[ad_1]
In an art therapy class four years ago, Chris Stowe received a blank mask and was encouraged to paint, cut, or add to create "a story about how I felt about it." 39; inside. "
Stowe suffered traumatic brain injury during his deploying in Iraq from 2003 to 2005 as an explosive ordnance disposal technician in the Marine Corps, was struck by shards of glass from explosions.
"I had tantrums, "said the 43-year-old man from Warren, Ohio." I struggled with my speech and my balance because of TBI. "
In 2014, he participated at an art therapy class and created a mask representing a divided person.The half is "just a normal person who can be sad sometimes" and the other half shows a demon-like face with bees coming out of the eye and mouth.
Courtesy of NICoE
mask that Stowe created in April 2014.
"The best way I could explain [the feeling of PTSD] is that someone took the biggest hive in the world and put it in my chest," Stowe said. "Sometimes it's quiet, but if someone enters it, it becomes active and buzzing."
Stowe is one of the 1,500 active-duty soldiers who participated in an eight-year study to determine the soldiers' mental health problems through art therapy sessions.] The study, published in June, was led by Girija Kaimal, an assistant professor at the College of Nursing and Health of Canada. Drexel University, and Melissa Walker, Coordinator of the Healing Arts Program at the National Center of Intrepid Excellence at the Walter Reed National Military Center (NICoE), Maryland.
The Intensive Four-Week Outpatient Program NICoE, which included art therapy, psychiatry, and physiotherapy, began in 2010. During the first week of the program, soldiers complete a mental health survey, and then ask them to create masks. showing their feelings.
Courtesy of NICoE
Mask depicting the identification to a military unit by the inclusion of l & # 39; badge of elimination of explosive ordnance, also known as "crab".
"Art therapy has helped many people approach their struggles through self-expression," Kaimal said. "It is a form of psychotherapy applicable to anyone facing psychosocial struggles and / or seeking ways to improve health and well-being."
Kaimal and his team of researchers analyzed the symbolism and imagery of 370 masks. More than a quarter of the soldiers who made masks reflecting psychological wounds – such as being unable to speak – reported suffering from severe PTSD. Soldiers whose masks showed fragmented military symbols – such as a torn American flag – signaled higher anxiety.
For example, in Stowe's mask, researchers identified "two aspects of self, representations of sadness, and physical and psychological wounds".
However, masks with military unit identity images – such as the crab symbol of the explosive ordnance disposal emblem – or images related to nature were correlated with lower levels of PTSD and depression .
Courtesy of Drexel
Mask showing the use of fragmented military symbols such as flags, camouflage cloth and dog tags.
At the end of the month, one-third of participants said that they liked the art therapy 19 percent said it allowed them to focus and 14 percent said that they could relax. 19659014] One in five participants say that art therapy has helped them to socialize and talk openly about their wounds, their treatment and other difficulties
"What Art Created in art therapy helps to visually represent the inner struggles of service members – humanizing and helping us "see" their experiences, "said Kaimal. "Being able to express, communicate and share authentic experiences is an important part of getting proper treatment and clinical care."
Courtesy of Drexel [19659010] Mask showing the use of internal psychological metaphors soldier states.
"I think that's what makes it intimidating for a lot of people," Stowe said. Stowe, who retired from the Marine Corps in 2016, now lives in Tampa and works as a school security director for a county school system.
On Sunday, he runs a four-hour glass-blowing workshop for soldiers and veterans. He finds that often, those who hesitate to try other forms of art therapy appreciate the blowing of glass.
"[It’s] glass melted at the end of a stem," he said. "It's heavy, it's loud, they do not realize they're doing art."
Stowe hopes his work will reduce the prejudices facing soldiers in active service when they seek help in mental health
Courtesy of Chris Stowe
Chris Stowe, 43, in a glassblowing shop as part of of his current therapy art.
He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression in 2007, but did not seek treatment for two years.
"[Soldiers] does not like to see when someone is hurt," he said. "If they're not going to deploy because they're receiving treatment, it could spoil promotions."
That's why he focuses on his help and that of other soldiers to heal through art therapy.
is a comma, not a period in my life, "said Stowe. "I have a lot more to offer."
Published:
[ad_2]
Source link
