Art in child and adolescent psychotherapy
The use of art therapy methods in psychotherapeutic work with children allows a better access to the patient and his conflicts than the exclusive way through verbal communication.
In art feelings can be shown playfully. Especially with children, who have a resistance to talk about emotions, it offers options to obtain their cooperation in the therapeutic process.
Art can be used in many forms in the therapeutic process and individual guided therapeutic methods of artistic therapy sessions can be woven well in a multimodal therapeutic process.
To create painting, drawing, collage and to try exciting artistic techniques is combined with modeling clay what are important elements of formative art therapy. Art in therapeutic groups is the best way to enable the expression of emotions, reinforced by the affective resonance of peers.
Role play as behavioral therapeutic technique in general and in particular in the context of theater therapy is an important part of performing art therapy. Another good way to improve communication about difficult issues with children offers the play with puppets. Role-playing groups represent a theater therapeutic use of psychotherapy and are a particularly effective means because many patients find great joy in performing real conflicts with peers on a fictional level.
Music Therapy interventions are an excellent tool for emotional expression. Music is closely linked with emotions in the brain and that is why music helps processing emotional control. Music Therapy groups are another way to achieve therapeutic success in children by artistic means of psychotherapy.
Dance and movement therapy works with physical action and body perception. The art of motion training helps for the diffferentiation of body perception and improves body control what may be associated with improvements in other areas of behavior. Emotions of people are first expressed undisguised in gestures and facial expressions, what is part of motion,. Therefore emotional processes can effectively be influenced by the art of movement. Specific types of exercise therapy can be found in traditional Asian martial arts and their meditative sisters Qi Gong and Yoga where ancient and proven therapeutic methods have been preserved. Dance and movement therapeutic groups should not be misunderstood as a dance course, because the aim of this artistic therapeutic technique is to improve the perception, understanding and control of emotional processes.
In the Berlin infant mental health center „Sozialpsychiatrie-Praxis“ all therapists use a wide range of artistic therapeutic techniques already in the diagnosis and further in the therapy sessions. Most groups have an artistic focus and in all group therapies artistic methods are used regularly.
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Medical psychotherapy for children and adolescents
What is multimodal child therapy?
Modules of multimodal therapy for children
Effectiveness factors of multimodal therapy children
Art in child and adolescent psychotherapy
