COMIC THERAPY: We All Need A Little Something

COMIC THERAPY

Comic book therapy is a form of art therapy in which those undergoing rehabilitation express their experiences through personal narratives in a graphic novel or sequential art format that enables them to process their memories and emotions. It can also be used in a psychotherapeutic setting whereby clients are encouraged to read specific comic books and present their thoughts and feelings on the events that occur within the books. This is done in an effort to reach a cathartic moment of clarity and understanding of one's own life.

Source: Wikipedia

Expressing Therapy

In 2011, Leela Corman and Tom Hart experienced the worst horror a parent could ever face when their 1 year-old child unexpectedly passed away. Being cartoonists, both utilised their disciplines as a coping mechanism to help make sense of this awful tragedy.

We All Wish For Deadly Force

In the comic, Corman describes the pain of "coming back to life after losing my first child", exploring her grief in the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The comic shows relatable everyday activities that are being experienced by her as a victim of PTSD, revealing her thoughts throughout the process. It is an incredibly brave and powerful short comic which through its ultimate message of hope, offers an inspiration to victims of trauma of all kinds.

  

Rosalie Lighting

Like his wife, Hart, translated his emotions with the narrative that jumps back and forth between memories of their child, and imaginary ways to move on with their lives. The images are drawn with so much raw emotions that they look practically snatched and gouged onto the page, and the comic — seems so therapeutic that is almost was not meant for others to read.

Reading Therapy

Apart from helping people with PTSD or anxiety disorders like Corman and Hart, comics are also used to treat gang members and children in foster care. According to the clinical psychologist, Patrick O'Connor, Irredeemable works best for his gang member and foster care patients while X-men does for all age groups.

The Plutonian acts of vengeance in many cases typically
resemble a childish temper-tantrum or schoolyard bully

Though processed Superman's power,
he clearly lacks maturity

"Irredeemable is about someone who became a superhero without being psychologically capable of being one. In the case of the Plutonian it is clear that he is much more reliant on others' opinions of him than he should be. This is one of the many causes that drives him to be evil and though you can see the origins in his earlier life it is clear that this is the immediate cause of his madness." said the author. To patients, this relates to their past, present or future wrong-doing actions as well as consequences in one way or another, and, with understanding, would consequently cause the self-reflection.

X-men, on the other hand, addresses various issues including the leadership, interpersonal conflicts, internal struggles of being different and left out.

The comic displays how these 'different' people learn and grow together in an academy, and eventually look after each other like a family.