What Cartoon Therapy Teaches Us About Mental Wellness
Did you know there’s a whole branch of therapy dedicated to healing people through books?
Bibliotherapy is a form of therapy that involves reading specific fictional works that talk about issues similar to those in your own life. You then discuss them with the therapist in order to help work through your own problems.
But as Western animation embraces more complex emotional themes, folks of all ages are relating to cartoons in a similar way. These works explore issues like grief, growing up, social justice, and even mental health in a way that’s layered, but still accessible and entertaining for a variety of audiences.
Cartoon Therapy, a scripted web series by popular Youtube creator Thomas Sanders, takes this to another level with a fictional therapist using cartoons to help his patients open up about their issues.
(SPOILERS for Avatar: The Last Airbender and Cartoon Therapy below)