Prevention Through Art Week

Art therapy has long been studied for its benefits and effectiveness with the treatment of depression, anxiety, and mental health disorders. This week at Voices for Prevention, we would like to appreciate the world of art in suicide prevention. Throughout this we week we will be looking at various avenues of art like poetry, film, dance, music, painting, etc. in the world of suicide prevention. The first form of art we will discuss for Prevention Through Art week is poetry.

Poetry often puts our angers, joys, and fears into words. This is one of the reasons’ poetry has been found to provide great release to individuals struggling with suicidal thoughts. According to the Britannica dictionary, poetry is “literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience or a specific emotional response through language chosen and arranged for its meaning, sound, and rhythm.” This definition makes it easy to see how someone experiencing emotional distress can find relief in writing or reading poetry. Releasing your emotions through word not only provides great freedom to you, but also can provide your loved ones a peak into what you may be going through.

If you or a loved one is having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at (800) 273-8255, or dial 911. The Crisis Text Line for Georgia is Text GA to 741741, this is a free 24/7 text line for people in crisis.