In the chaotic dance of life and amidst the tumultuous waves of trauma, people often lose sight of certain parts of themselves and sink into the desolation of self-hate. Mental health struggles often feel like a battleground where conflicting emotions, thoughts, and memories clash relentlessly. However, self-love and self-compassion are crucial and foundational ingredients to healing.

Rukmini Poddar is an artist, designer, and educator who specializes in the intersection of art for emotional wellness. In this image she beautifully illustrates how we can meet all parts of ourselves with self-love and self-compassion. 

This image is consistent with Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy. An evidence-based therapy that is especially transformative for those who have experienced trauma. IFS was developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz, MD. Its concepts are now used by clinicians and clients all over the world. The premise of IFS is that we all have various parts of ourselves, some of which hold our emotional pain, and some of which protect us from our emotional pain, and we all have a Self that can offer curious, compassionate healing to our other parts.

This art piece by Rukmini Poddar poignantly demonstrates what IFS posits. That by connecting with our Self that is always within, we can access compassion, healing, and self-love. The more we can take moments to connect into our body to connect with our Self, the more we can access the curious, compassionate, self-loving energy that has the power to heal the parts of ourselves that hold our pain.

To see Rukmini Poddar’s other beautiful artwork about emotions, follow her on Instagram. If you want some help with expressing your emotions through art, check out Poddar’s self-guided book entitled Draw Your Feelings: A Creative Journal to Help Connect with Your Emotions through Art.

Image Credits:
Feature Image: Bart LaRue, On Unsplash. Creative Commons.
Body Image: Rukmini Poddar, Used with Artists Permission.