Creative Art Therapy for Improving Depression, Anxiety, and Stress in Patients with Stroke: A Quasi-Interventional Study

Abstract

Introduction Creative art therapy is a psychotherapeutic approach used to enhance the mental health status of patients. Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the effect of creative art therapy on the levels of depression, anxiety, and stress in Jordanian patients following stroke. Methods One-group pretest–posttest design was used; it included four sessions of creative art therapy which were conducted as two sessions for two weeks. This study recruited 85 participants who were within three months poststroke diagnosis. The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale was used to assess the levels of psychological reactions pre and post creative art therapy intervention. Results The data showed that there was a statistically significant improvement in the levels of depression ( t = 37.98; p < .001), anxiety ( t = 20.59, p < .001), and stress ( t = 35.52, p < .001) post-intervention. There was a statistically significant improvement in the study-related psychological aspects following creative art therapy. Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that creative art therapy is a valuable method to complement other types of treatments among patients with stroke, resulting in positive patient mental health outcomes. Creative art therapy could be used as a psychotherapeutic approach to manage mental health complexities among patients with stroke. Health policymakers are invited to use the findings of this study to establish tailored counselor services using this new psychotherapeutic approach.

Development of a Multidisciplinary Diploma on Art Therapy in Health Education—Research into Existing Practices in Jordanian Universities: The “HEALING” Project

“…Art therapy is a pristine area in Jordanian Universities (Alwledat et al, 2023); hence, this discipline could gain momentum through tertiary educational institutions. Also, scholars are invited to conduct a wide range of studies with different methodologies to achieve good levels of reliability and validity in the application of this discipline among collectivist communities.…”

“…that currently, Alwledat et al (2023) reported that using creative art therapy is important in the rehabilitation process for chronic diseases, such as depression, anxiety, and stress in patients with stroke.…”

“…The project consortium consists of partner universities from Jordan, Tunisia, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Belgium and Croatia and its duration is three and a half years (2020)(2021)(2022)(2023). The project aims to design and develop a professional educational program (e-learning package) of Art Therapy to enhance the capacity of students and staff from health and psychology disciplines to tailor health plans for patients (children, adults, and elderly) with a wide range of health conditions, e.g., physical and emotional abuse, mental illnesses and disorders, autism, stroke survivors, Alzheimer, de-mentia, terminally ill patients, traumatic experiences of refugees (Alwledat et al, 2023;Chiang et al, 2019;Marco & Redolat, 2023;Park & Song, 2020;Partridge, 2022;Schouten et al, 2019;Schweizer et al, 2020). The goal of the project is to develop a multidisciplinary diploma on Art Therapy in Health Education and to establish Therapy Centers in Jordanian and Tunisian universities.…”

Traditional umbrella painting activity improved upper extremity function and decreased depression in stroke survivors in Northern Thailand

“…The result of the present study was consistent with Kongkasuwan et al, 37 studied the effectiveness of creative art therapy on depression in 118 stroke patients, revealing that subjects who attended an artwork program twice a week for four weeks in addition to conventional therapy experienced significantly lower depression than those who received conventional rehabilitation alone. Furthermore, several studies 15,22,[37][38][39][40][41] demonstrated that participating in art activities helped with relaxation, self-esteem, inspiration, and distraction in a stressful rehabilitation environment, which could lead to less depression in stroke patients. Gangwani et al 42 identified factors affecting post-stroke recovery that self-esteem, and motivation could promote good rehabilitation outcomes.…”

“…Gangwani et al 42 identified factors affecting post-stroke recovery that self-esteem, and motivation could promote good rehabilitation outcomes. Alwledat, et al 38 studied the effects of two sessions per week, 1.5 hours per session, for two weeks of creative art therapy on depression, anxiety, and stress on 85 stroke patients, which demonstrated that art activities could significantly reduce depression, anxiety, and stress in these participants.…”