Art for Change · Principle 5 of 5
The Therapist’s Wellbeing Through Art
Expert interview with Wes Chester · 12:14 min · in English
About the principle
The therapist’s own wellbeing matters in creative therapy, because the therapist is part of the relational space. Working with people’s emotions, traumas and life histories is emotionally demanding, and creative processes can help the therapist process impressions and stay in contact with their own resources.
Regulating the nervous system. Creative activity can help therapists release tension, stress and emotional residue from the work.
Building body awareness. Therapists can become more attentive to their own signals – fatigue, restlessness, over-responsibility or the need for a pause – and so prevent burnout.
Creating calm and presence. When therapists work creatively themselves, it can restore contact with joy, play and meaning, and help preserve humanity and authenticity in the work.
Extract from the book Art for Change – Creativity in Working with Trauma and Mental Health.
Exercises
- Draw or write freely after a working day, with no focus on the result
- Use colours or shapes to express the mood or energy of the day
- Take a short creative break with music, collage or movement between clients
- Work with clay, textiles or natural materials to find grounding
- Make an image of your own resources, boundaries or sources of energy
- Create a personal ritual with creativity as the transition between work and private life
Guidance for the therapist
Watch for your own signs of overload, emotional fatigue or distance from the body. Prioritise supervision, pauses and creative spaces with no demand to perform. Creativity does not need a therapeutic aim to be valuable – it can also be a place for recovery, joy and human contact.
Questions for reflection
- How is the work affecting your body and your emotional life right now?
- When do you feel most alive or most connected in your work?
- Which creative activities help you find calm or energy?
- How do you notice the difference between being engaged and being overloaded?
- What do you need in order to keep being present in your work with others?
About Wes Chester
M.A., CAGS. An expressive arts therapist in private practice specialising in trauma treatment. He is co-director of the Expressive Arts Institute in San Diego, teaches at the European Graduate School and leads Bayview Clubhouse for people with severe mental illness. His work connects art therapy with nature and eco-aesthetics.
In the interview, Wes answers: ”The therapist’s use of the arts for own self care and professional sustainability”