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Every Monday morning, Holly Hart sets up her art supplies in a Psychiatry conference room, scattering strips of paper, paint containers, glaze and beads across the table.
“As a little girl, I always wanted to be a teacher,” said Hart, a patient of the BW/F Depression Center who leads a weekly craft group for other patients. “My dream finally came true here at the Brigham with this group.”
The patients who participate suffer from chronic illnesses, in addition to depression, and the group provides them with an opportunity to share information and resources to help each other cope. But mostly, it’s an outlet for them to laugh and enjoy each other’s company as they roll and paint paper beads for necklaces or stitch sections of a quilt together.
“Typically, when patients come to the hospital, their diagnosis becomes their identity here,” said Psychiatry social worker Melanie Renaud, LICSW, who facilitates the group each Monday. “In this group, participants talk about their rich lives as whole people, not just as patients.”
One member (who asked to remain anonymous) said she can’t wait to get to the group each week: “I love everybody here, and I feel loved. The crafts help take your mind off yourself for a bit.”
The women have a long list of artistic accomplishments to their credit: a quilt that was raffled off to raise funds for future supplies, countless beaded necklaces and bracelets, and decoupage, the art of decoration with paper cutouts and special paint effects. “The group is a positive distraction,” said Ellen Simmons, who has taken part since it began two years ago.
Hart encourages participants as they take on new projects, such as needlepoint and origami. “Patients have so much to offer each other, and Holly is full of ideas and so skilled at what she does,” said Renaud. “To have someone like Holly as a patient and a leader of the group is a unique model.”
The idea for the group originally came from psychiatrist Jane Erb, MD, who saw the beautiful jewelry Hart made while waiting for her appointments with Erb.
“I asked if she would be interested in leading a group for patients,” Erb said.
Hart, who also has MS, was excited at the opportunity and wanted to show those with chronic diseases that they can live happy and full lives.
“They make beautiful things, and crafting provides fine motor work for their hands and is good for the brain," Erb said. "They also laugh a lot together.”
And when someone feels down, the other participants offer support and suggestions for coping. “We’re usually pretty aware of how each other is feeling,” said one member. “We’ve all been there ourselves.”