Using images to express and mark thoughts and feelings have been utilized since cave paintings and hieroglyphics found on cave walls throughout history.

Sometimes there are no words to adequately express the turmoil, joys, and the myriad of thoughts and feelings going through our head and hearts most the time.

Your journal can  be a place of solace, exploration, experimentation and freedom.

​Art materials, found objects, natural materials, memorabilia and life experiences will assist you express thoughts and feelings differently than in words.  Here are some suggestions for starting a visual journal.

When  you are in the middle of depression a period of sadness, creating art for the first time may seem like an impossible over bearing task.

There are many benefits to creating art, and the end product doesn't need to be one. For some people doing art on your own can be a great outlet, for others it's more advantageous to have structured guidance.

If you are functioning well and able to work and manage the daily tasks of living then doing art on your own can be an added
bonus . Understanding and alleviating your depression can be accomplished as you make art on a daily basis. It is like having a pal to share your situation with who understands. It is having a visual “diary” to track your thoughts and feelings. In the process of doing this there is tremendous relief and understanding.

Perhaps depression is sticking to you like glue and you don’t have a notion how to get unstuck. When someone is depressed or feeling sad, the underlying emotion that is tied to their depression may emerge in a helpful way during the art making process.

This sometimes happens in a marriage that has gone sour.  Women often think they might be able to change things if only they would do things better. That they are the cause of all the discontent. The depression keeps the untold story alive. They may feel hurt and angry at being treated poorly by their spouse and feel disempowered to do any thing. Keeping a visual art journal can give you symbolic safety to tell your story.

The process of making art can begin to free you of the shrouding and at times isolating impact of depression. When you paint, you are in control of where the brush goes and what colors you use. Your lines shapes and colors become a satisfying way to express your emotions.

In my experience what is the most helpful of all is the personal validation and soothing that happens when  you begin to get into a flow of putting paint or pastel onto a piece of paper. You may be able to attach special meaning as you ponder your creation. This  may happen instantaneously, or it may take a series of images to reach the core.
The “framing” of your thoughts and feelings in a visual way can warm your heart—especially when strong feelings have been frozen in depression.

The process of making art for personal growth becomes a “key” of your
internal map.  The colors, images, or photo’s from a magazine or personal photo’s  you use have symbolic meaning .

Being able to ponder your image and the associations to it becomes a way to move through the fog or confusion around your depression.  Your art making becomes a symbol system of learning about you and a shifting of your mindset.
Your mindset may contain punishing never ending self deprecation that was a major part of your child hood.  Whatever the reason being depressed is a difficult state to live with. You can begin to see through the fog as you create images of soothing, coping, anger, and grief.  Coping strategies assist the recovery process.

You don't need to feel artistic to use a visual resource for breaking through the cloud of depression. The focus is on the process of making art not the product. The purpose is to use art to soothe, discover and eventually come up with strategies that assist a sense of well being. Hopefully continuing to make art will be one of them!

As you begin the journey of making art it becomes your own personal  oasis.

One of the advantages of working with a trained art therapist is having someone who begins to have an empathic understanding of the agony and hopeless feelings connected to your personal situation of depression. An art therapist can guide you in making art that is self  soothing and supportive to your specific needs. The nurturing of art making and doing it with an art therapist can be an icebreaker that softens the wall of depression.

Making art with a trained Art Therapist who is registered and board certified is an  extremely helpful way for you to  begin your art making journey. This will create a sense of safety with knowledge that your your well being is paramount