From: Eric Riddle
Columbus
My wife and I attended the Uncommon Cause fundraiser for the Columbus Area Arts Council (CAAC) on Saturday evening. We were very impressed by how CAAC is embracing the “Mental Health Matters” initiative that was announced earlier this year in Columbus.
Art is therapeutic. However, as my sister who received a master’s degree in art therapy from IUPUI has experienced in her professional practice, it is very difficult to have health insurance providers cover this creative form of therapy.
Individuals with horticulture therapy degrees face the same obstacles in establishing a professional career due to lack of insurance reimbursement.
A newer form of therapy that is now being more widely accepted is called peer recovery. In these programs, peer recovery coaches, who have a mental health diagnosis, are paired with people in need of mental health treatment. The coach is able to share from personal experience the coping mechanisms and habits that have successfully enhanced their wellness.
Unfortunately, peer recovery is often underfunded, causing full-time peer recovery coaches to be paid less than a living wage.
Many people with a mental health diagnosis need more than medicine and a one-on-one relationship with a traditional therapist to thrive. We can do so much better than relying on “couches and chemicals” as treatment for support those who suffer.
Treatment options that consider how individuals are being restored to community, rather than caught in a cycle of isolation, can be examined and promoted as a new standard of care.
People may respond much better to the creative treatments of an art therapist, new outdoor experiences that help overcome nature-deficit disorder from a horticulture therapist, or the encouragement from a peer recovery coach who models how to responsibly manage their diagnosis.
I think our community is beginning to understand the need for a comprehensive approach to mental health care. As I learned at Uncommon Cause, the Arts Council is directly responding to this need through their new Flourishing Through Art program.
Thank you to all of those on Saturday night who attended! It’s a great sign that our community is generously responding to the mental healthcare crisis in a creative way.
