Coping strategies as we begin to return to more social contact and are vital in mental health recovery. Effective coping strategies empower you when you take note of and recognize what may trigger you in a crisis situation. When you have access to these strategies, it will give you a sense of control over some part of your life that otherwise may seem out of control. 
For example, recognizing that stress is inevitable for everyone at some stage can help to normalize stressful situations. Furthermore, being aware of your response to stress and using more helpful options to manage that stress can help you move towards recovery. Good coping strategies lead to good Emotional Intelligence. Once you are aware of what stressors are most likely to trigger you, then you can start to work on your emotional response in an emotionally intelligent way.
In the workshops and sessions that I facilitate, clients are offered a variety of simple, yet effective strategies to help them cope with the ever changing landscape that we encounter as we navigate to our “new normal”.
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Participating in a workplace art therapy program encompasses relaxation techniques and can be described as a preventative measure in addressing employee stress.
Using Art as a therapy during a time of grief allows you to express your thoughts, feelings and emotions. This can be done in a variety of non verbal ways such as painting, drawing or clay work.
Eastern traditions have long been more aware of a mind/body connection than the modern Western medical profession which has based much of their thinking on the theory put forward by Descartes who was a French philosopher in the 1600’s. He believed that the mind and body were separate entities which had no influence on the other.
The challenge of creating something that doesn’t add more stress to one’s life! Having printed out an outline of a heart to fill with words or lines to complete this 
As a result, the time selecting the photos for the assignment meant spending some time delving through old files. In addition, reflecting on why I chose each photo and explaining the emotional attachment took longer than expected. Unsurprisingly, many of the photos are of places that I’ve experienced a deep sense of peacefulness and belonging. Included is Lucy the labrador – representing the unconditional love that dogs exhibit to us. Because of the synchronicity of tasks, I have decided to use the photo collage rather than lines or words. 
Day 4’s shape for the 
Take two…. now that I had the hang of constructing the hexagon, it was much easier to stay with a black line marker and see what transpired. With the addition of some compass work and very simple lines and shapes the following emerged. Perhaps I could add colour, but it was relaxing not to have to think about which to choose. It would be interesting to construct a series of hexagons and see what evolved from that.
I did two squares today as part of my mental health strategy to avoid the state by state updates.
Both squares took a little longer than the 5 minutes that I anticipated as today I decided to create something more structured. This second square evolved by creating triangles in the corners and rotating the paper in a circular fashion.
Using just a blue marker today and straight and curved lines to fill the spaces. Light blue is the colour of the throat chakra. The throat chakra governs the ability to communicate, to speak your truth and if you find that difficult, it means that this energy centre is blocked. If you are in lockdown and finding that you are eating unhealthy food, a mini detox diet may help in rebalancing your energy.
Art therapy is a great way to reduce stress. This five day challenge is designed so you can take five minutes or so to focus on a shape and change it with simple lines and colours.
