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At the age of 23, Jennifer Brunner was diagnosed with a rare form of pediatric cancer and, in her words, won the “crap lotto.” Her creativity began as therapy, but in the end became art, allegory, and, ultimately, a story to inspire all who confront mortality. It’s a testimony to what makes us whole, even when we are fractured and broken. Read More
Welcome Back
I'm happy to see you back on Psychology Today! Yay!
Jennifer's story is so inspiring- and a true tesitmony to the power of art and healing.....
Looking forward to reading more posts-- Welcome home! Best wishes, -gretchen
Using Art Therapy with Cancer Patients
Cathy --
Welcome back. I hope that your fractured fairy tale had a happy ending.
Thanks for your comment about the cancer patient. I have also found art therapy to be very effective with cancer patients at the YWCA's Breast Cancer Center in Princeton, NJ and at the Cancer Institute in New Brunswich, NJ. At both locations, I provided group sessions that included "art making as therapy" and "art psychotherapy". The clients reported that art making took their minds off of their illness, gave them an opportunity to get to know other cancer patients, provided a safe place in which to discuss the painful aspects of cancer, and found the process of art making to be fun and life affirming.
Unfortunately, I have found that very few cancer agencies and hospitals recognize the value of art therapy (Sloan Kettering in NYC is an exception); they generally hire only social workers to address the emotional issues related to cancer diagnosis, treatment, and impending mortality.
music therapy in cancer care
Thanks so much for your enlightening article and for your important contribution to the field! I wanted to add that music therapy is also a powerful tool for people who are grappling with cancer at any stage. Guided imagery and music is used to help distract people from fear and pain and to create an inner "safe place" for healing; improvisation can help individuals to explore and transform difficult emotions; creating a life-review tape can help people who are dealing with end-of-life issues; and, of course, song-writing can be used at any time to help individuals find meaning in their life-situation and to creatively share their stories with others. There are many exercises in my book "Essential Musical Intelligence" (Quest 2002) that can be helpful for those (both clinicians and patients) on the path of healing and transformation.
Broken link
Thanks for the info Cathy. Unfortunately the link to the Sweedish research paper is broken.
Broken link
Thanks for the info Cathy. Unfortunately the link to the Sweedish research paper is broken.
Thank you-- Here is the correct link!
You can learn more about this study by visiting this new web page on medical art therapy:
http://www.internationalarttherapy.org/medical.html
And here is Reuter's release on the research at
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE51B62W20090212
I have some new information on art therapy and medical settings for some future blogs-- coming soon! Thanks for visiting Francine!
Cathy
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