12 Art Therapist’s Best Metaphors for Working with Emotions

 

Emotions are reactions to life events that did not correspond to our invented attitudes or expectations. They cannot be controlled, but it is quite possible to react in order to make room for a critical and logical acceptance of the situations that have developed in our unforeseen life. Yes, in order to maintain internal balance, it is important for us not to neglect them and give them a very real place and space in the mind, and art therapy does this better. I want to offer methods for responding to emotions in art therapy in visual metaphors, this is a convenient and understandable method of expressive creativity.

Emotions of any complexity will find their place in a metaphor or image and are easily transformed into paper, which means they will not be encapsulated.

Offer to choose a metaphor from the list, with which it is easy to display emotions on a sheet of paper and in free form, in any convenient way to transfer them to paper. In time, as long as it takes, until there is a feeling of lightness and release from a difficult state. After the drawing process, invite them to do something so that these emotions do not interfere with living on.

Here is this wonderful list of metaphors, take your pick:

1. Drawings of emotions in the form of dots.

2. Blot drawings on a wet sheet.

3. Drawings-inscriptions of their emotions.

4. Drawings of a symbolic cry in strokes.

5. Drawings of emotions in the form of sea waves.

6. Drawings of emotions in the form of bricks.

7. Drawings of emotions in the form of fallen leaves.

8. Drawings of disorder on a sheet of paper.

9. Drawings of emotions in the form of multi-colored puzzles.

10. Drawings of emotions in the form of clouds of different sizes.

11. Drawings of emotions in the form of different emoticons.

12. Drawings of emotions in the form of animals.

I hope that our psyche will withstand these superhuman trials and strengthen under the constant need to adapt to new conditions, and therefore we should not neglect emotions.

@Victoria Nazarevich 2022; war day – 268