An art therapy toolkit to help those recovering from PTSD

About half of all men and women experience at least one form of trauma in their lives. Trauma, if not resolved, can lead to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Early therapeutic intervention is critical to treating PTSD. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) is a transformative treatment that has gained considerable popularity in recent years.

For EMDR to be sustained and successful, clients need to create and access an imaginary ‘safe space’ that serves as a refuge in moments of stress, both inside and outside of therapy sessions. This project aims to support therapists and clients to co-create this safe space, and to help users self-regulate their emotional state between therapy sessions.

My Zemi is an art therapy kit that supports therapists to guide patients, using clay and sculpting tools to bring their safe space to life. The kit also consists of a soft totem, which uses heart rate monitoring to guide users in therapeutic breathing and to help them further access their safe space.

This project also hopes to address the need for mental health therapy in underserved communities and humanitarian crises. My Zemi seeks to increase access to EMDR techniques so more people can get the help they need.