Abstract
Art therapy has not as yet found popularity in psychosomatic medicine. I have not specialized in art therapy but have tried some of its techniques in my eight years of clinical experience in psychosomatic medicine. In theis paper I would first like to report from my own experience on some of the useful aspects as well as some of the difficulties that may be incurred in the use of art therapy. Next I would like to report on the results of interviews I made with 17 clinical practitioners of psychosomatic medicine as to their experiences with art therapy. Their reports of useful aspects and difficulties are also included. Thus, by combining the data from all of these reports, those who are not as yet experienced enough in art therapy may find some useful imformation for their own practice. Art therapy's strong points are : 1) The practice of art therapy offers a therapeutic relationship, a therapeutic medium for bonding with the patient. 2) The practice of art therapy creates a situation in which both the patient and thrapist can be together in a therapeutically motivationg environment which the patient can appreciate. 3) In such a situation, the expression of inner world and emotional ventilation are made possible for the patient. These processes are somewhat similar to those of verbal psychotherapy but offer a new avenue of expression for those patients who find it difficaut to go through these processes without non-verbal techniques. Some patients would then be introduced to verbal psychotherapy afterward. In the same manner, the limitationa or limiting factors of art therapy are summarized : 1) As a psychotherapeutic technique there are not many opportunities to learn enough about it. It is not as theoretical as other methodologies and thus some clinicians find it uninteresting. The application of art herapy is rather limited and introduction to the patient is not always easy. Furthermore, considerable experience in psychotherapy is a necessity for full utilization of i. 2) It is requisite for an art therapist to have an interst in artistic expression and the capacity to interact ("play") in a therapeutic situation "holding" the patient. 3) Patients who have difficulty in expressing their inner worlds or who don't like the specific techniques are not good candidates for this type of therapy. 4) Concerning the therapeutic setting, suitable space and sufficient time are not always available. 5) Research in art therapy is not easy as evaluation is subjective rather than qualitative. Whether these limiting factors, as noted above, con be overcome successfully depends on one's own efforts to modify the techniques according to one's own clinical situations. Learning of art therapy in the psychiatric field and mastering the basic psychotherapy techniques are also necessary. Clinicians who are intersted in both artistic expressions and the internal worlds of their patients could find their own ways in the field of art therapy. Furthermore, it would be a valuable contribution to both art therapy works well.
