Nurture 
Arts Therapy

Arts therapy is an experiential, psychotherapeutic approach utilising arts modalities within a relationship with a trained therapist, attending to emotional, cognitive, physical and spiritual well-being.

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Arts therapy is based on the idea that creativity enhances the well-being of all people and is a natural part of all cultures and human experience. It is an experiential, psychotherapeutic approach. It is holistic and aligns well with indigenous models of health and well-being. 

The  arts therapy uses creative processes to help clients explore and express unconscious material that is often difficult to articulate in words. These methods are innovative, participatory and practical: they provide a supportive space for participants to ‘try on’ and practise new behaviours, and this can be more effective than merely talking about change. Creativity harnesses the imagination and a sense of play. This can help those who have limited choices in their life to use the safe space of the therapeutic environment to learn to tolerate the uncertainty of the unknown, and to become more comfortable to be able to improvise and open up new possibilities in their lives. A key feature of the creative arts therapies is that the processes are often pleasurable. This means that using the arts we are more likely to practice new patterns of more healthy behaviour.

Contemporary neurobiological research into trauma suggests that trauma has a powerful physical component and thus the first step in addressing trauma should attend to embodied trauma responses. Because the creative arts therapies are based on body awareness they can effectively address trauma and emotional and physical dysregulation. Creative arts therapies can increase resilience by improving the sense of agency and self-understanding through the ability to express feelings symbolically. This can give new perspectives on oneself and on one’s world view, which is essential in the recovery process. (ANZACATA, 2021)