Halifax Health – Center for Oncology provides patients with Art Therapy that includes drawing, painting, and other media. In this program, patients work with our trained therapist in a private and relaxing environment to find ways to express themselves through art.
Creative expression can often help people with cancer. Art therapy, the integration of artistic expression into the healing process, can be emotionally restorative and can serve as an outlet for expressing feelings about illness, treatment, and life itself.
Benefits of Art Therapy
- The process of seeing and exploring the images created through art therapy can distract patients from health issues as well as help patients:
- Become more self-aware
- Express fears, anxieties, and other emotions that may be difficult to verbalize
- Communicate and interact more effectively with others
- Build self-esteem
- Lessen stress
- Improve quality of life
- Find comfort, freedom, and hope
In our program, patients have the chance to express themselves, treat themselves to a relaxing and restorative activity, and even connect with others going through cancer treatment and recovery.
We emphasize the creative journey, not the end product, by encouraging patients to think about their artwork in the same way they would reflect on a dream: talk about it, showcase it, develop it further, or simply let it go.
