How to Start a Mental Health Journey from Within
- Chloe
- Aug 11
- 2 min read
You Begin From Within
The key is with curiosity, compassion, and creativity, ready to connect from within.
All of you is welcome here.
Even those hidden parts.
The anxious part that overthinks.
The quiet part that hides.
The part that still hopes.
If you’re exploring mental health Manchester services, remember: your journey begins inside, not outside.
Why Starting From Within Matters
When people search for mental health services in Manchester, or, art therapy in Manchester, they’re often looking for an external solution, a service, a technique, a way forward. But in my work as an art psychotherapist, I’ve seen again and again that real transformation begins internally.
It starts with a moment of noticing: I’m here. This is where I am. This is what I’m carrying.
The Body Holds What Words Cannot
Research in somatic psychology shows that our bodies can store emotional experiences, even when we’re not consciously aware of them. Psychologist Peter Levine, the founder of Somatic Experiencing, writes about how unresolved stress and trauma can linger in the nervous system, shaping our physical sensations and emotional patterns long after the event has passed.
In Sensorimotor Art Therapy, we work gently with this truth. Through materials like clay, paint, collage, and guided drawing, we allow what’s been held in the body to find expression.
A swirl of pastel might hold a teenager’s unspoken anxiety.
A palm pressing deep into clay might release a parent’s long-held grief.
A collage might hold both guilt and love in equal measure.
Beginning the Journey
Your mental health journey doesn’t have to be grand or perfect. It doesn’t start with fixing yourself it starts with being with yourself.
You might begin by making a mark on paper. By sitting with colour and noticing what emerges. By allowing feelings to surface in a way that feels safe and supported.
As a therapist in Manchester, I work with children, parents, and adults to explore emotions through art, sometimes in ways that words alone can’t reach.
From Within to Without
As we work together, patterns that once felt stuck begin to loosen. Not because they were forced to change, but because they were met, with curiosity, compassion, and creativity.
That’s the journey.
That’s the invitation.
And it begins from within.
Chloe Sykes
Art Psychotherapist & Yoga Teacher
Comments