Share & Care
The power of art therapy helps children cope with trauma
The Share & Care program has been providing services to at-risk children and adolescents for over 35 years. The Psychological Trauma Center, founded in 1981, helps children deal with troubling events in their lives through the Share & Care program's weekly art therapy sessions.
The participants, who range in age from adolescent to preteen, express their feelings as they draw and discuss their artwork during 1-hour sessions. The program has curriculums on topics such as anger management, bullying, substance use disorder and grief and loss, and serves 30 schools in the Los Angeles area.
Teachers and administrators refer kids to Cedars-Sinai Share & Care because they're experiencing emotional and academic challenges due to traumatic situations and stressors.
The program creates a safe space for children to share their worries and fears and develop resilience that helps them survive and succeed.
"Children can express feelings through art that they can't express any other way.
We see significant improvement in how well kids handle the stress in their lives and how they do in school as a result of this program."
—Suzanne Silverstein, MA, ATR, founding director of the Cedars-Sinai nonprofit Psychological Trauma Center.
Get in Touch With Cedars-Sinai Community Benefit
If you are an educator and are interested in learning more about Share & Care and other health-education resources, please call the Community Benefit department, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. PT (U.S.).
Other Helpful Info
Find Out More About Share & Care
Read this blog entry to learn more about how children in the Share & Care program deal with traumas that include the loss of loved ones, divorce, gang and domestic violence, and homelessness through art.
Learn About Spiritual Care Options
Cedars-Sinai's chaplains, representing many religious faiths and cultural backgrounds, offer support to patients and their loved ones as part of the interdisciplinary healthcare team.