Working with Anger Creatively - by Erica Curtis (Paperback)

About the Book

"Anger isn't all bad. It can spark creativity, motivate us toward change, and help resolve our past. This practical guide shows you how to use art therapy theory and techniques to help clients contain and reshape their anger into something positive and enriching"--

Book Synopsis

Working with anger takes a delicate balance of containment and expression. Creativity helps us do just that.

Based on art therapy theory and practice, the activities, materials, instructions, process, and reflection questions in this practical guide are all thoughtfully designed as avenues for therapeutic change. Helpful tips provide adaptations for meeting the unique needs of art-adverse clients, as well as varying ages and abilities, so everyone can benefit from creative approaches to working with anger.

Anger is a vital part of the emotional landscape, and a thoughtful approach to its nuances can make all the difference in avoiding harmful outcomes. The exercises in this book help you to guide clients toward finding meaningful roles for anger so that it enriches, rather than diminishes, their quality of life.

Review Quotes

I highly recommend this book! As a very busy elementary school counselor, I appreciate a book that I can pick up and implement activities quickly. Even though I am not an art therapist, I can use art as an intervention in my work with students. I love the practical tips. I've learned alternatives to using the volcano metaphor to describe anger.--5-star NetGalley review from an educator

Erica Curtis has done it again! This book not only gives a thorough review of how to work with anger creatively it also gives you confidence in executing these interventions. The skills build upon each other yet also stand alone. They are extremely person-centered and meeting individuals where they are. This book acknowledges how anger is an emotion just like all the others and therefore is not bad. Utilizing the creative interventions in this book will help individuals find balance with anger-which can provide a positive transformation. Furthermore, this book's approaches could be easily integrated with other therapeutic modalities. I highly recommend!

An indispensable guide for clinicians seeking to integrate creativity into emotional management. Erica uses her expertise to distil Art therapy's principles and turn anger management into an enjoyable, impactful journey for both practitioners and clients.--Nadia Paredes, LMFT, ATR

An ingeniously constructive way to explore the relationship with anger. Thoughtful guidelines to promote healing and decrease harm for trained clinicians experimenting with creativity in therapeutic practice for the first time. A straightforward, adaptive, and user-friendly resource most useful for art therapists or art therapist trainees.--Louvenia Jackson, Ph.D., LMFT, ATR-BC, author of Cultural Humility in Art Therapy. Associate Professor and Department Chair of the Marital and Family Therapy with Specialization in Art Therapy Department at Loyola Marymount University

With creativity, a wealth of knowledge, expertise and skill, Erica Curtis delivers a masterful step-by-step book for mental health providers to put therapeutic art activities into practice immediately. This is a much needed guide to acknowledge, access and express anger through the healing application of expressive art.--Marci Dadd, Clinical Art Therapist, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist

Erica Curtis is a master at taking complicated emotions like anger, a feeling that seems so intimidating and overwhelming to most of us, and providing expertly organized and practical strategies that anyone will benefit from using. She provides 70 creative and inventive exercises that will get you thinking about anger from a much more compassionate perspective. I look forward to using Erica's art therapy exercises in my sessions with clients in the future!--Risa Williams, therapist and award-winning author of The Ultimate Time Management Toolkit, The Ultimate Anxiety Toolkit and The Ultimate Self-Esteem Toolkit

About the Author

Erica Curtis is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Board-Certified Art Therapist with a private practice in San Juan Capistrano, California. For over twenty years, Erica has specialized in the integration of cutting edge, creative, and compassionate approaches to improving lives of others.
She is an award-winning author, internationally sought speaker, and has been cited in over 100 media outlets including PBS, The Boston Globe, USA Today, and Elle.
Erica serves as core faculty and curriculum developer for UCLArts & Healing and is the admissions consultant for the Loyola Marymount University Department of Marital and Family Therapy with specialized training in art therapy. Erica has served multiple terms on the board of directors of the American Art Therapy Association and is a past president of the Southern California Art Therapy Association, from which she received the highest recognition: Honorary Life Member.