Sharon Itkoff Nacache is joining me to break down the myths and truths about art therapy—what it is, what it isn’t, and why creativity can be such a powerful tool for healing, integration, and resilience.

 

Together we explore:

 

• The common questions people have about art therapy, and how integrating creative arts into therapy can support emotional processing, integration, and healing. 

• The difference between open studio models, art therapy, and art psychotherapy and how each can serve different therapeutic goals.

• How art can help us (and our kids) process overwhelming experiences that might feel too big or complex to articulate with words alone.

• Why the materials matter: How Sharon intentionally uses tools like dry or wet media to support different emotional states and how you can use these same principles in your own creative exploration.

• Why creative expression goes far beyond painting or drawing—how journaling, movement, or even doodling can become powerful tools to ground yourself in moments of stress or burnout.

• A simple yet powerful exercise Dr. Sarah uses with her clients to identify and reconnect with unmet needs that you can do too.

• What it means to build "creative resilience" and how it can help you access more joy, safe risk-taking, and a sense of internal flow.

• Sharon’s best strategies for those who feel creatively blocked or don’t consider themselves “artistic” and why you don’t need to be an artist to benefit from creative self-expression.

 

Whether you’ve been curious about art therapy or are simply looking for accessible ways to reconnect with yourself and find a sense of emotional grounding, this conversation is full of both inspiration and tangible takeaways.

 

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT MY GUEST:

Co-Create Art Therapy

 

GET HER BOOK:

📚 The Days Before I Met You: A Creative Space Honoring the Birth of a Parent

 

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES AND RESOURCES:

📚 Your Brain on Art

📚 Art Therapy and Childbearing Issues

📚Art is a Way of Knowing

📚Therapeutic Arts in Pregnancy, Birth, and New Parenthood

👉🏻 Whitney Museum and NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine department

👉🏻 Postpartum Support International

 

CHECK OUT ADDITIONAL PODCAST EPISODES YOU MAY LIKE:

🎧 33. How parents can use music as an emotion regulator with music therapist Vered

 

🎧 47. What we hold in our bodies: Unlocking emotions through dance and movement therapy with dr. Lori Baudino

 

🎧 240. Processing birth trauma: How to make sense of, heal, and move forward after a difficult birthing experience with Dr. Sterling

 

🎧 282. Beyond the 6-week checkup: A realistic look at postpartum and early parenthood with Dr. Jessica Vernon