Photo therapy

About 4 years ago, I started taking self-portraits; I didn’t really know why I was taking them other than for enjoyment. I would usually take the photos when I was in a particular mood, for example if I was feeling very happy or a little sad. In the past couple of months I’ve realised the reason behind my self-portraits, I believe they are for therapeutic purposes. After having felt so ugly and worthless for many years, the photos have helped me improve my confidence and self-esteem. In some photos, I do ballet poses; I feel this has helped me connect even more with my inner child who loved ballet so much.

I’ve not only developed a photographic journal but also a love and passion for photography and modelling. Photography was another hobby I enjoyed as a child but as I gradually gave up on life, I inevitably gave up on my creative skills too. I’ve been reflecting on my life and, although I’ve been successful in the things I’ve chosen to do, I also feel that so many years were wasted. However, I’m thankful that my passion has returned and I’m once again doing the things I always loved. I really appreciate the skills I was born with and that I didn’t die without discovering them again.

Comments

  1. Paola, I found your words above to very interesting (and inspirational) -- I wonder: do you know about the fields of "PhotoTherapy and Therapeutic Photography" that you have obviously been personally exploring by yourself??
    Using photos in the healing process is something that is not new -- you have a large foundation of other people's similar uses of photos, to build your own practice on -- so I hope you don't feel alone in this journey of photographic self-exploration...
    Please check out the two links below -- the first is for a website where you can read a lot more about these techniques, and the second is a Facebook Group where there's lots of active discussion about such things -- and I'll be posting a message there soon about your webpage here now:
    "PhotoTherapy Techniques":
    www.phototherapy-centre.com (read the definitions on the first page and then click on the tree for more info)
    -- and --
    the Facebook Group for "PhotoTherapy, Therapeutic Photography, Photo Art Therapy, and VideoTherapy" at:
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/PhotoTherapy.and.Therapeutic.Photography

    I liked what you wrote above, a lot!
    Judy Weiser
    (Director of the PhotoTherapy Centre in Vancouver, Canada):
    jweiser@phototherapy-centre.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you so much for your kind words Judy. I didn't know about photo therapy until a few months ago when I stumbled upon an article about it. It's certainly good to know that I'm not alone in this journey. Thank you for the links, I look forward to learning and experimenting with more techniques.
    Paola

    ReplyDelete
  3. May God restore those years lost to you dear one. Hugs to you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you JBR, I hope so. Hugs to you too.

    ReplyDelete

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