Wellbeing and Alternative Therapies

Wellbeing is a term used to describe a person's state of health, happiness and comfort. Wellbeing is a broader concept than momentary happiness, it is longer term consideration including satisfaction of life, sense of purpose and how in control of life people feel that they are. Wellbeing is something to strive towards. Wellbeing is deemed important so it is included along with health and economy when measuring national wellbeing. New Economics definition of wellbeing is; 'Wellbeing can be understood as how people feel and how they function, both on a personal and a social level, and how they evaluate their lives as a whole.' (Mental Health, 2015). Wellbeing is difficult to nail down factors of, in regards to people's day to day lives, as well as measuring and supporting it.

People with mental health issues can have their wellbeing supported. This helps avoid reliance on the symptoms of the illness used by more traditional mental health services. These services are considered outdated by the people who use these services which are often out of line with the person's own wellbeing. There are a multitude of factors to consider when contemplating a person's wellbeing. Internal factors such as optimism and self esteem and external factors such as income, housing and social network. When measuring wellbeing there is no one way to do it, as it is different for each person. One such method to measure wellbeing is the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale which gives a numerical value to a selection of positively worded items such as feeling 'optimistic' and 'thinking clearly'. The numerical value of these words are counted and given a score which places a person's wellbeing on a scale. The higher result the better the wellbeing of the person.

Chromotherapy is also known as colour therapy or colourology which is the use of colour and light to balance a person's energy such as mental and emotional. It is an ancient form of healing with possible roots to the Indian practices of Ayurveda. Chromotherapy is the belief that colours can cause predictable emotional changes in people. There are colours that are energising (red, orange and yellow) and others are calming (blue and violet). Colour therapists use a scale which associate colours to seven spiritual centres/chakras. Each chakra is associated with select organs and has a dominant colour. Each chakra is also associated with one of the four primary elements. When diagnosing problems, colour therapists use Luscher's colour test which has the person rate colours from favourite to least favourite. From this the colour therapist diagnoses the problem and prescribes an appropraite use of light and colour to heal the imbalances. The application can use different materials such as fabric, gemstones or candles to name a few. Chromotherapy is usually used to complement other treatments by holistic or natural healers.

Autistic people might have trouble seeing some colours, but colours with a high intensity can be detected. Children with autism can be more sensitive to the world, specifically in how the world is perceived. This can be seen by how some autistic children only eat white food or have an avoidance to toys of a certain colour. Autistic children can be overstimulated by colours, so subdued or muted colours are best. Earthy colours create restful atmospheres. For autistic people, having defined colours for specific spaces in the home will help provide balance. Colours can also be used to help autistic people function in the world.

Photo Therapy is a practice used by counsellors and therapist to help their patients deal with unresolved emotional issues such as past trauma or difficulty in coping with stress. The patient goes away and takes images which are then taken to the next meeting to discuss why they may have taken these images and what it makes them feel. The sessions can help patients who may have issues with verbal communication to develop their confidence and skills. The use of photography in therapy is a great alternative for people who are not comfortable with other forms of art therapy.

For autistic children photography can be used to help them develop relationships with other people such as their peers or even their family depending on how their autism affects them. This form of art therapy allows the patient to reevaluate a situation from different perspectives and work out whether they had responded in the right way. This is useful in developing PNT social skills for the autistic person. Photo Therapy doesn't work for everyone as people respond to therapy differently. It is subjective depending on a person's needs and their personality. If they have a mental health issue, that would also be a factor in how they respond to different therapies.

Therapeutic photography is the term used to describe photographic activities that are initiated by an individual to help create positive changes for the individual. It isn't just about taking the photographs but also other photograph related activities such as discussions about photographs and the planing of shoots. The use therapeutic photography can be used to increase self awareness, rehabilitation and improving wellbeing, to name a few ways it helps. This is useful for people with disabilities as long as they are able to make any necessary adaptations to allow them to use the camera. This use of photography allows the person to develop confidence in themselves and to learn skills that would help them cope with their everyday lives. Photography gives people a way to connect whilst allowing those who need it some space from social interaction.

Therapeutic photography is also useful for people suffering from serious diseases such as cancer or MS, it is a useful tool to enable them to become adjusted to their diagnosis. For people who are less able to talk photography can be the way that they communicate to other people. This is useful for anyone who struggles being around people for long, if they have issues communicating or if they don't fit in with other people. They can use photography as a tool, allowing them to bridge that gap, bringing themselves to develop a talent that they can use to find others with a similar interest.