Creative activities like art therapy help children and adolescents increase their sense of well-being and emotional resilience, enabling better day-to-day functioning. So it is no surprise that Princeton House Behavioral Health incorporates creative therapies into everyone’s treatment. Yet the need for social distancing can pose challenges for such a hands-on process.
“Art therapy before COVID-19 took place in a room where we had a wide range of supplies,” said Linda Baker, MA, LAC, allied clinical therapist at Princeton House’s outpatient site in Moorestown, N.J. “It was easy to interact with the kids and for them to interact with each other and stay focused on the task since we were all together in one place.”
During the pandemic, in-person art therapy was not an option. Princeton House converted to virtual programming, but not everyone had access to art supplies and virtual therapy made it more difficult for the young patients to bond with each other.
To address these challenges, Baker explored third-hand art therapy, a concept developed by Edith Kramer, an Austrian painter and a pioneer in the field of art therapy. The approach, often used with individuals who have physical disabilities, essentially allows the therapist to become the patients’ hands.
Baker aims her computer’s camera at a blank poster board and then works with the group members to create a character, beginning with the shape of the face and body, before moving onto his or her expression, clothes, and even the background setting. In the following session, the participants develop a backstory for the character. Art therapy facilitates healing through externalizing internal struggles — as a result, the characters and their stories often reflect issues that the group members are facing. Once the story is completed, it is read aloud to the group.
“By working together, they are engaging with each other, getting to know one another and opening up about themselves,” said Baker. “It has been a wonderful way to help them build resilience by allowing them to project their concerns in a safe and creative way and receive instant support and feedback. And because of the interactive approach, they are more likely to remember what they are hearing and experiencing.”