A recent study exploring painting-based art therapy with perfectionistic individuals found improvements in emotional regulation and self-identity through the creative process.
That stayed with me because it reflects something I’ve had to learn personally, too. For a long time, I approached creativity the same way many perfectionists approach life: carefully, mentally, evaluatively, so that even art became something to get right, and what I’ve noticed (both in myself and in the people I work with) is that perfectionism rarely disappears through more discipline. However, it softens when someone experiences a space where they are no longer being measured and this is part of why art can feel strangely emotional, even when the exercise seems simple. Because the moment the nervous system realizes: “There is no correct version of this.” > something begins to unclench.
The psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott called this being “good enough", not perfect nor endlessly optimized. And honestly, I think many adults have never truly experienced that feeling. Sometimes art becomes the first place they do.
— Source: The Role of Painting Art Therapy in Enhancing Self-Identity and Emotional Regulation in Perfectionists (2025)
