How can art be used positively to help children with special needs?

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How can art be used positively to help children with special needs?

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed

Most children will benefit from developing their skills in art. Most children who are suffering with symptoms associated with most mental health disorders can showed marked improvement by time spent with art. Daniella Barroqueiro, M.A., Ed.D. is a college professor who herself has what she describes as ADHD. She believes that the downside of Attention Deficit Disorder can be reversed and turned into a positive. Art as a creative outlet, that is her passion, has helped her to channel symptoms associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in a positive direction, in the art room. Daniella explains,

“When talking about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), it is common to focus on the ‘downside’ of the disorder, the challenges, the frustration, how to ‘fix’ a problem or a set of problems. Notice I refer to a downside, which implies that there is also an upside to having ADHD/ADD. Intelligence, creativity, spontaneity and the ability to hyper-focus (yes, hyper-focus) are among the characteristics commonly found in people with ADHD/ADD.”

Art can effectively slow down the mind, it can give a person an emotional outlet. It helps one to maintain sustained concentration. It can effectively help to stabilize erratic moods. It also helps adults and children to get time for their minds to find solitude and peace, and to heal. It can be a part of natural healing. The mind that is bombarded by the constant stimulation of television, music, or media violence, has little time to heal.

Art as an effective self help therapy, or it is something that parents, educators and caregivers can encourage, for children who have mental health difficulties or who are emotionally disturbed, it has much value. The use of art as a therapy, {in the long-term, when considered in terms of long-term efficacy}, can be more effective than the use of psychiatric medicines which have many side effects for the majority of children and teens and adults, and which are being overused today.

Art as self help and arts therapy can also be of value in addiction treatment, as it helps to build self esteem, which is essential in overcoming any type of addiction. Art and professional art therapy also find a prominent place in helping those who are addicted to pornography to break that chain of pornography addiction. Porn addiction and masturbation contributing factors towards depression for some persons. One university clinical study has confirmed a correlation between these factors.

Art definitly is something positive for children. There are benefits for the majority of children if parents can help them to learn to develop an interest in art. Some of those benefits are, it helps children avoid overindulgence in television, movies and video games. Feelings of self worth, and self esteem can be enhanced in children, as they see what they can produce through their own imaginations through art. To see is to believe. “If I did that, then I mustbe worth something.”

As a child starts to find pleasure in developing his artistic talents in art on a regular basis, it is likely that he or she may find pleasure in creating with art over a lifetime, especially if he or she understands why art can be be of help, and how television and especially, media violence and sexualized content, can negatively impact the mind and psychological profile, the emotions of a child, teen or adult. An interest in art can help a child teen or adult to be more creative, use his own imagination, as well as to become more of a rather than a viewer.

This article was produced by John Samuels of the Association for Natural Psychology. Please also visit our bookstore. Natural psychology, self help for treatment of mental health disorders, natural cures of mental health disorders, depression treatment without drugs, positive parenting, raising and teaching special needs children, and a variety of related subjects are considered. You can also see our new book,
Overcoming ADHD without Medication: A Parent’s and Educator’s Guidebook on Amazon, Alibris and other online locations. The Association for Natural Psychology is a New Jersey non-profit corporation.

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