Art Therapy Group Directives: a DBT group in long-term residential treatment
I ran a DBT-informed art therapy group for preteens and teens who were in a long-term residential and/or school placement. This group was closed, co-ed, largely white but not entirely, and met twice a week for an hour.
This residential/school program is based on the DBT model: Dialectical Behavior Therapy. In brief, DBT is a model of treatment focused on validation, mindfulness, and skills practice. Treatment is based on the belief that clients are trying their best but lack basic skills to effectively manage their emotions and relationships. It also incorporates self-awareness and accountability on the part of therapist that we are all fallible and can use practice in the skill areas of DBT.
For more information on DBT check out these links:
http://behavioraltech.org/resources/whatisdbt.cfm
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/dbt/
Below are some of the art therapy directives I used with that group.I share these directives with art therapists: if you are not trained in art therapy, please only consider trying these directives with an art therapist co-facilitator or supervisor. I have organized the directives under the four areas of skills practice as they are taught in individual and group treatment. Some of these directives are not created by me, I just used them in this particular setting for skills use/ DBT therapy purposes. I will put a * by those I developed myself.
Mindfulness:
a. Scribble Drawings. Play some music (fast or slow depending on your read of the group's need) and ask participants to scribble on a medium-large sheet of paper for 1-2 minutes. Then ask participants to look for images within the scribble and accentuate these with markers or colored pencils. Support members in checking in with themselves during this process, staying mindful of their feelings and thoughts.
b. *Thought Tracking. Have participants sit in silence for 5-10 minutes with paper and pencils. Ask them to track their thoughts and feelings and depict them on the paper through words or images as they come. Tell participants: Notice judgments you may have about your thoughts and feelings as they come up. Track those judgments as well, maybe with + or - symbols or with the colored pencil you use or with your own creative symbols.
Distress Tolerance:
a. Watercolor Pools. Provide each participant with a medium-large sheet of watercolor paper taped down to the table, a jar of water, and watercolor paints and brushes. Ask participants to pour water onto paper. Ask members to go against their tendency, pouring a lot of water if they only want a little or pouring a small amount if they want a lot. Then have them dip their brushes in watercolor paint (tubes work better than dry sets for this) and dip the paint-coated brushes into the water. Tell participants: Notice the colors expand and drift and mingle in unexpected ways as you add more paint. Track feelings of distress and practice skills if lack of control of the colors troubles you. If you only have a small pool of water and a lot of space to paint with more control on your paper, track feelings of distress for having to stay in control of your medium.
Emotion Regulation:
a. *Skills Dice. Using small wooden blocks, depict with an image (painted or drawn in permanent materials) and a key word or two the skills you use to regulate yourself. Example: deep breathing or exercising. Put a skill on each of the 6 sides. Coat in acrylic gloss to seal. Tell participants: If you can't fill the dice, ask for help figuring out your skills - you have more than you think! Take your dice with you to remind you of what you can do when you are beginning to get (or are already) stressed out.
Interpersonal Effectiveness:
a. *Collaborative Paintings. (Also great for distress tolerance) Using small canvases and permanent paints, have participants take turns putting marks/images on a canvas and then passing the canvas to their left so that others can add to it. Leave room for others to paint as well. Tell participants: Track your feelings and use your skills to cope as you watch the evolution of your original image. Use your interpersonal effectiveness skills as you add to other images, considering that others may feel similarly to you about their original paintings. Also use your interpersonal skills as you consider and may want to respond to what others are painting before and after you.
Variation: Have participants work in pairs and create a painting together. Support them when needed in using skills in this process.
This residential/school program is based on the DBT model: Dialectical Behavior Therapy. In brief, DBT is a model of treatment focused on validation, mindfulness, and skills practice. Treatment is based on the belief that clients are trying their best but lack basic skills to effectively manage their emotions and relationships. It also incorporates self-awareness and accountability on the part of therapist that we are all fallible and can use practice in the skill areas of DBT.
For more information on DBT check out these links:
http://behavioraltech.org/resources/whatisdbt.cfm
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/dbt/
Below are some of the art therapy directives I used with that group.I share these directives with art therapists: if you are not trained in art therapy, please only consider trying these directives with an art therapist co-facilitator or supervisor. I have organized the directives under the four areas of skills practice as they are taught in individual and group treatment. Some of these directives are not created by me, I just used them in this particular setting for skills use/ DBT therapy purposes. I will put a * by those I developed myself.
Mindfulness:
a. Scribble Drawings. Play some music (fast or slow depending on your read of the group's need) and ask participants to scribble on a medium-large sheet of paper for 1-2 minutes. Then ask participants to look for images within the scribble and accentuate these with markers or colored pencils. Support members in checking in with themselves during this process, staying mindful of their feelings and thoughts.
b. *Thought Tracking. Have participants sit in silence for 5-10 minutes with paper and pencils. Ask them to track their thoughts and feelings and depict them on the paper through words or images as they come. Tell participants: Notice judgments you may have about your thoughts and feelings as they come up. Track those judgments as well, maybe with + or - symbols or with the colored pencil you use or with your own creative symbols.
Distress Tolerance:
a. Watercolor Pools. Provide each participant with a medium-large sheet of watercolor paper taped down to the table, a jar of water, and watercolor paints and brushes. Ask participants to pour water onto paper. Ask members to go against their tendency, pouring a lot of water if they only want a little or pouring a small amount if they want a lot. Then have them dip their brushes in watercolor paint (tubes work better than dry sets for this) and dip the paint-coated brushes into the water. Tell participants: Notice the colors expand and drift and mingle in unexpected ways as you add more paint. Track feelings of distress and practice skills if lack of control of the colors troubles you. If you only have a small pool of water and a lot of space to paint with more control on your paper, track feelings of distress for having to stay in control of your medium.
Emotion Regulation:
a. *Skills Dice. Using small wooden blocks, depict with an image (painted or drawn in permanent materials) and a key word or two the skills you use to regulate yourself. Example: deep breathing or exercising. Put a skill on each of the 6 sides. Coat in acrylic gloss to seal. Tell participants: If you can't fill the dice, ask for help figuring out your skills - you have more than you think! Take your dice with you to remind you of what you can do when you are beginning to get (or are already) stressed out.
Interpersonal Effectiveness:
a. *Collaborative Paintings. (Also great for distress tolerance) Using small canvases and permanent paints, have participants take turns putting marks/images on a canvas and then passing the canvas to their left so that others can add to it. Leave room for others to paint as well. Tell participants: Track your feelings and use your skills to cope as you watch the evolution of your original image. Use your interpersonal effectiveness skills as you add to other images, considering that others may feel similarly to you about their original paintings. Also use your interpersonal skills as you consider and may want to respond to what others are painting before and after you.
Variation: Have participants work in pairs and create a painting together. Support them when needed in using skills in this process.
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