Mental health awareness month: Pine Grove man uses art to deal with autism

May 16--Editor's note: As part of National Mental Health Awareness Month, The Republican-Herald interviewed Schuylkill County residents affected by mental illnesses and is publishing a series of articles detailing their struggles and how they manage each day. The goal is to raise awareness about mental health. Due to client confidentiality concerns, a caseworker requested their name not be used in this story.

NHS Human Services was turned into an art gallery Thursday with the work of Phil Christman on proud display.

Nearly all the walls in the second-floor office at 1 Norwegian Plaza were covered with his impressionist paintings of seasonal landscapes or the detailed drawings of his friends.

"Art is therapeutic for him," his caseworker at Service Access and Management said. "This is what he loves."

Christman, 30, of Pine Grove, has been receiving independent living services from NHS for several years now. He has lived by himself since his early 20s.

"My young adult life has been taken up with drawing and painting," Christman said. "This is what I want to do full time."

A 2004 graduate of Schuylkill Haven Area, Christman said he has been told by doctors he has a form of autism, possibly Asperger's Syndrome, a learning disability, and also struggles with depression or a bipolar disorder.

"I can handle my own bills, sometimes my emotions just get in the way," Christman said.

That is where NHS Human Services comes in. The agency provides independent living services, such as managing his medication and finances, while his caseworkers are from SAM.

"Every adult wants to live on their own, but there are definitely some challenges," Lisa Irving, a transitional living coordinator at NHS, said.

Irving said among those challenges is loneliness and that staying involved or having a hobby is the key.

"Sometimes we have to work really hard on finding something they enjoy doing," Irving said.

That was easy for Christman, who said he was drawing since age 6 and painting since he was a teenager.

"I've had a lot of different hobbies and they seem to help more than medication," Christman said.

A self-taught artist, Christman said he wanted to attend either the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design, Lancaster, or Kutztown University after high school to pursue an art career. However, he had a difficult time in school.

"I couldn't always follow things with school," he said. "Sometimes I have a tough time following directions."

Although he had a few part-time jobs over the years, Christman has had to rely on support services to pay his bills as he continues his search for full-time employment.

"I don't plan on being that way the rest of my life," Christman said. "I'm a hard worker. I think if you tell people you have a mental illness, they won't hire you."

Christman said other people with less experience have been picked by employers over him and that has to deal with the labels associated with mental illness.

"People without Asperger's might have emotional problems too," he said. "A lot of my emotional distress has been because of my financial and employment situation."

Even if he finds a full-time job, Christman said he will continue to paint and draw for the rest of his life. But his goal has always been to make a living as an artist and that is why NHS Human Services had his art on display Thursday for the second time in two years.

"It helps get his name out there as an artist," Irving said.

Irving was among the people who bought five of his paintings last year.

"Now these pieces of art are going to be passed down in my family for generations," she said. "They mean so much to me. I just love Phil. They are a piece of my heart."

___

(c)2016 the Republican & Herald (Pottsville, Pa.)

Visit the Republican & Herald (Pottsville, Pa.) at republicanherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.