art therapy spot: happiness group & the art of forgiveness

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SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2013

Happiness Group & The Art of Forgiveness

To forgive is to set a

prisoner free and discoverthat the prisoner was you.

~ Lewis B. Smedes

The holidays tend to bring up complex

feelings for many people. Thanksgiving,

Christmas, Hanukah, New Years, and other

holidays seem to blend together during this

time of year and there is a palpable energy

in the chilly air.

This is also a time of year when my arttherapy groups tend to get smaller for a few

weeks. The holidays are especially triggering for many of the individuals that I work with -

bringing up complex feelings and memories. I think part of what makesit challenging is a feeling

that this time of year 'should' be joyful even if it's not for everyone. Drug and alcohol relapses as

well as hospitalizations tend to increase with my clients and many other tend to isolate in their

apartments if they have no friends or relatives to be with. This is part of why I find it important

to continue the groups, even if attendance is lower. There are usually at least a few people that

make their way to the group and find some benefit and comfort in participating.

In my continuing work with veterans living in supportive housing, my co-therapist and I started

a new group called the 'Happiness Group.' One of the interesting challenges inherent in working

with individuals in permanent housing is finding ways to keep groups interesting. My past work

has focused on working with people in crisis and living in emergency transitional shelters.

Although the art therapy groups were challenging, I could expect a constantly changing group of

clients. In contrast, the groups offered in permanent housing facilities are less transient but the

risk of group repetition and lack of interest increase. With this in mind, my co-therapist and I

began to brainstorm a new group that might be of interest. Drawing from positive psychology

and our own interests, we designed a new curriculum and group called the 'Happiness Group.'

So far the residents have been drawn to our new Happiness Group and are very engaged. I

always highlight the fact that 'being happy' is not a pre-requisite for coming to the group. In

fact, the group flyers that I created include this description:

We all want more happiness in life. But how do we create happiness when there are so many

challenges and hard situations we face? This group will give you ideas and tools for creating

more happiness in your daily life, no matter what you are facing.

Our group last week focused on the theme

of forgiveness. Forgiveness and happiness

Beginning a forgiveness box with a quote

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might seem like strange companions, yet

they are directly linked. Much of our

emotional and physical energy can become

tied up in feelings of anger and past

resentment. Although it's a long and

challenging process, working with

forgiveness can free up energy that can be

channeled into cultivating more happiness.

In group we spent time talking about whatforgiveness might entail and why

forgiveness does notmean forgetting or

saying that something hurtful was ok and

acceptable. Alice Miller said, "Genuine forgiveness does not deny anger but faces it head-on,"

and I think this is a good way of understanding forgiveness.

Forgiveness Boxes

Group members shared the people and experiences that they were struggling to forgive. We also

explored self-forgiveness, since sometimes we are the ones in most need of forgiveness. My co-

leader encouraged the clients to write a letter to someone they wanted to forgive. The letter

would not be mailed to the person, but could be used as a cathartic method for addressing and

processing feelings of anger, hurt, and disappointment.

For the art therapy piece of the group I set up paint trays, acrylic, brushes, collage materials,

markers, and mod podge. I then handed each person a small paper mache box. I asked the

group to decorate the boxes on the inside and outside while thinking about a person or a few

people that they would like to work on forgiving. The gold and copper paint were a popular paint

color and the metallic paint helped imbue the boxes with a certain beauty. While working on the

boxes, group members began to open up about past experiences with the people they were

working to forgive.

I reminded the group that forgiveness was a process like most everything in life. Feelings about

the person might ebb and flow like ocean waves and re-surface even after there seemed to be

some emotional resolution. For this reason I encouraged the clients to look at the box as an

object that can be opened and closed and therefore visited and put aside depending on their

needs.

The last step was writing the name of one or more people (could include self) on a small piece of

paper and placing it inside the box. The name could stay in there for a long time, or be taken out

and replaced with another name. In this way the names and the box could become part of a

small ritual. The safe containing space of the box could hold the desire to forgive and be opened

when it felt appropriate. One of the clients shared that she would place her forgiveness box on a

small altar in her apartment where she kept a beautiful candle. Her idea was to create a ritual

with her daughter of putting in names and taking them out while lighting a candle each day, as a

way of processing past family experiences and moving in the direction of forgiveness and

healing.

Further Thoughts

When working with individuals who have

experienced trauma I find the idea of objects

that can close and be opened very useful.

Working in this way can help an individual

explore past experiences slowly and avoid the

chance of emotional flooding. Altered books

(future post) are another idea along these

lines. Any material and object that creates a

containing space and can hold a smaller

object are wonderful to work with. If I could

get my hands on some nesting dolls to alter

that would be very interesting too!

Forgiveness box in progress

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Posted by Sara at 12:29 PM

Labels:Art Therapy,Art Therapy Techniques, Collaboration, Veterans

Creating art objects that can be used

repeatedly in a personal ritual adds another

opportunity for healing by engaging in the creative process. Individuals can make visual

reminders that inhabit their living space.

Check back in the coming weeks for more posts and ideas from my art therapy groups, and as

always please feel free to share your own thoughts and experiences here.

closed forgiveness box

+4 Recommend this on Google

Post a Comment

5 comments:

theresasaid...

Beautiful article- thank you for the reflection and photo- balm to the soul.

December 15, 2013 at 9:06 PM

Angel said...

Beautiful and quite insightful article. Thank you for sharing

December 17, 2013 at 1:03 AM

Amita Patelsaid...

Thank you for sharing! In my life and as I work with my clients I see how powerful creative expression can

be. As they say, "You have to feel it to heal it!" I especially love the idea of creating things, like the box, that

can be opened and closed. Beautiful post!

Much love,

Amita Patel

www.AlignedHolistics.com

December 19, 2013 at 7:05 PM

Sarasaid...

Thank you for your beautiful comments and I'm very touched that this post resonated with you!

January 16, 2014 at 2:54 PM

Hannahsaid...

Hi Sara,

I'm so glad I found my way back to your blog after the holidays--because the issue of trauma continues

throughout the year. Your directive on forgiveness to ourselves and to others is a beautiful one that I'm

going to take to heart and utilize here in the hospital. I'm also going to place an order for metallic paints:-)

February 5, 2014 at 11:10 AM

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