Art Therapy
Center for Eating Disorders
at Focus Healthcare of Tennessee
Overview
Art therapy is....
by Jas Milam, MAAT
Where it All Began, extend a drawing, Patient "C" at Focus Healthcare
C. made this drawing during art therapy about her eating disorder. She chose this painting from an art magazine which she cut out, glued down and extended. To the dance practice room she added only more empty space. This simple “self portrait” (she identifies herself with the dancer) is an articulate summation of her eating disorder itself. ED hallmarks present include a body-conscious activity, a performing self, the watcher, body dismorphia, the accompanist and finally, a completely apt metaphor.
On the surface it appears that she has chosen a body-conscious activity, which, like gymnastics, figure skating and swimming calls attention to her young body. This in turn may create a set-up for an ED when the body reaches puberty and begins to blossom in a way that feels out of control. It is tempting to say this is society’s fault and that our superficial “look good” values have women obsessed with unrealistic and hard-to-achieve body images. (Intervention at this point – age 12 or so – can stall or stop the ED from taking root.) But this drawing, like eating disorders themselves, has other, more subtle layers. Dance is about performance, and the idea that we are here to entertain and delight others. This amounts to an external locus of control; she is always seeing herself and her life through other people’s eyes. In fact there is a “watcher” present in the doorway of the dance studio, ostensibly the person C. originally performed for. All of the emphasis on others’ perception leads to a detached quality, a mind/body disconnect and co- dependence. The mirrors in the dance practice room speak to a phenomenon called “body dismorphia”. This is an inability to see the body accurately in a mirror. People who are too thin literally see themselves as still fat (and overweight people see themselves thinner than they really are.) When we look very carefully at this drawing we see an often overlooked but very important person playing the piano. This is the behind the scenes enabler, the accompanist. Who plays that role in the life of the patient?
Art therapy can bring these dynamics into the light. This plus grace loosens the grip of the E.D. story and gives the patient with an E.D. a chance to do it differently. The beautiful metaphor we see in C.’s drawing is… FOCUS helps the recovering ED patient to dance body, mind and spirit to her own music as the star of her own life!
Copyright2011jasmilam
Jas Milam is a native Chattanoogan who lives on Missionary Ridge. She graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983 and recently completed a Masters degree in Art and Art Therapy. Jas has over 25 years of experience in recovery from addictions, and has worked with both typical and special populations of children, teens and adults. She is a former board member of AVA and has been nominated for Tennessee Woman Artist of the Year. Jas was a presenter at the 2010 Tennessee Art Therapy Association conference. Jas currently conducts workshops for individuals and groups at the Rivoli Art Mill in East Lake. Jas is the Art Therapist for Focus Healthcare of Tennessee, treating chemical dependency and eating disorders. She also facilitates art therapy groups at local treatment centers and at the AIM Center downtown. Jas believes in the healing inherent in the creative process and makes art that draws on both religious and secular imagery. She is currently making altar art and chapel paintings. Contact Jas at (423) 322.2514 or visit jasmilam.com