Holding the Therapist Who Is Becoming, Personal Therapy for Trainee Art Therapists

Chloe
11 minutes ago
5 min read

by Chloe Sykes, Art Psychotherapist and Yoga Teacher

(Art Therapy in Manchester | Therapy in Manchester)— Hey From Within

Person in striped shirt and pink apron shaping clay by hand at a craft table with tools and paper, focused on pottery.

Why Personal Therapy Matters During Art Therapy Training

"I don't really know what I'm meant to talk about."

It's something I've heard more than once from trainee art therapists sitting opposite me.

Sometimes they arrive with pages of reflections, neatly written between lectures and placement days.

Sometimes they apologise because they haven't thought about the session all week.

Sometimes they worry they're "doing therapy wrong."

I usually smile.

Then gently remind them,

"You don't have to understand everything today."

Because personal therapy during training isn't another assignment to complete.

It isn't another report to write.

It isn't another process to analyse.

It's one of the very few places where you no longer have to be the student, the placement therapist, the employee, the researcher, the reflective practitioner or the person trying to hold everything together.

For an hour, you simply get to be human.

Personal Therapy During Art Therapy Training

When I began training to become an Art Psychotherapist, personal therapy was simply one of the course requirements.

If I'm honest, I approached it with some apprehension.

Finding the right therapist felt overwhelming. I wasn't entirely sure what I was looking for, other than someone who was affordable and whose availability fitted around work, university and placement.

Like many trainees, life already felt full before another weekly commitment was added.

Looking back now, I realise I was searching for far more than convenience.

There are still moments from those sessions that quietly return to me years later.

They didn't feel like breakthroughs at the time.

In fact, many of them felt incredibly ordinary.

Yet somehow, they became some of the most significant moments of my training.

Personal therapy has a way of doing that.

Its impact often isn't felt in the session itself.

Sometimes it unfolds months or even years later, long after the conversation has ended.

Art Therapy Training Changes More Than Your Career, Personal Therapy for Trainee Art Therapists

People often ask me what training to become an art therapist was like.

I usually find myself saying the same thing.

The course changes you.

Of course you learn theories, ethics, research and clinical skills.

You discover different ways of thinking about psychological distress, attachment, trauma and relationships.

But alongside all of that, something quieter is happening.

You begin noticing yourself.

You become curious about your own attachment patterns.

The relationships you build.

The moments that leave you feeling stuck.

The parts of yourself that feel confident.

The parts that still carry old wounds.

Personal therapy becomes somewhere those discoveries can be gently explored.

Not because you need to become a perfect therapist.

But because understanding yourself is part of understanding the people you will one day sit beside.

Woman in a striped shirt and pink apron writes in a notebook beside a sleeping black dog on a couch, with a colorful bookshelf.

Wearing So Many Hats During Training

Training is exciting.

It is also incredibly demanding.

Many trainee art therapists are balancing university, placement, paid work, essays, reports, research, supervision, family life and financial pressures, often all at once.

It can feel as though every part of your week belongs to someone else.

University asks for assignments.

Placement asks you to hold complex clinical work.

Work asks you to show up professionally.

Friends and family still need you.

Then somewhere within all of that...

You are asked to make space for yourself.

No wonder so many trainees tell me they feel exhausted.

Or worry they aren't doing enough.

Or quietly wonder whether everyone else has found training easier than they have.

The Weight We Carry

One thing I notice regularly when working with trainee art therapists is how much responsibility they hold.

There can be fears about making mistakes.

Questions around whether they are helping their clients enough.

Placement anxieties.

Imposter syndrome.

Financial worries.

The emotional impact of hearing difficult stories.

The uncertainty that comes with beginning something new.

Alongside this, training often invites us to meet parts of ourselves we may not have paid attention to before.

Our own attachment styles.

Our personal histories.

The ways we respond when someone withdraws from us.

The urge to rescue.

The fear of getting it wrong.

The moments where our own scars quietly ache.

These aren't signs that someone shouldn't become a therapist.

They're often signs that they are growing.

Personal therapy provides somewhere these experiences can be held with curiosity rather than judgement.

You Don't Have to Be the Therapist Here

One of the things I often notice is how difficult it can be for trainee therapists to stop being therapists.

There can be a temptation to analyse every feeling.

To work everything out before speaking.

To understand the theory before experiencing the emotion.

Sometimes clients even apologise for not bringing enough to the session.

Or worry they haven't reflected deeply enough.

I often find myself returning to the same gentle reminder.

"You don't have to understand everything today."

Therapy doesn't ask you to arrive with insight.

It asks you to arrive.

When Creativity Speaks First

As an Art Psychotherapist, creativity is available within our sessions, but it is never expected.

Some trainees naturally find themselves exploring experiences through image-making.

Others simply want to talk.

Some move between both.

Just as we encourage our own clients to find the language that feels right for them, personal therapy also honours your own way of communicating.

Sometimes an image says more than words ever could.

Sometimes words are exactly what's needed.

There is no right way to use the space.

Why Work with an Art Therapist?

Many trainee art therapists ask whether they need to find another art therapist for their own therapy.

The answer is always that the relationship matters most.

That said, working with an Art Psychotherapist can offer a shared understanding of the unique experience of training.

The demands of placement.

The emotional weight of clinical work.

The balancing act between university, employment and personal life.

The ethical questions that sometimes linger long after placement has finished.

The excitement of discovering your own therapeutic identity.

There is often comfort in knowing that some aspects of the journey don't need lengthy explanation.

It's Okay If Therapy Feels Slow

Looking back, I rarely remember the sessions that felt like dramatic breakthroughs.

Instead, I remember the ordinary ones.

The conversations that seemed insignificant.

The moments of silence.

The images that only made sense years later.

The therapist who gently stayed curious when I couldn't yet make sense of my own experience.

Training often encourages us to value progress.

Assignments completed.

Placement hours achieved.

Skills developed.

Therapy doesn't always move in that way.

Sometimes growth is almost impossible to notice while it's happening.

Until one day, you realise you respond differently.

You speak to yourself more kindly.

You tolerate uncertainty a little longer.

You feel less pressure to have all the answers.

Growth often happens quietly.

Art Therapy in Manchester for Trainee Therapists

Alongside my work with children, young people and adults, I also offer personal therapy for trainee art therapists and other helping professionals.

Whether you are just beginning your training, navigating placement, approaching qualification or simply recognising the importance of having a space that belongs entirely to you, therapy offers somewhere to pause.

Somewhere to think.

Somewhere to feel supported while you continue learning to support others.

Sessions are available both in-person from my therapy space in Manchester and online across the UK, offering flexibility around placements, university and work commitments.