Art as Therapy: Programs in D.C. Improving Mental Health

Editor’s note: This article features Street Sense vendors and volunteers. Street Sense maintains a firewall between its newsroom and other programs, and they were not involved in the production of the article.

In a sunny atrium atop G Street’s Epiphany Church, eight Street Sense vendors sang together. “Lean on me, when you’re not strong, and I’ll be your friend, I’ll help you carry on.” Away from the unforgiving stress of housing insecurity, their voices filled the empty space above their heads. These vendors gather weekly to write about their lives and share their perspectives on experiencing homelessness during Street Sense Media’s theatre workshop. Although the program was started with a focus on bringing the performing arts to vendors, participants have ended up finding unintended, but powerful, therapeutic rewards. For some participants, writing, speaking, and singing had become a form of healing.

People experiencing homelessness face higher rates of traumatic experiences and post-traumatic stress disorder than the general population, studies show. Amid a lack of mental health resources for people who cannot afford to pay, free art creation programs are providing an avenue of healing for those facing the trauma and loneliness of homelessness.

Traumatic experiences take a toll on the body and can turn into hard-to-treat conditions like anger, anxiety, or depression. Treatment to address that trauma can be life-changing, but with proper care behind a paywall, that treatment can be difficult to access. Out-of-pocket cost for one therapy appointment in D.C. ranges from $100 to $350, and local mental health institutions sometimes handle patients poorly or don’t provide treatment that lasts, a Disability Rights D.C. report showed.