OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine is an international peer-reviewed Open Access journal published quarterly online by LIDSEN Publishing Inc. It covers all evidence-based scientific studies on integrative, alternative and complementary approaches to improving health and wellness.

Topics contain but are not limited to:

  • Acupuncture
  • Acupressure
  • Acupotomy
  • Bioelectromagnetics applications
  • Pharmacological and biological treatments including their efficacy and safety
  • Diet, nutrition and lifestyle changes
  • Herbal medicine
  • Homeopathy
  • Manual healing methods (e.g., massage, physical therapy)
  • Kinesiology
  • Mind/body interventions
  • Preventive medicine
  • Research in integrative medicine
  • Education in integrative medicine
  • Related policies

The journal publishes a variety of article types: Original Research, Review, Communication, Opinion, Comment, Conference Report, Technical Note, Book Review, etc.

There is no restriction on paper length, provided that the text is concise and comprehensive. Authors should present their results in as much detail as possible, as reviewers are encouraged to emphasize scientific rigor and reproducibility.

Publication Speed (median values for papers published in 2023): Submission to First Decision: 5.9 weeks; Submission to Acceptance: 14.7 weeks; Acceptance to Publication: 8 days (1-2 days of FREE language polishing included)

Special Issue

Expressive Arts Therapies during and in the Aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Submission Deadline: May 31, 2024 (Open) Submit Now

Guest Editor

Noah Hass-Cohen, PsyD, MA, ATR-BC, Professor

Couples Family Therapy Program, California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University, USA 

Website | E-Mail

Research interests: art therapy and relational neuroscience, compassionate mindfulness-based art therapy, trauma informed psychotherapy, chronic pain, obesity prevention, single session arts therapies, positive psychology, online arts therapy, quantitative and qualitative art therapy research methods

About This Topic

The purpose of this special issues is to showcase the courage and ingenuity of expressive arts therapists in adapting to constraints of the Covid 19 pandemic and e the diversity of people’s reactions to the pandemic. Submissions will demonstrate how compassionate-based arts therapy practices in online and face-to-face, clinical interventions, teaching, coaching, and program development formats, support recovery and prevention of the pandemic mental health effects. Case studies, clinical reports, autoethnographies, narratives, indigenous methods, thematic analysis, and curriculum descriptions are encouraged. This issue aims to publish work which is not often considered due to publication bias towards quantitative studies or traditional qualitative work. Expressive arts therapists and artists are encouraged to submit self of the therapists’ narratives and artwork. Therapists’ use of self is one of the most important therapeutic success factors. Submissions must demonstrate creativity and soundness by acknowledging personal and method-based preferences, clearly illustrating pathways that determined findings, and thick narration of artwork and artmaking. The purpose is to create an anthology that can further the expressive arts profession.

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted through the LIDSEN Submission System. Detailed information on manuscript preparation and submission is available in the Instructions for Authors. All submitted articles will be thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process and will be processed following the Editorial Process and Quality Control policy. Upon acceptance, the article will be immediately published in a regular issue of the journal and will be listed together on the special issue website, with a label that the article belongs to the Special Issue. LIDSEN distributes articles under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) License in an open-access model. The authors own the copyright to the article, and the article can be free to access, distribute, and reuse provided that the original work is correctly cited.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). Research articles and review articles are highly invited. Authors are encouraged to send the tentative title and abstract of the planned paper to the Editorial Office (icm@lidsen.com) for record. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Editorial Office.

Welcome your submission!

Publication

Open Access Concept Paper

Homebody: Art Therapy and the Art of Possessions

Received: 07 June 2024;  Published: 25 September 2024;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2403056

Abstract

This concept paper is proposing the inclusion of the home studio as an art making location for art therapy trainees who assemble personal belongings, within the context of their domestic lives. A collection of belongings can become an installation which brings together associations to identities in juxtaposition. The material cultu [...]
Open Access Research Article

A Tail Within a Tale, Within a Tale: An Autoethnographic Account for Dog Lovers, Cat Lovers, and Story Lovers

Received: 16 October 2023;  Published: 21 December 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2304062

Abstract

It was March-April 2020. The first few weeks of the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown had just begun. Anxiety levels were high, and being locked up at home was an unfamiliar and eerie situation. A music therapist sent her clients (elementary school children on the autism spectrum) daily videos of her dog, Robben, during his daily routines. [...]
Open Access Original Research

Creating through COVID-19 - An Art-Based Autoethnographic Account

Received: 09 November 2023;  Published: 29 November 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2304057

Abstract

The experience of painting during the COVID-19 period initiated this art-based autoethnographic account. The pandemic affected various fields of life; the discussion is thus pursued from a few interrelated points of view: of an individual coping with the COVID-19 crisis on a personal level, of a painter, of an art therapist, of an art therap [...]
Open Access Research Article

Alone within the ALONESS of Covid-19: Developing Contemplative, Artistic Inner Friendship for Turbulent Times

Received: 27 March 2023;  Published: 25 October 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2304045

Abstract

Art therapy, imaginal mindfulness, yoga, and meditation were personal and collegial necessities for surviving the emotional fallout of isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic. Combining these practices offered us credible resources for enhancing our social, cultural, and spiritual wellness when faced with the loneliness of lockdown [...]
Open Access Original Research

The Exploration of the Experience of Expressive Therapies in a Pediatric Medical Setting in the COVID-19 Pandemic through Arts-Based Research

Received: 03 June 2023;  Published: 24 October 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2304044

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic presented a host of issues for hospitalized patients including increased anxiety, fear, isolation, and depression [1]. Expressive Therapies have been used in the pediatric medical setting for decades to support patients and families with coping, expression, processing, and rehabilitation [2-5]. Additionally, some studies [...]
Open Access Case Report

Art Therapy during COVID-19 with a Deaf Client Diagnosed with Schizophrenia: A Case Report

Received: 28 April 2023;  Published: 11 July 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2303028

Abstract

This case report explores the shifts in therapeutic power relations during the COVID-19 pandemic between an art therapist and her Deaf client diagnosed with schizophrenia. A therapeutic journey of two and a half years is described, accompanied by examples of the client's artwork. This case report demonstrates how a shared reality in times [...]
Open Access Original Research

Revisiting the Experience of Art Therapists and Drama Therapists Working in Schools Two Years after the First Lockdown: A Qualitative Pilot

Received: 25 May 2023;  Published: 11 July 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2303027

Abstract

This paper follows a preliminary study that examined how 6 (n = 6) creative arts therapists (3 art therapists and 3 drama therapists) coped with the transition to remote therapy in schools during the first lockdown in Israel due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The preliminary research explo [...]
Open Access Research Article

Unmasked Connections: Piloting Virtual Interactive Artist Performances in Healthcare — A Feasibility Study

Received: 17 March 2023;  Published: 05 July 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2303026

Abstract

The arts offer many health benefits and can be especially impactful in hospital or continuing care facilities through group art interventions or personalized art activities. Arts can also be socially prescribed to fulfill social needs, improve emotional well-being, and have a positive impact of the social determinants of heath. This feasibilit [...]
Open Access Original Research

Successful Online Choir for People Living with Dementia: A Qualitative Case Study

Received: 26 February 2023;  Published: 13 June 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2302024

Abstract

Group singing as a social musical activity can be used to improve the quality of life, well-being, and overall health of people with dementia and caregivers. Online choirs have gained awareness since the COVID-19 pandemic; however, singing in an online choir is an unsatisfying experience for most choir members in the general population. In [...]
Open Access Original Research

Using Music to Manage Anxiety: A Mixed Methods Intervention Study Between Two Lockdowns

Received: 21 November 2022;  Published: 08 February 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2301013

Abstract

Lockdowns were a central strategy for managing the outbreak of COVID-19, and Melbourne, Australia had some of the most extensive restrictions globally during 2021. As a result, university students were faced with isolated living and challenging learning experiences. This pilot study occurred during 2021, close to both university assignment [...]
Open Access Original Research

Expressive Arts for Grieving Youth: A Pilot Project

Received: 31 August 2022;  Published: 28 January 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2301009

Abstract

The experience of loss due to death, illness, and social mitigation was inevitable during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health services are chronically difficult to access in Canada, and this barrier is further exacerbated when trying to access certified art therapists to deliver expressive [...]
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