Papermaking and Art Therapy

Papermaking is a process used in ancient times and still to this day is something to be used within therapy as a way to heal. This paper will explore the population of children, adolescents, or adults who have lost parents and are working through grief or bereavement. This population can be a difficult topic and having a variety of interventions to help work through this subject is vital. Papermaking, while little research has been conducted, seems to be an appropriate intervention to be explored for this population combined with bereavement.

Child and Adolescents

In the United States, 4 percent of children are living without both parents and 26 percent live with just one (Sossin, Cohen, & Ruth, 2014). The loss of a parent by death, divorce, or abandonment can be a traumatic event that affects the child’s ability to cope and move forward (Williams & Lent, 2008). Children and adolescents are a time period of developmental challenges and combining this with the tasks of mourning can create difficulties in the client’s life. Cognitive, moral, and emotional skills are all developing at this time and when something traumatic happens, it can somewhat halt these natural progressions (Biank & Werner-Lin, 2011). The loss of a parent for any child or adolescent is going to look differently depending on the understanding of death, the attachment they had, the coping styles used, and the cultural meaning of death (Sossin, Cohen, & Ruth, 2014). Responses to the loss of a parent can create issues within the child or teen, if these are not addressed it could make it harder to work through. Some children or adolescents may experience decreased self-esteem, narcissistic injury, regret, fantasies of reunion, continued devastation, and degradation (Biank & Werner-Lin, 2011; Williams & Lent, 2008). Other factors hurting children and teens after the loss of a parent might include increases in stressors at home with income, health insurance, and loss of support systems (Biank & Werner-Lin, 2011). There are many negatives of losing a parent at a young age and while some may be resilient, others often struggle with ongoing grief. Losing a parent when young is a terrible trauma but losing a parent as an adult can also bring struggles and it can be said, symbolically children can be thought of as children until their parents die (Umberson, 2003).

Adults

While the loss of a parent at a young age is difficult in formative years, the same loss in adulthood can be jolting. Losing a parent to death is the one of most common causes of bereavement for adults and about 5 percent of the United States population deals with this experience (Umberson, 2003). While the lifespan of parents have lengthened, it is almost expected to have parents around until they hit their older years. When parents do pass away it can be a hard adjustment even in adulthood (Umberson, 2003). One aspect of being an adult is dealing with the loss of a parent and the expectation for them to recover quickly and continue on with adult roles and responsibilities (Umberson, 2003). Death of a parent can create many issues within the individual’s life. Individuals may experience crises including psychological distress, increased risk for depression, and an increase in alcohol consumption (Umberson, 2003). Even adults who are health and high functioning may experience these symptoms. Many view adulthoods as a time where individuals no longer are developing, the idea of individuals personalities, attitudes, beliefs, and priorities will not change much when they reach middle adulthood (Umberson, 2003). Some believe middle adulthood is actually a time of reflection and significant events can impact and change one’s personal goal, priorities, and sense of self (Umberson, 2003). Many children, adolescents, and adults have lost a parent and these issues go unrecognized. It is important for therapists to realize the negative aspects of loss and what interventions might help clients through significant life changes in childhood, adolescence, or adulthood.

Interventions

Writing material has always been an important role in society and so arises the technique of papermaking. Papermaking is a technique developed in 3000 B.C. and has made many different developments throughout the years (Biermann, 1996). While it is important for societal reasons, it can also be used as a tool within therapy to provide client with a new way to create. There are many therapeutic benefits of papermaking which include repetition and relaxation, focus on the present moment, concrete steps at the beginning leading toward meaning-making, safety to share experiences, self-soothing, sensory-based artmaking, and breaking meaningful material down and creating something new (Matott, 2019)

The papermaking process alone can be a therapeutic intervention used to help children, adolescents, or adults work through bereavement and loss. Understanding the developmental framework of children and adolescents is important as well as being educated in grief and its stages. This client-centered and process-oriented approach helps focus on the client and the specific need of losing a parent. This can look different for each client; grief looks different for each individual and focusing on what they need is vital for true healing and development. There is a similar parallel between the stages of grief and the stages of papermaking which can be symbolic and powerful. The papermaking can be an empowering and affirming process symbolizing a new beginning, starting over, or letting go (Matott, 2019).

Applications

After the paper is complete and dry, there are many ways the paper can be used to further the therapeutic process. The paper itself can be the art and by using extra methods such as pulp printing an image can be implemented. Other application might include making a book or journal with the papers or to use the papers as a source of creative writing. Clients can also use other media to explore and create artwork to make meaningful experiences for the individual.

One application to be used with this population is scrapbooking. Scrapbooking can be a way to not only use the paper that has been created but also use photographs, creative writings, journal entries, news clippings, poems, song lyrics, and other mementos providing clients an opportunity to tell their story (Williams & Lent, 2008). Scrapbooking can specifically help this population to make meaning of the grief they have experienced and express what is hard to release at a young age (Williams & Lent, 2008). There are many benefits above exploring the positives of papermaking and scrapbooking also has been found to have positive benefits as well. Scrapbooking can help the client to understand the grieving process, allow insight into feelings surrounding loss or death, provide a tactile and visual way to process, and relate to any stage in the grieving process as an intervention to explore feelings (Williams & Lent, 2008).

Another application continuing with the scrapbooking method is to create journal entries within the book. By having focused pages and themes, the client can explore feelings and emotions further. A therapist might even have the client write a journal of the continued progression of moving through the grief process. By having a journal connected to the scrapbook, the client can have a way to see the progress and growth through the difficult time and after treatment is complete (Williams & Lent, 2008). Allowing the client, a clear way to see everything they created throughout treatment can be beneficial and at the end of services they can look back and visually see how the scrapbook and journal entries served them.

One final application can be separate or added to the continued scrapbook. This application adds a writing element to treatment. Having the client write a goodbye letter which can be combined within the journal, with poems, or with meaningful lyrics can provide a powerful experience for a child, adolescent, or adult (Williams & Lent, 2008). By allowing the client to have time to simply grieve and be where they are is empowering. Giving a client the important closer, which is needed at the end of any chapter within the lifespan, can provide healing and growth (Biank & Werner-Lin, 2011). Prompting the client to write a goodbye letter on the paper created from papermaking can be a symbolic and meaningful experience, especially if the material provided was connected to the loss.

Conclusion

Papermaking has been used since ancient times and to this day is a powerful tool to be used by therapist and for clients. Using papermaking as a therapeutic intervention can help clients move through the stages of creating paper and through the stages of grief and loss. Within this paper, the author looked specifically at the population of children, adolescents, and adults who have dealt with the loss of a parent and how papermaking can be a useful tool. Papermaking is an appropriate intervention placing power with the client to tell their story in a way that is safe and supportive. A specific application like creating a scrapbook, journal entries, or goodbye letter is also an important technique to help the client through the healing process and lead to overall growth in the journey of the loss.

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References

Biank, N. M., & Werner-Lin, A. (2011). Growing up with grief: Revisiting the death of a parent over the life course. Omega: Journal of Death & Dying, 63(3), 271–290. Doi: 10.2190/OM.63.3.e

Biermann, C. J. (1996). Handbook of pulping and papermaking (Vol. 2nd ed). San Diego: Academic Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.uc.opal-libraries.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=203309&site=ehost-live

Matott, D. (2019). Peace Paper Project. Retrieved from papermakingpeacepaperproject.org.

Sossin, K. M., Cohen, P., & Ruth, R. (2014). Healing after parent loss in childhood and adolescence: Therapeutic interventions and theoretical considerations. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.uc.opal-libraries.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=719420&site=ehost-live

Umberson, D. (2003). Death of a parent: Transition to a new adult identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.uc.opal-libraries.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=120654&site=ehost-live

Williams, K., & Lent, J. (2008). Scrapbooking as an Intervention for Grief Recovery with Children. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 3(4), 455–467. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.uc.opal-libraries.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ837122&site=ehost-live