Altameroy Blog

The Therapeutic Value of Scrapbooking

I have been a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant for 16
years and have worked with many different types of physical
disabilities and clients with mental illness. When I started
scrapbooking 8 years ago, I never realized what a therapeutic
value it could have on my life. As the years have gone by I have
also recognized the therapeutic values scrapbooking can have for
those many different types of physical disabilities and those
with mental illness. I have discovered that Scrapbooking has
many qualities that can help restore an overall sense of well
being, accomplishment, and self-worth, as well as help with
physical deficits. Taking photos of loved ones and creating a
scrapbook not only showcases familiar photos, but can also
display feelings and memorabilia. It is not only the actual
“scrapbooking” of pictures, but the memories the pictures
reveal, that can be of great value.

I made a 25th Wedding Anniversary album for my parents and which
included photos from their childhood as well as photos from the
time since they were married. What I learned from rummaging
through all these old photos was an invaluable lesson in family
heritage. There were places they had been, and family members I
did not know and events that were unknown to me until I sorted
through these photos and interviewed my parents. The end result
was a wonderful memento of their lives and a keepsake we could
all cherish and share for generations to come.

Individuals with depression can find comfort in scrapbooking
memories from the past. Using the scrapbooking task as a way to
help individuals with mental illness stay on task, follow
directions and reinforce the need to complete a project are all
valuable Life Skills they will need to be productive individuals
in the community. Many with mental illness have a sense of
hopelessness and low self worth. Scrapbooking can provide these
individuals with a great sense of accomplishment.

The physical benefits of scrapbooking became evident to me while
working with a young brain injured individual in Rehab. This
person used the cropping tools to increase her fine motor
skills, as well as the photos to help with memory recall of
loved ones and others from her life. Cutting with scissors or a
paper trimmer and handwriting journaling helps build good fine
motor skills as does using shapes and stencils.
Visual/perceptual skills are also utilized with the activity.

Following directions of the therapist or using an idea book help
with organizing thoughts and following verbal and written
instruction. The organization skills needed to complete a
scrapbook page can assist a head injured individual with the
skills needed in many aspects of their life, from Activities of
Daily Living to work skills for returning to employment. The
step by step tasks of building a scrapbook page allow the
individual to process information and put the steps together to
form a completed task. Then putting all the pages together to
form a completed scrapbook reinforces the idea of task
completion and the overall understanding of getting an end
product from their labor of love.

Overall the craft of scrapbooking can be therapeutic to all of
us in some way. The companies that create scrapbooking supplies
and tools are often coming out with easier and less complex ways
to create scrapbooks. Someone with limited hand motion or
cognitive skills can learn to master this wonderful craft with
minimal guidance. I highly recommend scrapbooking as a
therapeutic tool for anyone and hope that if you know someone
who would reap its benefits, you will pass your love of this art
form on to them.

Kathy Johnson, COTA Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant and
Crop Camp Coordinator