Creative Forces programming with military families: Art therapy, dance/movement therapy, and music therapy brief vignettes

LAY SUMMARY Creative arts therapists (art therapists, dance/movement therapists, and music therapists) administer assessments and interventions that support the holistic well-being of military families affected by traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Through participation in the Creative Forces: United States National Endowment for the Arts Military Healing Arts Network, military families discovered strengths, inspired connections, and improved understanding of their relationships. Creative arts therapies (CATs) motivated engagement, which ultimately boosted family resilience. CATs are an integral part of interdisciplinary care to address behavioural and rehabilitative conditions of military families impacted by TBI and PTSD. Future research should examine the efficacy of creative arts therapies in improving resilience in military families. Creative arts therapists (art therapists, dance/movement therapists, and music therapists) administer assessments and interventions that support the holistic well-being of military families affected by traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Clinical examples illustrate methods used by creative arts therapists to address the neurological, physiological, and psychosocial needs of service members and their families. Creative arts therapists describe areas of need, identify common goals, and present creative arts therapy interventions used with military families. Three vignettes detail the application of creative arts therapy interventions with families, couples, and parent/child dyads. Art therapy, dance/movement therapy, and music therapy interventions were applied in discipline-specific sessions to promote familial bonding. As a result of these sessions, families were better able to identify challenges and discover strengths, improve intra-familial interactions, and create deeper mutual understanding and connectedness, all of which strengthened family resilience and encouraged motivation in other areas of rehabilitation. Creative arts therapies are an integral part of interdisciplinary care to address behavioural and rehabilitative conditions of military families impacted by TBI and PTSD. Future research should examine the efficacy of creative arts therapies in improving resilience in military families.