Recent research has found that as much as 20 percent of Americans suffer from chronic pain, a condition that is fiendishly difficult to treat. And after a serious injury, Martha Sommers, a physician, made art to cope with her own pain.
“When my pain is most intrusive, it is by drawing that I get the best break. From layering the pastel hues, detailing with pencils, and accentuating highlights with gel pens; my intense focus temporarily overrides the pain messages to my brain,” she writes in a recent blog post. “That this break in the pain cycle creates beauty is a wonderful side effect, that I am now exploring for art’s own sake. And something I so wish for my patients with similar challenges.”
