Second Saturdays™ Program of the Month
Using Art Therapy for Healing through
Creative Self-Expression
Speaker - Angelina Rodriguez
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: When illness, pain or disabling symptoms dominate our world, words alone are often not enough. Using art materials as a vehicle can provide a concrete concept and the power to start a process of change. You don't have to be an artist to use art to help you feel better - doodling, scribbling or even drawing stick figures can help you express your sadness, frustration, anger or pain. The principle aim in art therapy is to assist individuals toward a better understanding of their situation, help them manage physical and emotional challenges and provide meaningful distractions from illnesses or treatments that cause pain. This program will be run as a workshop, in which attendees participate actively, having fun while they learn ways to adapt to life with limitations.
SPEAKER: Angelina Rodriguez, LPC,ATR-BC, is a licensed art therapist in Houston, who counsels individuals, couples, families and groups on illness, grief, trauma, depression, relationships, anger management, substance abuse, sex and love issues. She has a worked at at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, where she counseled patients with cancer and their families. She is a certified Crisis Counselor with the National Organization for Victims Assistance and volunteered during the 911 Crisis in New York City, assisting with post trauma and grief. As a middle and high counselor with the Houston Independent School District, she developed and implemented an art therapy program for "at risk" kids, resulting in dramatic improvements in their productivity. Angelina has presented workshops throughout the country and her work has been profiled by ABC 13, Viva Houston, KHOU Channel 11, Fox News, Envy Magazine, Houston Chronicle, and other publications. Combining both "talk" and "art therapy" in her individual and group sessions, Angelina leads participants on a step-by-step creative journey that encourages exploration of their behavior, relationship patterns and work and helps them express unspoken and often unconscious concerns about their illness and their lives. The result is a roadmap to uncover one's authentic self and emotional power.
Saturday, March 13th, 2010
11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
THE UNITED WAY
50 Waugh Drive, Houston TX
77007
1.5 hours of CE credit is available for psychology, social work, LPC & LMFT
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About Disability 101
Rationale & Purpose. Experts in the field of health psychology agree that the emotional and social needs of patients with chronic medical conditions are not adequately met by the current medical system. The average time physicians spend with their patients is less than 10 minutes. Emotional needs are often last on the list, and frequently do not get addressed. While depression is common among those with chronic diseases, like M.S., lupus, Parkinson's Disease, heart disease and AIDS, many insurance policies do not cover treatment for it, or do not cover it at the same rate as medical complaints. Chronic disease often results in disability and underemployment, so many patients are unable to afford treatment for mental health complaints associated with their illness. When they do seek a mental health professional, it's difficult to find one who understands their problems, since fewer than 11% of mental health practitioners are trained to recognize and treat problems associated with medical disorders. One solution to this problem is to provide free or inexpensive group education for patients wishing to learn about how to cope effectively with their health challenges. Another solution is to improve the skills and understanding of large numbers of general practitioners of psychotherapy, making them familiar with issues in specific medical populations. Meeting the needs of these patients can also be served by educating nurses and other allied health professionals to recognize and manage emotional and behavioral problems of medical patients in their care.
Benefits. Psychology Works' programs help to:
- Enable better quality of life and functioning in individuals with chronic disease and their families by: (a) improving their understanding of the psychosocial impact of chronic disease and disability, (b) providing strategies for coping with disability, depression and other emotional complications of illness, (c) improving overall functioning psychologically, socially and vocationally.
- Raise awareness among mental health practitioners who do not specialize in health psychology of basic issues in treating patients with medical disease and to enable them to manage symptomatic complaints in their patients whose primary diagnosis is an Axis III medical disorder.
- Raise awareness among physicians, nurses, physical therapists and other allied health professionals to improve their understanding of psychosocial issues common in chronic illness and provide them with strategies for meeting those needs within the scope of their professional work.
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