Art Therapy for Anxiety (and other challenges, too!) with Erin Kirkpatrick, MA, ATR, LPC
As child anxiety counselors in St. Louis, we know how important it is to tailor our approach to each client that we see, so we are so excited that Erin is joining our team!
You may have heard of Art Therapy but aren’t quite sure what it means, how it can help or if your child would benefit from it. We know choosing a therapist can be overwhelming, so we have asked Erin to help you through a few of those questions!
This is a big question, but briefly, what is art therapy?
Art therapy is an approach to counseling and psychotherapy that utilizes creative expression to help facilitate healing and promote insight within the therapeutic relationship. Art therapy can help the client to express thoughts and emotions that feel too big, overwhelming or confusing to convey with words. It also promotes relaxation in session, fosters self-esteem and self-awareness, reduces distress and cultivates emotional resilience. Art therapy also helps build and increase rapport and trust with the therapist, which can be particularly helpful for children who are new to the therapeutic process. Art therapists are masters-level mental health clinicians that are trained to apply art-making techniques to clinical theory.
Why did you decide to become a registered art therapist?
I changed careers to become a therapist primarily because I love sitting with others and hearing their stories. I also feel that mental health is vital to our well-being, but mental health issues are largely stigmatized. I decided to become a therapist because I want to help those struggling to feel safe, understood, hopeful and empowered to make personal changes for the better.
As a lifelong hobbyist artist, I was always intrigued by the practice of art therapy as a means to help others through the creative process. I very strongly align with the notion that all people, regardless of age, ability or perceived “talent” have the power to be creative in some way, and that this inherent creativity can be utilized to incite positive change.
I also witnessed first-hand how effective art therapy can be when a loved one received various treatments for anxiety and depression. Art therapy helped them to relax, develop more trusting relationships with their therapists, and become immersed in a joyful creative process in the midst of such a difficult personal struggle.
Tell us how you incorporate art into anxiety therapy:
Art therapy is a wonderful modality for anxiety treatment. Art therapists often refer to the art-making process as the “third hand” in the therapy room as it can be such a powerful agent of change as the client and therapist work together. By examining the goals and objectives that I develop with my client, I identify various art-making techniques and directives that could be beneficial to the therapeutic process. These directives are customized for each client’s individual needs. While some clients benefit from the focus and control of a pencil sketch, others may benefit from the sensory exploration of kneading clay or dough . The added beauty of art therapy is the client learns these techniques in a safe environment that they can then in-turn use as coping skills for anxiety in their daily life.
Do you only provide art therapy, or do you use other types of therapy in your sessions?
As both a professional counselor and certified art therapist, I have experience and training in CBT and talk therapy in addition to more expressive art therapy. I love to incorporate mindfulness practices, play therapy techniques and more structured cognitive behavioral and skill-building approaches in my practice. My experience and training has allowed me to attune to the client and customize my approach to fit their unique personal needs.
Can you use art therapy for kids, teenagers, AND college students? Can art therapy help with challenges students face in the classroom setting?
Absolutely! Art therapy is an effective form of therapy for all ages. Art therapy techniques and directives are customized to fit each client’s developmental stage. And yes, art therapy is very effective for students facing challenges in the classroom. I have over five years of experience using art therapy within the school setting to assist children with focus challenges, anger management in the classroom, and peer relationships and conflicts. I also assist clients who are having difficulty at school as a result of parents’ divorce, grief over losing a loved one, illness in the family or sibling conflict.
What do virtual counseling sessions with you look like? How would you provide art therapy virtually, especially for younger children?
Photo by Aaron Burden, https://unsplash.com/@aaronburden
Depending on the age of the client, virtual sessions look very much like a session in the office. I will spend the first 10 minutes video conferencing with the parent to check-in, while the remaining time will be spent solely with the client. For very young children, I typically use simple materials during remote sessions, but in the event that assistance would be needed with the directive (cutting a piece of paper, for example), I may ask the parent to sit in on session to observe and assist when necessary.
I provide parents with a list of useful art materials to have on hand at home for sessions (basics like crayons, markers, construction paper, glue, air dry clay, etc).
The client and I brainstorm and create a special box and place to keep the needed supplies for session (this can be fun for children who would benefit from creating their own personal, safe storage space for supplies, separated from what is generally used around the household/by siblings). In some cases, I can also assist the client with identifying and creating a special “calm corner” in their home where we not only hold our virtual art therapy sessions, but can then become their own personal studio space to return to throughout the week to create and practice newly-developed coping skills.
There are also several online art and play applications that are also available as options to use with clients during remote therapy sessions as well. During the first couple of sessions, I will work with the client to determine their abilities and interests in making art remotely and we’ll take it from there!
Compassionate Counseling St. Louis specializes in working with kids, teens, and young adults with anxiety-driven anger. With your background in providing therapy in schools, and love of working on behavioral problems, what overlap do you notice between anxiety and anger management issues?
When an individual feels insecure or unsafe, they seek control over their environment. When they feel a loss of this needed control, those feelings of insecurity cause anxiety.
I have found that anxiety can take on many forms, especially for children who may not yet have the language to verbalize their feelings. This anxiety can look like fear or timidity, but it can also look like anger (anxiety for some causes the "flight" response while for others it causes the "fight" response). Difficulty managing anxiety-induced anger can lead to conduct issues at home or in school. Parents and teachers may not understand the cause of such extreme behaviors (punching walls, getting into fights with peers or pushing over desks), so these kids become identified as having "conduct issues." But, very often, it is anxiety and fear that are at the root of these anger issues. Luckily, a child doesn’t have to be defined by this anxiety, and with a little help, they can develop more appropriate skills to cope with anxiety and conquer these fears.
Art therapy for anxiety in St. Louis, MO
If you’re interested in art therapy with Erin, you can schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation at the link below. You can let us know that you are especially interested in art therapy for your child! This call will also give us a chance to hear from you about what’s been going on, walk you through our session structure and figure out the best therapist to pair you with (Erin, or one of our other awesome therapists).
Compassionate Counseling St. Louis provides specialized anger management and anxiety therapy in St. Louis for kids, teens, and college students. We love helping with thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. We work in Clayton, MO and serve kids, teens, and college students throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ladue, University City, Town and Country, Webster Groves, Creve Coeur, Kirkwood, Richmond Heights, and Brentwood. You can set up your free phone screening to see if we’re a good fit for your needs right on our website.