Grief and the Expressive Arts - Practices for Creating Meaning

Grief and the Expressive Arts - Practices for Creative Meaning
Edited by Barbara E. Thompson and Robert A. Neimeyer
Routledge – 2014 – 336 pages
http://www.routledgementalhealth.com/books/details/9780415857192/
http://www.guilfordpress.co.uk/books/details/9780415857192/
http://www.amazon.com/Grief-Expressive-Arts-Practices-Bereavement/dp/0415857198

The use of the arts in psychotherapy is a burgeoning area of interest, particularly in the field of bereavement, where it is a staple intervention in hospice programs, children’s grief camps, specialized programs for trauma or combat exposure, work with bereaved parents, widowed elders or suicide survivors, and in many other contexts. But how should clinicians differentiate between the many different approaches and techniques, and what criteria should they use to decide which technique to use—and when? Grief and the Expressive Arts provides the answers using a crisp, coherent structure that creates a conceptual and relational scaffold for an artistically inclined grief therapy. Each of the book’s brief chapters is accessible and clearly focused, conveying concrete methods and anchoring them in brief case studies, across a range of approaches featuring music, creative writing, visual arts, dance and movement, theatre and performance and multi-modal practices. Any clinician—expressive arts therapist, grief counselor, or something in between—looking for a professionally oriented but scientifically informed book for guidance and inspiration need look no further than Grief and the Expressive Arts.

List of Figures and Tables
Foreword Sandra L. Bertman
Preface Robert A. Neimeyer and Barbara E. Thompson
List of Contributors

Part I: Building the Frame

1. Meaning Making and the Art of Grief Therapy Robert A. Neimeyer and Barbara E. Thompson
2. Poiesis, Praise And Lament: Celebration, Mourning And The "Architecture" Of Expressive Arts Therapy Stephen K. Levine
3. Art Therapy for Processing Children’s Traumatic Grief and Loss Eliana Gil
4. When the Gods Are Silent: The Spirit of Resilience and the Soul of Healing Michael Conforti
5. Expressive Therapies for Bereavement: The State of the Arts Jordan Potash and Rainbow Ho

Part II: Doing the Work

6. Singing Goodbye Diane Austin
7. Hear Here – Invite Music of Memories Joy Berger
8. The Emerging Life Song Thelma Duffey
9. Playing Out Feelings on Instruments Katrina Skewes Mcferran
10. Lyric Analysis Natalie Wlodarczyk
11. Acrostic in Therapeutic Songwriting Bob Heath
12. Group Songwriting Using Templates Jane Lings
13. Singing Our Loss Dorit Amir Creative Writing
14. Virtual Dream Stories Robert A. Neimeyer and Polly Young-Eisendrath
15. "Interplaying" Gail Noppe-Brandon
16. Graphopoetic Process Shanee Stepakoff
17. The Furniture Game Jane Moss
18. The "I Am. . ." Poem Sally S. Atkins
19. Acrostic Eulogy Harold Ivan Smith
20. Chapters of Our Lives Robert A. Neimeyer Theater & Performance
21. Playback Theatre Virginia Reed Murphy and Robert A. Neimeyer
22. Enacting the Emotion ane Milman
23. Dancing In the Shadows oralee M. Scott-Conforti
24. The Practical Muse in Social Drama David Baecker
25. The Six-Part Storymaking Method Breffni Mcguinness
26. Kinaesthetic Imagining Ilene Serlin
27. The Dance of Transition Kris Eric Larsen
28. Body Connections Alexandria Callahan
29. Embodied Compassion and Empathy Kris Eric Larsen and Jessica Young
30. Moving the Body From Within Toni Smith
31. Narrative Scrapbooking Elizabeth Maier Chernow
32. Sketching Out the Story Barbara E. Thompson
33. Drawing on Metaphor Leigh Davies
34. "Moments Held" Documentary Todd Hochberg
35. Simple Drawing Gerry R. Cox and Bernard J. Vanden Berk Multi-Modal Approaches
36. Conversing With the Canvas Barbara E. Thompson
37. Spirit Sticks Sally S. Atkins
38. "Living Memoires" Videography Andy Hau Yan Ho and Cecilia Lai Wan Chan
39. Grieffiti Lysa Toye
40. Dancing Among the Stones Denis Whalen
41. Letting the Worry Go Linda Goldman

Part III: Art and Reflexivity

42. Collage: Integrating the Torn Pieces Sharon Strouse
43. Photographic Metaphors Irene Renzenbrink
44. Memorial Tattooing - Making Grief Visible Malinda Ann Hill
45. Enso: The Painted Journal Lisa Jennings
46. Moving the Immovable Ione Beauchamp Part IV: Programs
47. Restoring the Heartbeat of Hope Following Suicide Diana C. Sands
48. Integrative Songwriting Thomas A. Dalton and Robert E. Krout
49. Pongo Creative Writing for At-Risk Youth Richard Gold
50. Soldier’s Heart: Using the Arts to Heal From War Kate Dahlstedt
51. Moving Through Grief One Note at a Time: Music Therapy for Bereaved Children Russell Hilliard
52. The Grief Healing Garden Yu-Chan Li and Cypress Chang
53. Expressive Arts Joining Hearts at Camp Good Grief Angela Hamblen Part V: Research
54. A Civilian’s Artistic Dialogue With Combat Veterans Iishana Artra
55. The Art of Research Carol Wogrin, Val Maasdorp and Debra Machando
56. The Expressive Arts in Grief Therapy: An Empirical Perspective Carlos Torres, Robert. A. Neimeyer, and Maryl L. Neff
57. Persephone in the Underworld: Closing Reflections Barbara E. Thompson and Robert A. Neimeyer

Epilogue: Ghosts Move, A Poem by Jessica Moore