by Debbie Schroder
I can’t seem to stop smiling. I’m smiling because of my morning – I went to the Roundhouse, the New Mexico State Capitol Building, to watch Art Therapy intern Todd Nichols speak in the Rotunda. A number of senators and state officials also spoke, but they didn’t bring art! Todd…
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During the warm days of autumn, a small group of us gathered in a wilderness area beside a lovely mountain stream, high above Santa Fe. The entire mountainside was covered with green conifers and aspens turning gold. At 10,000 feet elevation, deer and elk are abundant and the air is pure. Just listening…
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... staying in on a Saturday night to write a paper with the company of a Santa Fe Pale Ale and burning sage.
... is making, screaming at, rebelling against, and recreating a budget over and over again as I stumble towards financial sobriety.
... is shedding the self-construct that automates what I think I…
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As graduate assistants at Southwestern College we get to do a variety of tasks, depending on our strengths and interests. While doing social media and blogging, I came up with the idea last fall to do a series of videos. What I realized is that while I was fortunate enough to already be living in…
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by Amy Hautman Bates
I can easily draw a family tree, but in Family Art Therapy class we made genograms to explain our relationships with our families. Many people can map out their family systems with an assortment of boxes and lines and symbols. Here is what a typical genogram looks like:
…
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What is a Container?
There are so many types of containers, a person, place, or thing that holds. Many images come to mind: a milk carton, hands, shoes, a home, a room, a box, a nest, my heart, a chair, a mouth, a closet… Many sensations come to body: warmth, safety, fear, constriction, flee,…
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First year art therapy student describes her experience using a vision board to ring in 2014 and details some basic tips on creating vision boards. …
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by Christine Miller
The initial quarter of classes I took at Southwestern College was both exciting and intimidating. It was through one of my first and most memorable classes that I learned the value of intention. Without a concrete intent to work on something, I would get lost in other thoughts and distractions or procrastinate…
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Would I rather be ‘right’ or be in the loving?
“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
“Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”
- Mother Teresa
“As I walked out the door to the…
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My past year at Southwestern College has taken me on an intense personal journey. I have spent most of my life desperately trying to figure things out. I moved to Santa Fe to study Art Therapy and learn a bunch of theory and technique. I wanted to get smarter. Although I…
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*This post is a special note to myself, a reminder that my job is not to be Little Miss Sunshine ALL the time, but more accurately sometimes the clearest joy is in continuing on.
So what if I need to get things done—like go to my job so I can keep making money to pay…
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"Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some." - Robert Fulgham
Is our purpose to achieve greater balance? To learn to set additional, or clearer, or more flexible boundaries with our activities…
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by Debbie Schroder
I have a song stuck in my head. I think it’s staying stuck because we’ve entered a new year and part of the lyrics are “How am I gonna be an optimist about this?” The song is called “Pompeii”, by Bastille.
This quirky song’s melody sounds pretty upbeat but the lyrics really appeal…
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My New Year resolutions are usually the same every year: be healthier, be nicer, and appreciate the simple things. But this year felt different. For some reason I lit a candle and mediated. I felt there was something specific I needed to hear for 2014. I hope that sharing with the SWC community is a…
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Freedom
Did you ever have that feeling like a cloud of lively bats is swarming about your head? I have and it's really challenging to get bat guano out of a sweater.
Seriously though, having a lot of incompletes is like that cloud of bats--those unfinished tasks just won't leave me alone. Even when I've…
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May beauty unfold throughout the year!!…
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by Debbie Schroder (2013)
The Wild Heart Gallery in the art therapy building is simply exploding with color! The show, entitled “The Hands That Guide” was hung this week and is a delightful mix of art created by faculty and staff at Southwestern College.
I’m always aware,…
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This is episode 5 of the Aspiring Coaches and Therapists podcast, by Emilah Dawn DeToro and Jacob Gotwals. In this episode, we discuss the roles of structure, fluidity, and presence in sessions with clients.
Listen Now / Download (Duration: 36:41 — 25.2MB)
Find out about:
How Emilah structures intuitive life coaching sessions with clients
…
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This is episode 2 of the Aspiring Coaches and Therapists podcast, by Emilah Dawn DeToro and Jacob Gotwals. In this episode, Jacob describes how he chose to enter a master’s degree program in counseling at Southwestern College.
Listen Now / Download (Duration: 14:26 — 9.9MB)
Find out:
Why Jacob decided to become a therapist
…
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"My clients are the best of my teachers, and I am forever grateful to them." - Karen Wennberg
A few months after graduation, I worked up the courage to take a job offer serving a population that is often avoided and forgotten by society. Addiction brings individuals affected to a place where there is little…
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Last week the Escuela Bonita Pachamama Mural series was completed and hung on the walls of the school. The typical labyrinth exercises, games, escuela perro, and puzzles were additional forms of exercise.
This final week, we watched the animated film: The legend of the guardians which is an adventurous tale of owls, the…
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The clouds have obscured much of the Apus (mountains) today. The rainy season is fully embracing the landscapes. The shortage of water in Maras welcomes the water that flows from the skies to aid in what water cascades down the ancient and newly fashioned acequias that crisscross this Andean land. The maize that…
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SWC Fun at the Grand Canyon
By Allegra Borghese
Part of the fun of moving to Santa Fe for grad school is getting to explore a new geographical location. The high deserts offer a different kind of vastness than the concrete jungles of the east coast. While a seven hour drive can get you through…
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By Amy Hautman Bates
So far my education at Southwestern College has been truly amazing. The mission of the college “Transforming Consciousness Through Education,” has resonated with my beliefs and values and the teachings have come easily for me. But, learning about something and actually doing it can be very different. It is common for…
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A collection of photos and interviews engaging the relationship between our minds and bodies. …
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Southwestern College Santa Fe, NM