Transpersonal Art Therapy
Transpersonal Art Therapy brings together therapeutic practice and creative expression to explore the experiences, emotions, relationships, beliefs and meanings that shape our lives.
What is Transpersonal Art Therapy?
Creative processes can provide another way to explore experiences that may be difficult to access through conversation alone. Through drawing, imagery, writing, symbolism, metaphor and other forms of creative expression, therapy can support reflection, emotional processing, self-understanding and exploration of meaning.
The approach is informed by applied neurobiology, psychobiology and transpersonal psychology, with attention to the ways our nervous system, emotions, thoughts, body, relationships, imagination and sense of meaning can interact.
Transpersonal Art Therapy can also provide space to explore experiences of identity, connection, values, spirituality or personal meaning, where these are relevant to the person and their therapeutic goals.
You don't need to be an artist. There is no expectation to create technically skilled artwork. The creative process itself is the therapeutic medium.
Transpersonal Art Therapy may support exploration of:
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emotional experiences and life difficulties
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identity and changes in sense of self
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stress, overwhelm and psychological wellbeing
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grief, loss and significant life transitions
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experiences that feel difficult to express through words
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patterns of thinking, feeling and responding
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personal values, meaning and purpose
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connection with creativity, imagination and possibility
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the relationship between psychological and embodied experience
An integrative approach
Sessions are adapted to the person rather than following a prescribed creative process. Therapeutic conversation and creative practice can be woven together according to what feels appropriate and useful.
Depending on your needs and goals, this may involve transpersonal counselling skills, art therapy processes, reflective conversation, creative exploration or practices informed by mindbody approaches.
The work is undertaken in alignment with ethical and professional practice standards, with attention to safety, consent, boundaries and the person's individual circumstances.
Why use creative practice in therapy?
Words are one way we make sense of our experiences, but they aren't the only way.
Images, colour, metaphor, symbolism and creative processes can sometimes help us approach experiences from a different perspective, notice things that have been difficult to articulate, or create space for reflection and new meaning.
In Transpersonal Art Therapy, creativity isn't about producing a particular kind of artwork. It is used as a therapeutic process alongside conversation and reflection to create a space to help us slow down, notice what is happening, explore something from a different perspective and reconnect with parts of ourselves that may have become harder to access during periods of pain, illness, stress or change.
The Practitioner
Allissa Roane-Spray
Social Worker (MSW)
Holistic Art Therapist
Founder Living Systems Health