Introduction to the special issue on creative arts therapies in the treatment of substance abuse

Abstract

“Drugs appear to give an enormous impetus to the creative intuition.” Alan Watts (1962) “No one can look upon God’s face, and live.” Hemik Ibsen, in Peer Gynt The treatment of substance abuse with the creative arts therapies is confronted with a paradox: the creative arts and mind-altering substances are not entirely antagonistic forces; in fact they share close ties. Both have been hailed as methods of opening the ‘ ‘doors of perception, ’ ’ as Afdous Huxley (1954) proclaimed. Festivals and celebrations, such as Mardi Gras, are characterized both by intoxication and the arts, as are many central figures of mythology, religion, and literature, such as Dionysus, Bacchus, or Alice in Wonderland. Creative artists have often used stimulants to help access inner images, as well as sedatives to numb the intensity of their psychic visions. Shamans, who are often cited as models for creative arts therapists, generally use psychoactive substances to enhance their healing powers (Harner, 1980). So how can it be said that creativity is an antidote to substance abuse, when the two seem to occur so often together? When so many creative artists become addicts, like James Joyce, or Eugene O’Neill, or Alvin Ailey? One might argue that the healing power of both the creative arts and psychoactive substances is derived from the same source! For example, Carl Jung took this stance when he told Bill W. that a person’s use of intoxicants (“spirits”) may be motivated by a spiritual quest, that is, a search for God that also underlies the arts (Jung, 1974). The questions are, Do creative expression and addiction support each other? or Can creativity become a replacement for addiction, as a kind of homeopathic alternative? Aldous Huxley defended the use of drugs to help people “get in touch” with their inner unconscious images, which societal dictates often suppress. Likewise, the creative arts therapies allow for the expression of essential aspects of self by circumventing the rigid censorship of the superego. However, in conditions characterized not by an overly rigid superego, but a weak one, perhaps a different approach is needed, A large body of evidence indicates that a primarily extemally-focused, suppressive, and supportive approach to substance abuse, such as found in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), has been the most successful. This approach advocates a focus on the disease, not on the self; on the present, not on the past; on the search for contact with a Higher Power, not resources within the self. It emphasizes naming feelings, not examining them. In general the intent is to distract the addict from the self and direct him or her toward other people and the battle with the disease. Introspection leads to self-preoccupation, which leads to relapse. How can the creative arts therapies, which stimulate an inner-directed state, fit in with this approach? Substance abuse programs also advocate avoidance of emotional arousal, as arousal leads to bodily tension that leads to relapse when addicts try to numb themselves. The emotional arousal offered by the creative arts therapies, stimulating clients’ bodies, sights, and imaginations, is well-known, and has been identified as the key element in the treatment of other diagnoses, particularly depression and dementia. We all know of the “high” accompanying a truly creative achievement, followed by the “down.” One study of drama therapy noted increased acting out and substance abuse following an intense and successful