Kasha Akhtar (SESP ’23) started therapy in 2019 while she was a student at Northwestern. The following year, her therapist suggested they start incorporating art therapy in her sessions. Akhtar decided to give it a try.
“I’ve always been super into art just for expressing myself. That’s always kind of been an avenue that I’ve used for myself,” Akhtar said.
Akhtar participated in art therapy from 2020 to 2024. She said she found art therapy helpful in allowing her to express her feelings and process trauma.
Creative arts therapies include using art, music, dance, drama and more to express and work through emotions and symptoms of mental health disorders. These therapies are being deployed across the U.S. to treat patients of all ages, including young adults like Akhtar.
She sometimes engaged with art therapy through programs at Compass Health Center in Northbrook, which provides specialized behavioral health care for individuals in Chicago through partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs.
Akhtar was participating in one of those programs on the anniversary of her mother’s death, and art therapy helped her cope with the heavy emotions of that day.
“I think for the first time in a long time, it allowed me to, while I was making art, cry and really actively grieve in the moment and really be in touch with my emotions,” Akhtar said.
Research shows creative arts therapies are effective in treating a variety of mental health conditions. A critical review published in the Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry that examined 23 studies on creative arts therapies’ effectiveness in individuals under the age of 24 showed overwhelmingly positive results across the globe for mental health conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety.
Informed by that research, the Institute for Therapy through the Arts, a nonprofit located in Evanston, is deploying creative arts therapies to treat mental health conditions. The organization provides art, music, drama and dance and movement therapy for people of all ages.
Jazmin Royg is a dance and movement therapist and ITA’s intake coordinator. During intake sessions, she engages clients with each of the four modalities of therapy that ITA offers and conducts a conversation about which modalities felt comfortable and expressive for the clients.
Using her observations and the client’s preference, Royg then helps match clients with a therapist at ITA. She said her position is very rewarding.
“I love when a client shares their story, and they are just so happy with what they have been working (on), or when a parent comes and is like, ‘Look, this happened,’ and you can really be part of those experiences,” Royg said.
Clare Burke, an art therapist and clinical manager of programs at ITA, explained what an average art therapy session might look like. First, she said, an art therapist might start with a check-in that could be either verbal or artistic, such as asking the client to make a drawing representing something that was difficult for them in the past week.
The art therapist would observe the client and choose their next steps based on the check in, she said. For example, she might not recommend watercolor paint to a client who expresses feeling like they lack control in their life because it is a difficult material to control. She might ask that client to choose a medium that allows them to gain more control in the session, she said.
The therapy session might end with a “check-out,” or a brief reflection on the session, Burke said.
Burke added that while young people make up a large portion of clients at ITA, the creative arts therapies the organization offers can be helpful to anyone, regardless of age, condition or artistic skill level.
“You don’t have to be an artist. You don’t have to be a musician to be able to engage in these therapies, because nobody’s judging your skill. It’s about how you express yourself in the modality,” she said.
Dr. Borna Bonakdarpour is a professor at the Feinberg School of Medicine and a neurologist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. He studies how treatments using music can improve patient outcomes.
In 2021, Bonakdarpour conducted a study aimed at relieving feelings of anxiety and loneliness for patients of all ages in the neurological unit of Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Participants were offered 30-40 minute personalized live music sessions by a violist in consultation with a music therapist and a certified music practitioner.
The pilot program was extremely successful, with 92% of participants reporting that it improved their emotional state.
“When the pandemic happened, people needed what’s called psychological first aid. And music therapists are trained to do that,” Bonakdarpour said.
More broadly, creative arts therapies are also being used to address psychological symptoms resulting from other conditions, such as stroke and dementia. Bonakdarpour has used music to help treat patients with aphasia, a brain condition that impairs speech. He has also worked with ITA to create the Musical Bridges to Memory program, which provides an interactive music session with music therapists for dementia patients and their families.
One limitation of creative arts therapies is accessibility. Many insurance plans don’t cover these therapies, and some patients don’t have insurance, Royg, Burke and Bonakdarpour noted.
One way ITA is reckoning with this limitation is by providing grants and financial assistance to help cover the cost of its services, Burke said. Royg added that the organization is working toward accepting Medicaid plans.
Bonakdarpour stressed this limitation, noting that music therapists go through special education and licensing, and their work should be recognized by insurance companies. He also noted the challenge of funding additional studies and programs to continue the effective music treatments he has used.
Akhtar discontinued therapy in 2024 after she developed sufficient coping mechanisms and skills to “deal with (her) past trauma and any everyday stressors,” she said. But if she ever feels she needs therapy again, she will incorporate art therapy into her regimen, she said.
“I think for me, sometimes it can be very hard to put my experiences into words,” Akhtar said. “I think a combination of therapies is what helped me the most, and when it comes to art therapy specifically, I know there were some (strategies) that really hit home and helped me process.”
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