Art Therapy as a Sex Addiction Treatment
Updated June 08, 2015.
Art therapy is a process of using creative expression to help people overcome problems. In combination with other treatments, this approach might help those suffering from sex addiction.
Art therapy uses art making to improve and enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of people who need help overcoming a variety of problems. Although there is no clear evidence of its effectiveness in treating sex addictions, proponents of the treatment believe that by expressing yourself through art you will be able to overcome your addiction by learning how to better resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight.
A trained art therapist guides you through the process, which integrates visual art (such as drawing, painting, sculpture, etc.) and the creative process itself with counseling and psychotherapy.
Using paints, drawing with markers, colored pencils, chalk pastels and oil pastels, clay or collage materials, on paper of a variety of sizes:
Themes that often come up for sex addicts include:
The idea that art therapy can help you overcome sex addiction may seem odd at first.
But once you realize how difficult it can be to express your feelings in words, the freedom of expression that art therapy allows begins to make sense. Put simply, pictures can communicate information that is difficult to put into words.
Artwork is produced using the right side of the brain, which is the creative side, whereas speech uses the left side, which is more rational and subject to defenses and control. This allows people to “let out” more through art than they might be able to in words.
When people are active in their sexual addictions, much is unspoken. You live in a world of images (whether real or imagined), many of which are socially unacceptable, seem dangerous, or are illicit in some way. Pictures can reveal information that may have been shrouded in secrecy during the addiction, in ways that allow the person to disclose without using words, or to show the intensity of experiences without revealing the specifics of what happened.
As well as the communication and expression of emotions and events, art therapy can help with the emotional processing required to develop understanding of yourself and your addiction. Looking at artwork that you have produced can allow you and your therapist to reflect on what is going on inside you more objectively.
Much of the history of people with sexual addictions is traumatic and overwhelming. Art is an effective way of “containing” overwhelming emotions that may be associated with sex addiction, trauma and abuse, such as rage, despair, terror and pain, allowing you to stay with the feelings more easily than you might with talking alone. Art also allows people to portray events even when they are dissociated from them, so they can become more connected with their reality.
Art therapy can help people to work through traumatic and abusive experiences from the past, which are common among people with sexual addictions. People who were abused early in life may not be able to put their experiences into words, but may be able to depict them in images.
As with all therapies, art therapy is best conducted by someone with appropriate training both in the technique and the conditions being treated. Any risks associated with art therapy as a sex addiction treatment are reduced by ensuring that your therapist has these competencies.
However, as with all therapies, art therapy opens you up to your vulnerabilities. Art therapy can “trigger” the addiction, giving the sexually addicted individual cravings to engage in their desired sexual experience, particularly experiences reflected in the artwork. A skilled therapist will be aware of this, and encourage the client to be open about this occurring.
Art therapy can trigger feelings of shame, which, it is argued, are central to sex addiction. Shame can be a particularly difficult emotion to disclose. If you go into the therapeutic experience prepared for this, it will be easier to express your shame when it occurs, and to trust your therapist to help you cope with and work through this and other difficult feelings.
Some addiction rehabilitation programs have art therapy as an integral part of the treatment process.
You can also search for a qualified art therapist using the American Art Therapy Association’s website.
Sources
American Art Therapy Association (AATA). “About Art Therapy.” http://www.arttherapy.org/aboutart.htm Retrieved 23 September 2009.
Wilson, M. “Portrait of a Sex Addict.” Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity 5:231-50. 1998.
Art therapy is a process of using creative expression to help people overcome problems. In combination with other treatments, this approach might help those suffering from sex addiction.
What is Art Therapy?
Art therapy uses art making to improve and enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of people who need help overcoming a variety of problems. Although there is no clear evidence of its effectiveness in treating sex addictions, proponents of the treatment believe that by expressing yourself through art you will be able to overcome your addiction by learning how to better resolve conflicts and problems, develop interpersonal skills, manage behavior, reduce stress, increase self-esteem and self-awareness, and achieve insight.
A trained art therapist guides you through the process, which integrates visual art (such as drawing, painting, sculpture, etc.) and the creative process itself with counseling and psychotherapy.
Some Examples of Art Therapy Exercises for Sex Addicts
Using paints, drawing with markers, colored pencils, chalk pastels and oil pastels, clay or collage materials, on paper of a variety of sizes:
- Portray the sex addict “type” you most identify with (of Carnes’ ten types of sex addict).
- Sexual fantasy vs. reality: draw a picture that compares your ultimate sexual fantasy with the reality of the experience.
- Portray the aspects of abuse that you carry into adulthood.
- Portray co-addictions, such as gambling, alcohol, drugs, and spending.
Themes that often come up for sex addicts include:
- Sexual/erotic content
- Sex paraphernalia
- Constraint/entrapment
- Men depicting women as sexual objects
- Loneliness
- Opposites (eg. good vs. evil)
How Can Art Therapy Help Me Overcome Sex Addiction?
The idea that art therapy can help you overcome sex addiction may seem odd at first.
But once you realize how difficult it can be to express your feelings in words, the freedom of expression that art therapy allows begins to make sense. Put simply, pictures can communicate information that is difficult to put into words.
Artwork is produced using the right side of the brain, which is the creative side, whereas speech uses the left side, which is more rational and subject to defenses and control. This allows people to “let out” more through art than they might be able to in words.
When people are active in their sexual addictions, much is unspoken. You live in a world of images (whether real or imagined), many of which are socially unacceptable, seem dangerous, or are illicit in some way. Pictures can reveal information that may have been shrouded in secrecy during the addiction, in ways that allow the person to disclose without using words, or to show the intensity of experiences without revealing the specifics of what happened.
As well as the communication and expression of emotions and events, art therapy can help with the emotional processing required to develop understanding of yourself and your addiction. Looking at artwork that you have produced can allow you and your therapist to reflect on what is going on inside you more objectively.
Much of the history of people with sexual addictions is traumatic and overwhelming. Art is an effective way of “containing” overwhelming emotions that may be associated with sex addiction, trauma and abuse, such as rage, despair, terror and pain, allowing you to stay with the feelings more easily than you might with talking alone. Art also allows people to portray events even when they are dissociated from them, so they can become more connected with their reality.
Art therapy can help people to work through traumatic and abusive experiences from the past, which are common among people with sexual addictions. People who were abused early in life may not be able to put their experiences into words, but may be able to depict them in images.
Risks of Art Therapy as a Sex Addiction Treatment
As with all therapies, art therapy is best conducted by someone with appropriate training both in the technique and the conditions being treated. Any risks associated with art therapy as a sex addiction treatment are reduced by ensuring that your therapist has these competencies.
However, as with all therapies, art therapy opens you up to your vulnerabilities. Art therapy can “trigger” the addiction, giving the sexually addicted individual cravings to engage in their desired sexual experience, particularly experiences reflected in the artwork. A skilled therapist will be aware of this, and encourage the client to be open about this occurring.
Art therapy can trigger feelings of shame, which, it is argued, are central to sex addiction. Shame can be a particularly difficult emotion to disclose. If you go into the therapeutic experience prepared for this, it will be easier to express your shame when it occurs, and to trust your therapist to help you cope with and work through this and other difficult feelings.
How Do I Find an Art Therapist?
Some addiction rehabilitation programs have art therapy as an integral part of the treatment process.
You can also search for a qualified art therapist using the American Art Therapy Association’s website.
Sources
American Art Therapy Association (AATA). “About Art Therapy.” http://www.arttherapy.org/aboutart.htm Retrieved 23 September 2009.
Wilson, M. “Portrait of a Sex Addict.” Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity 5:231-50. 1998.
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