START Creative Arts Therapy

START Creative Arts Therapy Offering in-person, telehealth therapy services across NY state. Your mental health journey STARTS here!

Our West Islip office is home to a dedicated group of licensed clinicians now accepting new clients.

Your "ugly" art might be your most honest work.That painting where the colors are all wrong? The sculpture that looks li...
01/12/2026

Your "ugly" art might be your most honest work.

That painting where the colors are all wrong? The sculpture that looks like nothing? The collage that's just rage and glue? That's the good stuff.

Art therapy isn't about being good at art. It's about using creativity to say what words can't. The mess is the point. The imperfection is the truth. Stop trying to make it pretty. Start making it real.

Some DBT acronyms look ridiculous on paper. But here's the thing: when you're spiraling at 2am, your brain needs simple....
01/09/2026

Some DBT acronyms look ridiculous on paper. But here's the thing: when you're spiraling at 2am, your brain needs simple.

These skills work because they're memorable, practical, and don't require you to "just think positive."

They meet you where you are. Corny? Sure. Effective? Absolutely. Which one do you actually use?

Happy Thanksgiving from our Start Creative Arts family to yours! 🍁 Today we’re celebrating gratitude for connection, cre...
11/27/2025

Happy Thanksgiving from our Start Creative Arts family to yours! 🍁 Today we’re celebrating gratitude for connection, creativity, healing and the courage it takes to show up as your authentic self.

We’re grateful for every person who has trusted us with their journey and for the powerful stories expressed through the arts each day. Your growth inspires us. Your courage moves us. Your presence matters.

If this holiday brings up complex emotions, know you’re not alone. Our services are here to support you as you navigate, reflect and care for your whole self.

Wishing you warmth, connection and a heart full of gentle gratitude. Happy Thanksgiving! 🧡

Through art, movement, music, writing, and drama (many forms of creative arts therapy), we can gently peel back those la...
11/27/2025

Through art, movement, music, writing, and drama (many forms of creative arts therapy), we can gently peel back those layers, release what’s been held inside, and begin to heal. These creative expressions give shape to what words alone can’t express.

Healing isn’t about perfection. It’s about honesty. It’s about letting the “polished” parts of us and the “hidden” parts stand together, as one whole being. When we unmask, we give ourselves permission to breathe.

Curious to learn more? Tap the link in bio and read the full blog. If you feel called to explore creative arts therapy for stress, anxiety or to reconnect to yourself, send us a message! We’d be honored to walk with you on your path of healing.

You are welcomed as you are 🌱

Letting Our Village See UsWe all need a village. We need a group of people who can hold the unmasked version without fli...
11/15/2025

Letting Our Village See Us

We all need a village. We need a group of people who can hold the unmasked version without flinching or fleeing.
That kind of safety builds slowly, through honesty, shared mess, and laughter that doesn’t need an explanation.

It’s the friend who doesn’t rush to fix.
The partner who says, “I’ve got you.”
The therapist who holds your story until you can carry it again.

Therapy can be that starting point — a space where every version of you is welcome. At START: Creative Arts Therapy Services, we help kids, teens, and adults reconnect through trauma-informed creative arts therapy for stress, anxiety, and relationship patterns. Art, movement, music, drama, and writing help reveal what’s underneath the mask and remind you that the parts you hid were never broken, just waiting for space.

Learn more or schedule a session at www.startcreativearts.com.

________________
Excerpt from the START Creative Arts blog by Dina Palma. Read the full post at startcreativearts.com
📷: John Noonan / Unsplash

The Halloween masks are gone, but the hardest ones to take off are the everyday ones.The calm, the capable, the busy.The...
11/06/2025

The Halloween masks are gone, but the hardest ones to take off are the everyday ones.
The calm, the capable, the busy.
The ones that keep it together.

This month’s START blog, Unmasking, looks at the roles we play to stay safe, the stress they create, and how creative arts therapy helps us find the courage to rest and be real.

🖋️ Read it now → startcreativearts.com/blog/unmasking

🍂 As the seasons shift, Fall reminds us that healing doesn’t happen all at once; it’s a slow, intentional letting go. Ea...
10/31/2025

🍂 As the seasons shift, Fall reminds us that healing doesn’t happen all at once; it’s a slow, intentional letting go. Each leaf that falls whispers a lesson in noticing, presence, and release.

This gentle reminder invites you to pause and reflect: What might you be ready to let go of? What small moments are asking for your attention?

Our latest blog, “Noticing,” explores how slowing down and tuning in can nurture real change, both in therapy and in life.

Read the full post on our blog https://www.startcreativearts.com/blog/noticing

And if you’re interested in taking that next step toward healing and connecting with one of our Creative Arts Therapists, contact us at https://www.startcreativearts.com/contact

✨ Pause. Breathe. Notice. ✨Sometimes life moves so fast that our bodies keep score long before our minds catch up. May t...
10/14/2025

✨ Pause. Breathe. Notice. ✨

Sometimes life moves so fast that our bodies keep score long before our minds catch up. May this be a gentle invitation to slow down & lean into the small moments, to notice what your body, breath, thoughts, and environment are whispering.

The art of Noticing isn’t about perfection, it’s about presence. Check out our new blog to explore how noticing can calm stress, re-center you, and open space for healing and connection.

Share with us what you’ve noticed so far this month!

✨ Discover the Gold Lining: A gentle guide✨
Swipe through and let each tip, affirmation, and nugget of wisdom spark that...
08/26/2025

✨ Discover the Gold Lining: A gentle guide✨

Swipe through and let each tip, affirmation, and nugget of wisdom spark that inner glow. These golden gems are gentle reminders that even in the storms, there’s a shimmering promise just beneath.

If your heart needs a soft nudge toward optimism today or a roadmap to resilience, this is for you.
May you embrace hope with every mindful moment.
Cultivate joy, resilience, and creative courage.

Hungry for more? Dive deeper into living through the Gold Lining over at our blog startcreativearts.com/blog and explore Ashley Joan’s art over at ashleyjoanart.com or tap through to

Let’s build a little community of gold‑seekers together. Tag someone who needs a golden glow, drop your favorite line below, and don’t forget to follow along for more creative light, encouragement, and art that turns the inward out (and the ordinary extraordinary).

Here’s to sticking with the gold, together ✨

✨ The Gold Lining ✨When grief feels unrelenting, creation can become survival. Artist found her gold lining — the warmt...
08/22/2025

✨ The Gold Lining ✨

When grief feels unrelenting, creation can become survival. Artist found her gold lining — the warmth you carry through the storm — in the quiet of her studio, brush in hand.

🌊 Ocean blues. Gold leaf. Layers of meaning. Each piece tells a story of resilience, loss, and light that refuses to fade.

💛 We are grateful to have these two pieces displayed at our START office. Read her full story at START: https://www.startcreativearts.com/blog/gold

🖼️ & check out more of her breathtaking work in person at her solo show:
📍Artifact Projects, 155 Suffolk St, Manhattan
(Last day of show is August 29)

What if the cracks in your story weren’t flaws, but the places where the gold comes through?⠀In our latest blog, “Gold” ...
08/15/2025

What if the cracks in your story weren’t flaws, but the places where the gold comes through?
⠀
In our latest blog, “Gold” we explore the powerful intersection of healing and creative expression through the eyes of artist Ashley Joan.

Through her paintings, Ashley invites us to see our own imperfections as beautiful, worthy, and deeply human. Her art invites us to reimagine our pain, not as something to hide, but as something that can shine.
⠀
✨ Don’t miss your chance to experience her breathtaking work in person:
Ashley Joan Solo Show: The Gold Lining
When: Friday, August 16th | 6–8PM
Where: Artifact Projects, 155 Suffolk St, Manhattan
⠀
Come connect, reflect, and witness what it means to turn pain into power and scars into art. It will be a celebration of resilience, beauty, and creative healing.
⠀
Explore more of Ashley’s art at ashleyjoanart.com and follow for ongoing inspiration.
⠀
🖌️ Don’t miss the full blog at startcreativearts.com/blog/gold to learn more about Ashley’s creative process and the heart behind The Gold Lining.

What if the box you’ve been living in... isn’t who you are?⠀We all carry stories: some inherited, some shaped by pain, s...
08/15/2025

What if the box you’ve been living in... isn’t who you are?
⠀
We all carry stories: some inherited, some shaped by pain, some built for survival. But what happens outside the box?
⠀
In our blog, “Beyond,” we explore how different forms of therapy help us gently challenge the limits we’ve outgrown.

If you’re curious about stepping into new possibilities, at your own pace, with compassion, we’re here to support you.
⠀
Reach out for a free consultation with one of our creative arts therapists, or visit our site for a full listing of licensed clinicians ready to walk with you.
⠀
📝 Read the full blog now at startcreativearts.com/blog 
Your next chapter might just begin there.
⠀

Address

248 Higbie Lane
West Islip, NY
11795

Telephone

+16318672501

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when START Creative Arts Therapy posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to START Creative Arts Therapy:

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Category