Working with the healthy part. Art therapy to an adult woman with chronic anorexia nervosa

Abstract

Case study of an anorexic woman who was able to rediscover her healthy part after thirty years of illness, by means of art therapy, in a secure and accompanied space. Art therapy enabled the connection between the patient and her healthy part, as well as the patient’s ability to work with it, keeping in mind the image, drawing, or silent witness (Henzell, 1997) that sometimes became a transitional object to understand what happens during the session. The presence of the artwork facilitated the patient’s relationship with herself and with the therapist. The creative process allowed the patient to work with food related materials, within a containment space. The goal of this work is to show how art therapy helped to become aware of the disease and facilitated the process, after several decades of illness; the patient could begin to enjoy life, assuming her limitations and current circumstances.