Have you ever questioned yourself about your mental health? 

Nowadays, when we're ill, we think straight away of going to the doctor to be prescribed medication. Why should we do that with our mental health? 

There are countless medications, such as antidepressants for depression, mood stabilisers for bipolar disorders or even anti-psychotics for schizophrenia or psychosis, but there are all the more side effects, which can be very serious and alterate your physical health.  

  

There are alternatives to medication, and we're going to talk about one in particular: art therapy. Art therapy is a type of psychotherapy that encourages people to express themselves freely through various from of art, such as painting, drawing, or modeling. Art therapy is not the only form of psychotherapy, there are also writing therapy, music therapy, expressive therapy, drama therapy and dance therapy. 

During sessions, a trained art therapist will be there to help you discover yourself and make sure you have a greater understanding of your feelings. The structure of an art therapy session depends on the therapist, but it is usually divided into 4 parts : a start session, an art activity, a period to process art and a close session. It can be done individually or in groups, in many different places like hospitals, schools, community centers, prisons, or even private practices. 

Art can be defined as a way of expressing one's vision of the world, to the world. As a result, art therapy really helps people suffering from mental problems. It can be especially useful for people who struggle to express their emotions or feelings by enabling them to better express what they see and feel, things that can't really be described in words. Daniel Regan is a good example of how art can be a useful way of expressing all this. Regan is a British photographer who, as a child, couldn't express what he was feeling and, with the camera his grandfather had given him, he started taking photos to show what was on his mind. It really helped him communicate with his mother at the time. Moreover, he recently announced in an Instagram post that he had been appointed EDI (equality, diversity and inclusion) advisor to the British Association of Art Therapist. 

  

Art therapy has a lot of benefits on one’s mental health. It can help reduce stress, depression and anxiety by lowering your cortisol level, which is a hormone responsible for your body’s response to stress. It can make you manage past traumas better by being able to express what you've been through and improve your self-esteem. Also, art activates a part of the reward centre of the brain (the medial prefrontal cortex), which can help addiction problems, eating and mood disorders. 

According to the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine making or seeing art can boost your serotonin levels (the happiness hormone) and blood flow in the part of the brain responsible for pleasure and imagine a brighter future. So, we can see that even looking at art can effectively help someone’s mental health and give him hope. Art can be really useful when it comes to recover from past traumas, grief or even loss. 

  

Art and art therapy activates three main parts of the brain :  

-The prefrontal cortex, responsible for decision-making, self-expression and social behaviour, can be activated during art therapy. It can improve one’s social interactions and decision-making skills. 

-The amygdala, playing a key role in processing emotions, can also be influenced by art therapy. By exteriorising their emotions through art, people can better control their emotional reactions. 

-Art therapy can also stimulate the hippocampus, which deals with the formation and the recovery of memory. This can be helpful for people having traumatic memories, allowing them to explore these memories in a safe and controlled environment. 

  

Art therapy is a powerful way to heal from mental issues, traumas, grief, los or addictive behaviours. It is a interesting way to express our problems and help the person, activating important parts of the brain. While medication can be an effective treatment for many, art therapy provides an alternative that can be just as effective.