that involve drawing, painting, collage, coloring, or sculpting to help individuals express their emotions and traumatic experiences. Credentialed art therapists can help individuals interpret the nonverbal, underlying messages reflected in their art to better understand their emotions and behavior to address deeper-rooted problems. Naturally, the human mind experiences a sensation or mental image before attaching language to verbally articulate its meaning. This imagery is the language of memory and holds rich information within which to communicate patients’ experiences. Art therapy addresses traumatic experiences by creating links to nonverbal memories so that dissociated memories may be organized and processed in a meaningful way, according to Gitnux.

In the process of creating art and discussing the art within the context of the therapeutic relationship, the patient can see themselves again. This neuroaesthetic perspective lends acceptance to the value of art-making that offers engagement, even enjoyment, by reawakening positive emotions and offering healthier coping mechanisms through the arts. Art therapy offers a way to circumvent defenses and essentially ‘say’ what words cannot.

Art therapy, especially in communal settings, creates a safe environment to stimulate multiple senses at once, helping to reconnect mentally and physically a sense of self within the patient that is not always accessible with traditional one-on-one talk therapy. This includes understanding and acknowledging a deeper sense of previously avoidant feelings, memories, and unconscious thoughts. This result allows the patient to be open to advancing their exposure to increased mental health care and additionally grow acceptance of the healing process. Art Therapy is then used as an accessible tool and bridge for increasing public awareness about mental health and is recognized to reduce the stigma of seeking psychological help.

Art therapy helps reduce symptoms of anxiety, stress, and depression by 73% and decreases self-harm tendencies in adolescents by 54%.

Studies show that art therapy can yield a 50% improvement in symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in veterans.

Art therapy is proven to help reduce up to 40% of anxiety and stress for hospital patients and those with long-term traumas and injuries.

Group art therapy can lead to a 45% decrease in negative emotions and feelings of isolation  in individuals with serious mental health illnesses.

The Current Situation in Ukraine

According to the WHO, one in five (22%) individuals who experience war will develop depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia within ten years; that is an estimated 9.6 million in Ukraine. Those with previous mental health disorders will experience a magnification of symptoms, often causing complex trauma. When a person endures a traumatic experience, such as combat, sexual assault, or violence, the ability to verbally communicate experiences becomes limited. Trauma elicits a sympathetic nervous system response that is part of our evolutionary nature of fight, flight, or freeze. This response to danger is healthy and adaptive. However, when faced with ongoing traumatic stress, often with combat experiences, these adaptive responses that promote survival in the stressful environment can persist long after the experience is over, becoming maladaptive and problematic. This manifests as intrusive memories, emotional numbing, avoidance, irritable behavior, emotional dysregulation, and an overall sense of isolation and disconnectedness. In other words, what is at first a common and healthy reaction to stress impacts how a person views themselves and the world around them. In a state of ongoing emotional overstimulation, the language areas of the brain are compromised which makes already difficult memories and experiences even more challenging to process verbally and emotionally. Up to 80% of people with PTSD will also develop other difficulties, such as anxiety disorders, depression, substance abuse, and in worst-case scenarios, death by suicide, found Dr. Grinage.

The Building Blocks of Art Therapy

Non-verbal expression

Providing an outlet to express experiences and emotions without using words.

Increased awareness

Helps to increase self-awareness, collaboration, and awareness of continual environmental changes.

Outlet for self-expression

Providing an outlet to express experiences and emotions without using words.

Non-threatening method of processing trauma

Offers non-threatening method for discovering and processing of an embedded traumatic experience.

Safe exploration of sense of self

Allows patients to safely explore and investigate their sense of self and aid their mental healing process.

Helps clients sidestep mental defenses

Allows clients and patients to sidestep mental defenses and decode what they are actually feeling.

Art Therapy vs. Art

As stated by the American Art Therapy Association, art therapy combines multiple mental health therapies with creative activities to aid people’s experiences through art, imagination, applied psychological therapy, and human experience. One of the biggest reasons why art therapy conducted in clinical settings is different than creating art in a studio or art class is that art therapy is clinically and psychologically proven to positively change the way trauma is processed and improve the way the patients think and view their life. While creating art can be therapeutic, art therapy is a licensed practice that is administered directly to help a patient’s mental health. Art Therapy is facilitated by a professionally trained art therapist that cultivates a safe environment where they feel comfortable to fully express themselves. In addition, where creating art is mainly focused on the result, the main focus in art therapy is the creative process and the feelings that the action brings about. The finished artwork is then viewed as a reflection of the patient and is used to understand their mental perspective of their experiences.