How Expressive Arts Encourage and Promote the Power of Healing
By Christina Nieves DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, Chief Nurse Administrator, Director BSN, MSN Programs
would ultimately choose a career in science that would allow me to continue helping people. Still, I longed for a life that also in- corporated the arts and always found artistic discipline to be a vehicle of self-expression, empowering us to reveal our hidden truths to ourselves and the world.
A Creative Connections While pursuing a career as a family
nurse practitioner, I continued to create deeply personal art and I aspired to show others the power that art has in healing. During a nursing conference, I presented a series of sculptures depicting psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ theory on death and dying. I noticed a woman wandering the room and continually circling back to my display. When we had the opportunity to speak privately, she asked, “How did you know?” and shared that my sculp- tures spoke to her on a spiritual level. The woman further disclosed that she identified with each “face” that my sculptures were conveying — depression, anger, bargain- ing, and acceptance — and she divulged to me the tragic story of her husband’s death. For me, this moment exemplified the true power of expressive arts, and, in the connection that I shared with a complete stranger, the captivating effect of storytell- ing through something tangible.
An Education in Expressive Arts In the 1990’s, there was limited
research on art as a healing modality, so I began connecting with others in the field. In 2002, on the journey to my doctoral degree, I earned a certificate as an Expres- sive Arts Facilitator. Facilitating expressive art workshops for more than 18 years has taught me to pay attention to:
s I was growing up I often assisted my aging grandmother and through that experience I somehow knew I
• My impressions, thoughts, and images: An introspective instruction, art is often a metaphor in which the artist holds the key to its understanding.
• My particular choice of art: Each modality of art holds a specific value and significance. If I work with poetry, I can express myself through imagery. If I work with fibers, I can work out intricacies through the story I am weav- ing. Whatever the method, the best part about expressive art is that there is no wrong way to tell your story.
• Our collective everyday experience: This taught me to be present, to embrace life, and to engage with the people I encounter every day.
• Healthcare facilities that incorporate the use of the arts: Innovative hospitals integrate rotating galleries on their walls and utilize the skills of visual artists, musicians, dancers, and storytellers to engage patients, staff, and the public.
• Expressive arts research: Pay attention to institutions like Goodwin University that focus on curricula that incorporate the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework, promoting art and other ac- tivities to instruct, inspire, and heal. The last decade has brought about quality research on the benefits of art. We now know that in some cases, art can reduce pain and symptoms associated with different diseases. We also know that art can improve mood, reduce depression and anxiety, and increase the overall quality of life.
I have had the honor of standing before people who were no strangers to hardship. They were pupils and patients with purpose: cancer and domestic vio- lence survivors, HIV patients, incarcerated individuals, and those facing homelessness,
addiction, and physical and mental illness. And I watched as producing art had a pro- found impact on them all.
Unless we are pursuing art as a career, most of us stop “playing” with art before we reach adolescence. What a pleasant surprise to discover, as adults, how enjoy- able and therapeutic self-expression can be! In a community setting, many find the arts a unifying activity that reveals com- monalities unknown before participating in the art workshops. Through expressive art, people can capture the otherwise unspeak- able, exposing bits and pieces of them- selves at their choosing. When we engage in outward expression, we show our inner selves, as if to proudly say, “I am here, and this is me.”
Christina Nieves DNP, APRN, FNP-BC educates and encour- ages evidence-based expres- sion as a means to mend. As a visual/performing artist and nurse, Christina appreciates
that the nursing field allows students to bring their interests into the profession. Christina has worked in nursing educa- tion for more than 20 years as a direc- tor, program developer, and instructor in online, on-campus, and clinical capacities in undergraduate and graduate levels. An author, award recipient, judge, and peer- reviewer; Christina attests that Goodwin University’s dedicated nursing faculty and their commitment to students are excep- tional, and she is honored to be the pro- gram director for Goodwin’s BSN, MSN, and Family Nurse Practitioner programs. Do you want to know more about art as a modality to heal? She’d love to hear from you. Call today: 800.889.3282 or learn more at:
www.goodwin.edu/fnp. See ad on page 36.
www.NaturalNutmeg.com 37
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
