Body Outline: a communication tool and art therapy technique for cancer patients with pain

With new research each year aimed at relieving different dimensions of physical pain in cancer patients, art therapy techniques continue to develop. An art therapy technique developed and tested at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center aimed to reveal aspects of cancer causing patients pain and help them express themselves better. Here, let us examine Body Outline, an art therapy innovation developed by the center’s Art Therapy and Psychiatry Department, and its clinical study.

Method

Patients receive a prepared body outline or may draw one themselves. Sessions using this form last approximately 45 minutes. Patients are encouraged to fill the inside of the outlined body during this time. They can use colored pencils, pastels, watercolors or collage with differently colored papers. They are asked to color the interior as they wish, create new forms and use free techniques such as geometric lines or organic textures.

Results

With 60 women and 10 men, a total of 70 cancer patients, this research produced varied results. All 70 patients’ body pictures were observed to differ greatly.

The patients’ work can be examined in three main groups:

1. Visualizing physical pain,
2. Communicating through emotions,
3. Searching for meaning/concepts.

Body Outline is useful for cancer patients because it can be applied flexibly and has therapeutic properties. Because it combines abstract symbolic characteristics with a realistic representation of the body, the research results supported recommending it. In recent years, it has become an important technique for art therapists to recommend to cancer patients. It is among the easiest ways to meet the need for expression and externalization, allowing depiction of physical pain and even detailed emotional feelings. This makes patients easier to understand and creates a sense of relief.

To try it yourself, print the body outline below or draw one, then use colors and lines to describe the areas where you feel the most pain. If possible, use paper at least A4 size, with the outline filling the sheet. At another time, try the same body form on another sheet and reflect where you feel your anxieties most strongly.