Wellness and The Arts: What is the connection between Wellness and The Arts? …. And is there really a connection between the two?
One of the questions we receive as Transformational Coaches is:
What is the connection between Wellness and The Arts? …. And is there really a connection between the two?
Performances, music and visual arts can improve the treatment of patients and individuals and can accelerate healing.
One of the major components of Wellness in the Arts is that The Arts create a space for balance within the body, mind, and spirit. It is because this type of care and treatment includes the whole person. As we, as a foundation have supported wholeness and the wholistic care of a person, we, as a foundation have integrated the arts within our everyday functions. We also advocate for others to turn to the arts for balance, peace, and harmony of mind, body, and spirit. While fitness and focusing on your “health” can also do this to a degree…. we believe focusing on your health includes a wholistic approach to life that includes the arts in your life.
Music and the arts create harmony in your system... it harmonizes your organs, can remove negative changes in cellular growth, stabilizes cell growth, heals, - it increases the positive and endorphins which decrease the negative cell growth - or cancer cells - it heals the body and trauma done to the body... as well as some negative effects (side effects etc) of medication. Additionally, it helps you to relieve feelings that you may not have been able express during treatment, or you have found you have because of an illness, or just the everyday in and out’s of life or work. We believe the arts more seamlessly create this balance and allow your heart and mindspace to unite with each other. This creates better health and well-being in individuals, in their lives, and even within different organizations.
The arts can also decrease tension and stress within the body, which prevents further disease.
Some people ask me how I know this for sure…. and one of the answers I give them is because I have lived it.
There have been many times in my own life when I have been stressed and under a lot of pressure in relation to a job that I had, my studies, my career or even my family. There were many times that the stress, tension and pressure would make me physically sick… the only way I was able to create the balance and relieve whatever the tension was or frustrations and feelings were was through the Arts. Although I would exercise and balance out my diet, there were still moments where even that didn’t cut through the real heart of the matter. The only thing that would help me to release was going to concerts, listening to music or creating artwork. My body, heart, spirit, and mind were then brought back into balance and harmony with each other - able to release whatever the emotions or feelings were behind whatever was causing the illness, stress, tension, pressure or pain. … This was not because I didn’t know how to process my feelings! Believe me, I know how to process my feelings!!!! Hahahaha! The way I am referring to the use of arts here is a little different… It is when you are doing so much that the pressure and weight become very great - that even if you can normally process your feelings… if there are multiple major things that happen on top of each other - you internal system can feel like it freezes or glitches out on you… or the pressure becomes so great that you can’t fully process all the layers of everything that just happened. For example if you are in a war or war zone and many things have happened at the same time creating major trauma… or if you have multiple deals you are working on at work or if you have many deadlines to reach at one time. It is important that you take some time for you and unwind … but also that you take time in the arts to bring your body back into balance and harmony (heart, mind, body, and spirit).
We also believe in the power of art in relation to your overall health. We advocate for you to include art in your living spaces at home and at work. Surround yourself with art that inspires, challenges, calms or invigorates you. This can be visual art, music and/or performances.
For More on this area: please see our other resources here
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