Art therapy can be an effective supplement in a comprehensive and holistic addiction treatment process, allowing clients to learn new coping skills that can help them manage their addiction. It can be a great way for a person to explore aspects of their life that they may not be able to explain in a traditional, conversational way. Creating art gives an outward and physical expression of one’s feelings and when most addiction recovery work is done on the inside, the art allows clients to view their progress in a concrete, outward way.

When done in a group setting, as it is here at ART, art therapy can also help people going through recovery grow closer and better understand one another’s experiences, highlighting that they are not alone in their journey’s.

Recovery is about change and doing things differently, stepping outside of one’s comfort zone and learning to live your life in a new way. Art therapy is uniquely positioned to address the neuroscience of addiction through its integrative process. It is a sensorimotor activity, engaging all of the senses and activating the right side of the brain. Creating art can quiet the analytical, scientific mind and instead activate the playful, creative, and introspective part of the brain to open up. Trying something new like art therapy can also help the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual experience translate into other aspects of recovery.

Our Art Therapy program at Addictions Rehab Toronto is a safe space for clients to express themselves, try something new and engage in the mindfulness that happens during the creative process.