Date of Award

Spring 5-17-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Major

Expressive Therapies

First Advisor

Wendy Allen

Second Advisor

Shira Karman

Abstract

Expressive therapists have reported difficulty working in inpatient settings due to the gap between what the expressive modality theoretically offers and what is possible in practice due to both acute patient symptomology and limitations of the institutional setting. Early career clinicians especially contend with finding meaning in their clinical work, belonging among the clinical team and exploring how their expressive modalities are applicable or not to the systemically established treatment goal of stabilization. Concerns that excessive restriction upon patient expression inhibits possible aspects of recovery beyond stabilization, such insight or creativity, are explored. The subgoal of increasing momentary experiences of self-possession for populations with trauma and trauma-related diagnoses is likewise presented. Findings suggest that symptom/setting-appropriate adaptation and application of the theoretical bones of body-oriented expressive arts therapies may increase space for outcomes measurable by both clinical and expressive means. Clinician use of somatic indicators to modulate the therapeutic space to allow for either more expression or more containment is also examined.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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