Professional Caregivers need support too!
Chelsea, Female, 28 years old
I am a Medical Social Worker working in a hospice setting. I care for patients with terminal illness (particularly patients with advanced cancers and organ failures). The challenges that I commonly face at work, especially in this specific setting of palliative care, are often related to grief and loss – those felt by the patients, family members and self as we witness our patients’ passing.
I recently participated in the ‘Resilience-Basic’ with watercolour activities under SAMH Creative Hub as I was intrigued about the use of art as a medium to explore resilience and discover self. I was also interested to see how art therapy can play out within a group setting. Most importantly, I wanted to explore if art would be a possible modality for me to process my emotions and help to cope with losses and to explore parts of myself that I would not be able to do so on a daily basis.
Chelsea, Female, 28 years old
This program was useful and has been a process of healing for me. I had the initial thought of picking up elements from the ‘Resilience-Basic’ series for use with my patients but in my sessions, I began to realize that this program is first a support for myself.
Prior to attending this program, I have always struggled with being perfect, and thus have never truly enjoyed the process of any activities. Through this program, I have watched myself grow to simply be present in the process of art making and experiencing joy in the process of creation. This is a very new experience for me, and it has also helped me ground myself when challenges/demands of work become too heavy. The program has given me a new avenue/modality to enjoy and use for my personal self-care and self-discovery. I realised that as I make space for myself, I am also better at making space for my patients and being present for them.
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