Creative Forces

?? RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT: Creative Forces at the National Capital Area Neurotrauma Society Meeting On Feb. 24th, Creative Forces dance/movement therapist Liz Freeman and scientist Erik Clarke presented their poster at the NCANS meeting at The National Institutes of Health (NIH): "Changes in Interoceptive Awareness During the National Intrepid Spirit Center of Excellence (NICoE) Intensive Out-Patient Program." Their research demonstrates that service members who participated in the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) IOP, which includes various Creative Arts Therapies, experienced significant increases in interoceptive awareness—the ability to perceive and regulate internal bodily sensations. Moreover, those who achieved clinically significant reductions in depression and PTSD symptoms showed enhanced improvements in specialized aspects of interoceptive awareness. This collaborative work, featuring contributions from program evaluator Kim Walter and NICoE researcher Chandler Rhodes, highlights how Creative Forces clinicians are advancing research that goes beyond achieving clinical goals to understanding how changes in behavioral health, in this case, depression and PTSD symptoms, contribute to these clinical goals being met. #CreativeForces #ArtsInHealth #MilitaryMedicine #InteroceptiveAwareness #ResearchInnovation ?? Image: Liz and Erik standing before their research poster at the NCANS meeting at the NIH

Please check out our latest Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network newsletter. https://lnkd.in/e44DbajR This installment includes recent highlights from our Creative Forces clinical program, which embeds Creative Arts Therapies in DoD and VA health facilities in efforts to respond to TBI, PTSD, and associated psychological health issues for our military and Veteran communities. Highlights also include?an?online feature where veterans share powerful stories?of incorporating?art therapy, music therapy, and dance/movement therapy into their healing efforts, an introduction to our Network's brilliant Creative Arts Therapies team, and information on our five newest clinical research publications. Be sure to hit the subscribe and follow buttons at the bottom of the newsletter to receive future updates on the Creative Forces clinical and community engagement programs! Bill

We're spotlighting 2024 #CreativeForces grantee Killeen Creators and their "Operation ART of Recovery" program, recently featured on KWTX-TV. This innovative program, based in Killeen, Texas, creates space for military-connected individuals to find community and process trauma through creative expression. Their art classes offer veterans and military families an opportunity to heal in a supportive environment. Joshua Stinnett, a six-year U.S. Army veteran and program instructor, captures the philosophy behind their work: "Everything has a purpose, whether it was intentionally put there or not. So I can also see the beauty in life's imperfections." Creative Forces Community Engagement grants support arts programming for military-connected populations across the country, expanding access to arts experiences that promote health and wellbeing. ?? Watch the full story: https://lnkd.in/gPNUXJKm #VeteranArtists #KilleenCreators #ArtofRecovery Mid-America Arts Alliance National Endowment for the Arts

This week, we're celebrating Creative Arts Therapies Week by highlighting the work of veteran patient Tia and our dedicated CATs! Creative Forces Creative Arts Therapists (CATs) host a monthly memorable Creative Arts Café, where service members showcase their talents and therapeutic growth through art, music, and dance. These events transform therapy into a vibrant celebration of creativity and resilience. The Café at Fort Belvoir last May featured an art exhibit with framed and labeled artworks honoring the participants in art therapy. A standout piece was an abstract layered monoprint using acrylic paints and stencils, created by Tia during an Art Therapy for Stress Reduction group facilitated by CAT Dr. Gioia Chilton. This event was a collaborative, cross-disciplinary effort orchestrated by music therapists Andrea Blunt and Rebeka Baldwin, with art therapists Jessica Herman, MA, ATR-BC, and Gioia Chilton assisting in setting up the exhibit. Creative Arts Cafés like this one provide a unique opportunity for patients to take pride in their artistic expression, engage in structured activities, and express their therapeutic progress. These events also help shift the perspective of healthcare providers, allowing them to see service members as resilient artists, not just patients. We enjoy seeing Creative Forces CATs offer a platform where creativity and well-being unite, fostering community and empowering our service members through the arts. ?? Image: Artwork from May 2, 2024, Creative Arts Café, featuring a framed abstract layered monoprint created by Tia in an Art Therapy for Stress Reduction group. #HealingArts #CreativeArtsCafe #CreativeArtsTherapiesWeek #ResilienceThroughArt

Last month, we gathered at the National Endowment for the Arts headquarters for the Creative Forces Community Engagement Convening in partnership with the Mid-America Arts Alliance. The event brought together community arts providers, creative arts therapists, artists, and administrators nationwide for three days of collaboration. Key insights are below: 1?? Bryan Bales' "Battlemind vs. Homemind" session explored veterans' transition challenges: "Discipline and order are fundamental to military life." This structured mindset contrasts with civilian flexibility where grey area thinking thrives. 2?? Roman Baca (Exit12 Dance Company) and Nicole Poole (SPARK! Creative Lab) showcased how performing veterans' stories transforms trauma into creative expression. Roman's insight that "a person is made up of stories" highlighted how storytelling & performance are critical avenues for veteran self-identification. 3?? Our panel on building relevance to military communities explored how to use art to engage with military-connected populations. As a panelist from Open Studio Project, Inc. reflected, "Healing and therapy are loaded words for people. We say transformation instead." 4?? Luz Helena Thompson's workshop on "Design Thinking for Creative Expression" showed us how to treat art-making as a solvable challenge. Luz invited teaching artists to "view failure as a learning opportunity" to foster creative confidence in participants. 5?? During the Arts, Nature, and Healing session, we discovered how natural environments enhance creative healing. As a presenter from Killeen Creators shared, "Creating is our superpower. It can take us off the cliff, back to safety." We're energized by these insights. Follow #FebruaryConvening2025 for more. ?? Images: Photos courtesy of Creative Forces Capacity Team #CreativeForces #VeteranVoices #ArtsInHealth

?? "Through Their Eyes | Personal Projects by Veterans" showcased fine arts photography by 9 Colorado artists who served in the U.S. military. This recent exhibition at the Colorado Photographic Arts Center is the culmination of their Veterans Workshop Series. Glen Cole's contribution, "Resilience in Motion," captures the strength and determination of disabled veterans. It focuses on a wounded warrior navigating life without a prosthetic at the 2024 VA Summer Sports Clinic. Through surfing, cycling, and team sports, Cole's images challenge perceptions of disability while showcasing resilience and adaptability. Supported by a Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant, CPAC provides veterans in Colorado with instruction and resources to develop a professional photography practice. Through workshops, mentoring, and critique events, veterans create photographs that tell personal stories, culminating in this public exhibition and a published catalog. ?? Learn more about the exhibition at https://lnkd.in/gyXq4BVS #CreativeForces #ThroughTheirEyes #VeteranPhotography #CPACPhoto

???? How can the arts help our minds and bodies respond to stress? A Scientific American article delves into neuroaesthetics—the study of how arts and aesthetic experiences measurably transform our brains, bodies, and behavior. The article features Creative Forces creative arts therapies, including mask-making, as an innovative neuroarts intervention. It highlights how these therapies support service members with traumatic brain injury and PTSD. As author Susan Magsamen writes: “Making these pieces of art has enabled service members to open up to their families, speak about their experiences, diminish the occurrences of flashbacks, and restore a sense of control…” ?? Discover more: bit.ly/Neuroarts ?? : A Navy Special Operator created this mask to portray the everyday face that he shows the outer world with contrasting aspects of his identity: a bright, peaceful side and a dark, tumultuous side. Photo credit: The NICoE, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD #CreativeForces #Neuroaesthetics #CreativeArtsTherapies #ScientificAmerican

“As a writer and visual artist, I realized the significance of art’s impact when you give people permission to take something so painful and give it a tangible space to live outside themselves.” – Luz Helena Thompson, U.S. Marine Corps veteran and Path with Art teaching artist Path with Art provides veterans with opportunities to process trauma through creativity and community. Supported by a 2022 Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant, this Seattle-based nonprofit offers classes in visual arts, music, theater, and literature, helping veterans transform their pain into healing. ?? Learn more about their impact through the story of one of their teaching artists, Luz Helena Thompson: bit.ly/PathwithArtImpact #CreativeForces #VeteranVoices #PathWithArt #ArtsInHealth

“I want other veterans to see…that art can help them in ways that go far beyond the medium. It can provide human connection, a community of like-minded people, an understanding of the difficulty others have faced.” – Michelle, U.S. Army veteran and Path with Art participant Path with Art offers veterans opportunities to rebuild their lives through creative expression. Supported by a 2022 Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant, the Seattle-based nonprofit provides trauma-informed visual arts, music, theater, and literature classes, creating a space for connection and healing. ?? Discover their impact at bit.ly/PathwithArtImpact #CreativeForces #VeteranVoices #PathWithArt #ArtsInHealth Mid-America Arts Alliance National Endowment for the Arts

In January 2024, we hosted our Community Engagement Grantee Convening at the National Endowment for the Arts headquarters in partnership with Mid-America Arts Alliance. We continue to be inspired by the veterans, artists, program directors, administrators, and creative arts therapists who joined the conversation. We're excited for the grantees to meet again this February. #ArtsinHealth #CommunityArts #CreativeForces