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

It publishes a variety of article types: original research, review, communication, opinion, case report, study protocol, 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. 

Indexing: DOAJ-Directory of Open Access Journals.

Indexing: 
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Archiving: full-text archived in CLOCKSS.

Publication Speed (median values for papers published in 2022): Submission to First Decision: 6 weeks; Submission to Acceptance: 14 weeks; Acceptance to Publication: 10 days (1-2 days of FREE language polishing included)

Current Issue: 2023  Archive: 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016

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.

Publication

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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