I have the good fortune of having Fenella Hodgson as my sister-in-law. Not just for her wonderfully open stance on the world, but also for her profession: she is an art therapist.
I’ve known Fenella since she was a teenager when she visited her brother, and my now husband, to scope out our university. She is now a Visiting Lecture in Art Therapy at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. With her grasp of people, and all their complexities, her openness to life and her empathy, she is the perfect person to start a conversation about positive mental health and well-being.
Me: I’m always struck by how many different types of therapy exist and how people can find the right fit. Why would someone choose art therapy?
Fenella: Many clients enjoy and find value in art therapy because verbal expression cannot always describe a particular emotion. Art may show many layers of meaning. It can bring valuable insights into a client's personal challenges. I work in a client-centred way, although this is shifting to embrace family systems theory in my current work with families.
Me: How do you approach working with a client?
Fenella: I see clients for one hour each week, meeting in the same room, at the same time to maintain consistency and boundaries. The period therapy can last really depends upon the client’s needs and also the organisation for which I am working. Currently, Homelink Family Support offers blocks of 6 sessions with a review at the end of each block. The general limit is 18 sessions.
Me: If someone is interested in working with an art therapist, how can they identify one?
Fenella: Art therapists can be found on the British Association of Art Therapists website, BAAT, Wellspring, Couple Counselling Lothian, Dr Bells, Teapot Trust, and SureStart. Also through self-advertising, Social work/GP referrals, or word of mouth.
Edinburgh now has an Edinburgh Art Therapy Centre where it is possible to request an art therapist; this is a relatively new initiative and holds very exciting potential for both clients and art therapists.
Me: You are someone who has always been very proactive about maintaining your emotional wellbeing. I know you have, or have had, strategies for this, and hoped you might share them:
Fenella: Julia Cameron's 'Morning pages' were super helpful for kick starting each day with a sense of achievement, a positive outlook having sifted away all the mind's crud. They enabled the opportunity for a daily nugget of self-reflection, which in turn helped gain a little more mindfulness.
Being part of a Women's Circle: wonderful and enriching for the body, mind and soul to meet each new moon with a group of about 6-10 women. With the right focus, these circles allowed for a deep, rich experience of connection, celebration, thought, intimacy, and reflection. Some would have themes that may relate to the season or particular rituals. Each circle embraced ritual and part of the closure was for each woman to make an intention for that coming month, which is acknowledged and witnessed and as such, often then achieved. Food is brought and shared and the whole evening becomes a deeply nourishing experience.
And exercise: I used to cycle everywhere and I deeply valued the benefits that gave of being fit, doing exercise, feeling those endorphins, and just that luscious sensation of being on a flying carpet. I also used to swim every week, especially when I was pregnant - again made me feel on top form.
Me: This question comes from an interest in how we connect with the world: I'm curious about communities that can be accessed in Edinburgh where you live.
Fenella: Beltane Fire Society was and still is a superb inclusive community for bringing people together to take part in a series of events, that allows for creativity, experimentation, new experiences, lots of fun, a booming social life, a sense of purpose, and a sense of achievement. I enjoyed 10 amazing years as part of this community, learnt vast amounts, had a blast of experiences, and made some gems of friends. The shape and flavour of the Beltane community is constantly changing, but I hope that those who are in it now are still able to experience that same rewarding, deep, rich magic that being part of something so special offers. Several researchers have made Beltane their subject, be it from an anthropological, psychological or spiritual angle, and it is an endlessly fascinating one to look into closely.
Forest Cafe is a non-profit, volunteer run, collectively owned vegetarian cafe, which hosts free arts and events. I helped out in the original cafe, which opened up on the grassmarket, and was only expected to survive the festival. It proved so popular that it has now gone from strength to strength over the last 8 years, overcoming various fates along the way. Great place for folk new to Edinburgh who want to get involved in a community - good social scene, creative, receptive to ideas, suggestions, etc. Other similar style places are dotted about Edinburgh, such as 'Out of the Blue' cafe/arts space.
Me: We ask everyone that we talk to for their well list: the films, books, people, websites, blogs, etc., that they look at, find useful and have resonated with them in some way. What are yours?
Fenella: A couple of books I've recently read that were fascinating were The Family Crucible by Augustus Napier and Why Love Matters: How affection shapes a baby's brain by Sue Gerhardt.
I have added some websites that may be of interest, although some of the iplayer ones probably can't be seen in the US.