Working Creatively for Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing
Are you interested in exploring how the arts can contribute to wellbeing and happiness? Are you working in this area and want time to reflect on your work and develop your practice?
To start this praXis debate 20 artists worked with Colleen Shekerie, Mental Health Community Development Co-ordinator for Sandwell Primary Care Trust to explore the issue in July 2009. Amongst other things Colleen leads the Confidence and Wellbeing Team which aims to create opportunities for people to manage and improve their own wellbeing. The team of self-help coaches run stress awareness sessions, health improvement programmes and support projects like Books on Prescription.
Colleen feels that providing opportunities for people to participate in arts activities plays an important role in this work. In her view, benefits of participating in an effective arts and health project include improved self esteem, increased confidence and a feeling of empowerment, all essential ingredients of wellbeing and happiness.
Colleen asked us to remember that we have a responsibility to make sure our own practice is healthy and invited us to explore the things that contribute to our own wellbeing and happiness. Clearly we need to demonstrate the impact of arts and health work but do we also need to make sure we look after ourselves as well? If so, how do people do that? Can we learn from other professions? If this is the case, what and how can we transfer lessons to an arts and health context?
Click here to see the presentation Colleen used in the workshop, so that you can explore these issues further.
