MENTAL HEALTH AND IMAGERY
Art been used has to portray feelings, thoughts and behaviours in therapeutic contexts for many years. It has been typically used in art therapy contexts. In CBT it can be used to help an individual share the image that they have of themselves with the therapist so that distortions in self-image can both be revealed and corrected.
The image on this page has been drawn by Tracy White, an artist from the UK, who had a strong empathy with the understanding of Anorexia. She has agreed to show her paintings on this page to help others understand the internal struggles that individuals with this disorder may experience.
The first image below conveys feelings that were described as " a stuffed feeling, feeling full after having bed rest, and eating a lot of food, causing a bloated feeling, thus increasing pain and panic". Thoughts were "I must avoid eating to avoid these feelings". Behaviours were to directly avoid eating . The image below reveals how intense the feelings, thoughts and behaviours can become when suffering from Anorexia Nervosa. The fists and hands being inside of the stomach revealed an intrusion deep into the self. Images such as these help us to understand the inner workings of the minds of sufferers of this disorder. Through depictions of this knowledge of the intimate feelings of such sufferers, therapy can help address any distortions in self-image as well as their associated feelings, thoughts and behaviours.
© Permission is required to copy this image and show it elsewhere. Contact tracywhite@me.com for permission to replicate.