Journey to Drama therapy

Theatre has always been a very important part of my life. I grew up singing, dancing, and performing. After leaving the small pond of my high school theatre, and going to a BFA program for Acting, reality struck. Yes, theatre would always be a part of my life, but maybe not the whole part. College is not an easy time for most, and I was no different.

After graduation, I began doing some teaching, but I still had not found the thing that was it. I had always had a passion for classical French cooking, so I decided the next step of my journey was going to be culinary school. I attained an associates degree in Culinary Arts, and thought to myself “Yes! This is it!” Well, it was not. Working in the restaurant industry is a grueling one. It was not always kind, it was not always fun. Throughout my time working in the restaurant industry, my substance use disorder was just like, completely disordered. I was unable to continue with my work until I was able to show up and work on myself.

I attended several programs, finally landing in a program where I worked on a farm for several months. While working on the farm, I began singing again. I began writing again. I began feeling again. I remembered that I used to love theatre. How many years I had been apart from an integral part of myself. Like many, I thought I invented drama therapy. I began looking for ways to “use theatre as therapy” and lo and behold, people had been doing that for a long time. Not only was theatre therapeutic, but it was an actual method of therapeutic practice. After a little while, after strengthening my recovery, I was able to begin my journey to becoming a Registered Drama Therapist. I graduated from a graduate school program that would put me on the path toward being a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and a Registered Drama Therapist. While there are parts of my journey that are difficult to share, they are all important parts of how I have come to my work as a therapist.