Even though counseling is advised for a victim of child sexual abuse, talking about what happened is often the last thing that children want to do. Arts-Based Therapy is defined as the clinical and evidence-based use of art-forms (music, drama, and visual arts) to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship. When we work with small groups of children, we are able to use this creative process to help them develop better self-confidence, self-esteem and emotional awareness
All the girls go to school which is obviously of great importance here but without mental and emotional stability, it is difficult for them to concentrate on their studies. The schools complain about the girls, then at the home the caretakers complain about the studies and finally that's all they do. We request 3 hours per week to help the girls express their creativity which in turn becomes the pathway to their inner feelings and leads to a process of self-discovery and understanding.
The importance of Arts-Based Therapy is the process, not the final result. Throughout the process, you learn new and different ways to use the mostly nonverbal language of creativity to communicate inner feelings that were not previously available to you by simply thinking or talking about them. It's a perfect solution for working with children who have suffered sexual abuse.
The long-term impact of Arts-Based Therapy with these 30 sexually abused girls could mean girls who are not only surviving but thriving!
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).