How art helps to fight mental illness

“MENTAL ILLNESS COMES WITH A PACKAGE- SHAME: WHEN ANY OTHER PART OF YOUR BODY GETS SICK  YOU GET SYMPATHY….”

Art is a very powerful way of expressing your feelings without even saying a word. It is a very beautiful form of communication where one can express their love, their inner emotions freely and what they truly feel is exhibited through their art.

Mental illness is a disorder that can cause mild to severe disturbances in thought or behaviour which make it very difficult for the person to cope up with the ordinary routine. It makes the person very lethargic and he/she does not feel to do anything rather they become obsessed about themselves. The famous scientist Thomas Insel rightly said:  when a person suffers from mental illness he/she start comparing themselves to others.

Art and mental illness are closely related to each other in the sense that art can be a perfect way to treat mental illness because art makes it easy for the person suffering from mental illness to understand things. Art helps the person to manage stress, anxiety, grief, attention disorders as well as it also helps the person to fight against their addictions.

 Let us discuss how art helps a person to fight mental illness:

1.SELF DISCOVERY

Discovering or creating art can lead to self-discovery. A person can do a SWOT analysis about themselves and can then know accordingly which area they have to work upon in order to cure their mental illness. Creating or observing art can help you acknowledge and recognize feelings that must have been lurking in the subconscious mind.

 

2.SELF ESTEEM

Art can help to tremendously build your self-esteem. The process of art will give you a feeling of accomplishment and you will feel motivated which will prove to be a boon and will be very valuable to improve your self-appreciation and confidence. Expressing your feelings through the form of art will imbibe in you the need to love yourself and why it is important to cure mental illness.

 

3.EMOTIONAL RELEASE

The greatest benefit of art is that it provides you with a platform to express your inner feelings which are otherwise difficult to express to others. More complex emotions such as anger and sadness if not expressed can destroy you from inside leaving nothing but only stress, and through art, it is possible to release your emotions which will make it easy for you to fight the battle of mental illness.


4.STRESS RELIEF

Art is a very good way to release your stress. A person suffering from mental illness has no control over the level of stress and anxiety caused due to mental illness, but creating or observing art will make it easy for you to release these monstrous emotions and this will help you to release your stress

Studies have also shown that creating or observing art stimulates the release of Dopamine. This is a type of chemical which is released in our body when we do something pleasurable or according to our interest and the release of this chemical basically makes us feel happier, increased level of this feel-good neurotransmitter can be very helpful for a person who is battling mental illness.


At last, we can say that mental illness is not a disease but is only a disorder that can be treated easily with love and care. Art is one of the best ways to treat this illness and build your self-esteem. We can call this art therapy which basically using art and creative means to heal from mental illness. The well being of the person is improved by releasing negative emotions. So, battling mental illness with full motivation is very necessary because a healthy life is a key to happiness!

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