I’ve worked with a number of women (not as a therapist, but in “creative awakening” workshops I facililtate) who had become intimidated by “art” or thought themselves “not creative.”

I’ve also worked with kids over the last seven years … and find that by second grade, too many are afraid to take a pencil to paper.

I’ve found a couple of core reasons for this: Some stems from a bias that assumes “realism” = art. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard 2nd and 3rd graders call Picasso’s portraits “wrong.”) Some stems from ignorant or critical adult figures who tend to squelch the trial and error of creative process in favor of “product” or “outcome.” (We’ve all heard of the kid who got shamed by making the sky green and the tree blue, once in school.)

Okay, enough art talk. The bottom line is this:

When creating to tap into wordless emotion, especially when those emotions are painful, the primitive is powerful! This can mean stick people! or finger painting! clay squishing or throwing! or scribbles until the paper rips! (or other forms like primitive dance, percussion, etc.)

Like you, Jenna, I also find writing has been a great outlet (I’ve written daily for years and years)… but there are times when words utterly fail me … and I am driven to my camera or to a blank piece of paper.

I would love to help facilitate something in the way of visual expression for birth/first moms … but we’re all scattered around the globe. Ugh.

All of that said, I STRONGLY encourage anyone who has endured loss to express it visually or musically or bodily.