12/04/2026
Reflections from an Art Tearapist
There is a kind of grief that unfolds slowly.
Not all at once, but through decisions you never thought you would have to make.
Amidst war, genocide, and rising housing and fuel pressures, the NDIS changes became real.
I had to let go of my team.
I closed the Footscray studio.
In the midst of it all, there was my wedding.
A beautiful pause.
And now, as everything settles, reality has returned.
I still receive calls from new art therapists looking for work.
And I have to tell them it is not feasible.
That I cannot sustain a team.
That sometimes, I barely have enough clients for myself.
But what weighs heaviest is this.
The clients who have lost access to their groups and art therapy support are the ones suffering the most.
The spaces where they once felt safe to express, regulate, and be seen are no longer there in the same way.
The need has not disappeared.
If anything, it has grown.
If we are serious about supporting people, we must also be serious about sustaining the therapies that support them.
Because when these supports disappear, it is not the system that absorbs the loss.
It is the people.
From my cup to yours,
Su Mei
