Art rehabilitation in amputee women with Pandora’s myth as a self-esteem and quality of life facilitator resource

Abstract

Amputation is a traumatic event that has serious repercussions on the amputee’s life. The difficulty in dealing with the new reality can contribute negatively to self-esteem and rehabilitation, affecting the patient’s quality of life. The Art therapy, through its expressive resources, can be a facilitator and provide resilience to overcoming the trauma. Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of art therapy in self-esteem and quality of life in amputee women. Methods: A group of 8 amputees, aged 35-65 years were divided into 2 groups (4 in the experimental group and 4 in the control group). They were evaluated with the WHOQoL-Bref (World Health Organization Quality of Life), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE), Human Figure Drawing test and the participants’ own Reports. The activities, based on the Pandora myth, were developed in 11 art therapy workshops sessions of one hour that were carried out once a week in the Art-Rehabilitation sector off AACD – Ibirapuera, São Paulo. Results: There was no statistically significant differences observed between the initial and final assessments of quality of life (WHOQoL-Bref) and RSE domains of both groups, however, the experimental group evidenced a tendency towards the improvement of self-esteem, especially
in regards of self-depreciation. Qualitatively, improvements of self-esteem and the possibility of improving the participants’ quality of life were also observed. Conclusion: Art Therapy, combined with interdisciplinary care, can contribute positively to the rehabilitation process of amputee women, by helping to promote better self-esteem and quality of life.