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What is Masters of Creative Arts and mental health?
The MSc Creative Arts and Mental Health offers an interdisciplinary approach to knowledge and research, with a particular emphasis on theatre and performance in the creative arts. Engagement with the arts has been studied and is proven to reduce anxiety and stress, foster feelings of well-being, create meaning out of illnesses and difficult experiences, and enhance positive emotional expression. Mental health benefits of creative activities Cathy Malchiodi cited multiple studies confirming that being creative can increase positive emotions, lessen depressive symptoms, reduce stress, decrease anxiety, and even improve immune system functioning. In another study, cognitive neuroscientists found that creating art reduces cortisol levels (markers for stress), and that through art people can induce positive mental states. These studies are part of a new field of research, called neuroesthetics: the scientific study of the neurobiological basis of the arts.
What is creative arts in therapy?
Creative arts therapy is a profession that uses active engagement in the arts to address mental, emotional, developmental, and behavioral disorders. Creative arts therapy uses the relationship between the patient and therapist in the context of the artistic process as a dynamic force for change. Depression and Art Therapy Art therapy provides an individual who is feeling pressured or overwhelmed with an opportunity to slow down and explore the issues that are occurring in their life. It provides them with a way to manage their behavior, reduce anxiety, process feelings, and destress. The study of Creative Arts develops emotional intelligence, confidence and resilience, discipline and commitment, communications skills, identity and belonging, creativity and problem-solving skills and coordination. Creative ventures help to fight anxiety because they activate the parts of your brain that process emotions. Music and art, for example, help to calm brain activity and allow the individual to feel a sense of emotional harmony. Psychologists define creativity as “the ability to produce or develop original work, theories, techniques, or thoughts.” It’s also often defined as having an idea that is inherently new and valuable. Creative people often show that they are more prone to have traits like a strong imagination and expressiveness.
How does mental health relate to creativity?
Being creative can increase positive emotions, reduce depressive symptoms and anxiety, and improve the function of our immune systems. There is increasing evidence in rehabilitation medicine and the field of neuroscience that art enhances brain function by impacting brain wave patterns, emotions, and the nervous system. Art can also raise serotonin levels. These benefits don’t just come from making art, they also occur by experiencing art. It helps with exploring confused or difficult thoughts and feelings. It can encourage positive feelings too. People enjoy the control and expressive qualities of making art. Sharing experiences with a trained art therapist is supportive. Scientific American even found that creative people tended to have smaller connections between the two hemispheres of the brain (the left brain and right brain), called the corpus callosum, which could help give ideas more time to develop. Research has shown that crafting, regardless of the medium you use, can bolster mood, improve self-confidence, and reduce stress overall. In addition, crafting has also shown to improve mental agility, improves both gross and fine motor movements, and also decrease cognitive decline.
What is the link between art and mental health?
The Benefits of Art on Mental Health Since creativity can be healing, people with mood disorders may instinctively turn to art to help themselves cope or heal. In addition, Taylor posits that the nature of creativity leads artists to behave in ways that read as disordered. Voices of Art Therapy: Children’s Mental Health The art making process allows for expression without words, helps establish safety, creates opportunities for coping, and offers a way to manage feelings, thoughts, and experiences for future exploration and insight. Artists like Francisco de Goya, Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Frida Kahlo, and Mark Rothko likely suffered from mental health problems at some point in their lives. Their art uniquely reflects their struggle and psychological condition. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that often is low in patients with anxiety, depression, and excessive stress. Because art therapy has been seen to help increase these dopamine levels and help a patient feel happier, it is also an excellent choice for people with mental illnesses, such as chronic depression and anxiety. Visual art therapy You might also use digital media, such as photos or video. You don’t need to have any art skills or experience. With support from your therapist, you might use art materials to express your feelings or experiences.