The goal isn't to make "good" art—it's to give your brain a way to externalize the pain and then imagine it changing.
Here's a simple 15-minute exercise:
Step 1: Draw the pain (5 minutes)
Ask yourself:
If the pain had a shape, what would it be?
If it had a color, what color would it be?
Is it sharp, tangled, heavy, cracked, burning, icy, or swirling?
Does it have a texture—glass, smoke, thorns, stone, mud?
Don't think too much. Let your hand move.
Step 2: Look at it (2 minutes)
Instead of judging it, observe it.
You might ask:
Where is it strongest?
Does it seem alive or still?
Does it want something?
Sometimes people notice that seeing the pain outside themselves makes it feel less overwhelming.
Step 3: Transform it (5–8 minutes)
Now change the drawing in whatever way feels right.
For example:
Add water washing over it.
Turn jagged spikes into rounded stones.
Let dark colors fade into lighter ones.
Crack open a hard shell so light comes through.
Surround it with something protective.
Shrink it.
Let vines, flowers, or roots grow around it.
Turn the monster into something harmless.
The important part is not pretending the pain is gone. Instead, you're showing your brain that the pain can change rather than remain fixed.
Reflect
When you're finished, ask yourself:
Did the feeling change at all?
Does the image feel different now?
What would the transformed picture say if it could speak?
Even if the pain doesn't decrease much, many people notice that it feels less frightening or consuming after expressing and transforming it visually.