ABSTRACT
Trauma, derived from the Greek word for “wound,” was originally related to a physical injury; Sigmund Freud understood trauma as an injury to the mind. Cancer traumata affect both the body and mind. A diagnosis of cancer is always a personal encounter with death, followed by shock and acute grief as well as a sense of the disorganization of one’s emotions. As mourning one’s death initiates a continuing process of remembering, creating and working through is needed to avoid deep and persistent emotional scars. Creating art allows a person with cancer to represent and project on canvas or paper what is hidden from consciousness, and slowly become aware of their emotional vulnerabilities and their need for support and care. Creativity counteracts powerlessness, doubt, panic and grief; memories as well as experiences from the present become more physically and psychologically integrated, allowing the cancer patient to live more fully in the present.
