Lia Landefeld’s recovery through art
MORE. BAYLEE. JERRY, IT’S SOMETIMES THE SMALLEST THINGS THAT CAN MAKE THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE, AND THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED FOR LEAH LANDEFELD, WHO’S BEEN VERY OPEN ABOUT HER STRUGGLES WITH MENTAL HEALTH AND DEPRESSION THAT ACTUALLY LED HER HERE TO WELLSPAN PHILHAVEN FOR NINE MONTHS. IT’S ART THAT SHE FOUND THAT REALLY HELPED HER SEE THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL AND FIND JOY IN EVERY PROJECT SHE MADE. TAKE THE WINGS AND FOLD THEM DOWN. LEAH LANDEFELD FINDS HAPPINESS IN CREATING. I HAVE SO MANY ART PROJECTS HAPPENING AT HOME RIGHT NOW THAT IT’S LIKE COVERING THE KITCHEN TABLE AND COVERING THE APARTMENT LOOKS LIKE THAT. SHE DIDN’T ALWAYS HAVE THIS PASSION AND SPARK. EVEN JUST MONTHS AGO. SO I’VE HAD A LIFELONG STRUGGLE WITH MY MENTAL HEALTH AND MAINLY DEPRESSION. SO I HAD A PRETTY BAD EPISODE LAST SUMMER THAT BROUGHT ME INTO THE HOSPITAL, AND THEN I ENDED UP HERE AT PHILHAVEN. WELLSPAN PHILHAVEN PROVIDES MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH IN LEBANON COUNTY. SO YOU GET LIKE A SAILBOAT TYPE. IT WAS ONLY WHEN SHE LEARNED ORIGAMI FROM ANOTHER PATIENT THAT LEAH FOLDED AND HAD A NEW OUTLOOK ON HER DAILY LIFE. THERE YOU GO. SHE BEGAN CREATING SMALL CRANES AND HIDING THEM ALL AROUND FOR OTHERS TO FIND. IT WAS ENCOURAGING TO ME TO KNOW THAT I WAS MAKING SUCH A SMALL DIFFERENCE IN SUCH AN EASY WAY IN PEOPLE’S LIVES. MINE DOESN’T LOOK LIKE YOURS. IT’S THIS SENSE OF PURPOSE THAT PROFESSIONALS SAY HELP A LOT OF PEOPLE THROUGH HARD TIMES. YOU KNOW, IT’S VERY CHALLENGING SOMETIMES TO PUT WORDS AND EMOTIONS TO HOW WE FEEL. SO EXPRESSING IT IN ARTWORK, EXPRESSING IN DANCE, OR JUST EXPRESSING THE SENSATIONS THAT THEY FEEL THROUGHOUT THEIR BODY. ORIGAMI CRANES TURN TO ELEPHANTS, FROGS, DRAGONS AND FLOWERS. PAPER THEN TURNED TO PAINT. LEAH CREATED THESE MURALS TO LEAVE A PERMANENT MARK ON THE PEOPLE WHO HELPED HER MOST. HER MESSAGE TO OTHERS. YOU KNOW, JUST LOOK FOR THE LITTLE THINGS IN LIFE THAT BRING YOU HAPPINESS. THEY TRULY ARE THE LITTLE THINGS. THIS IS ONE OF THE CRANES THAT LEAH MADE FOR ME TODAY. AND HOW SMALL IT IS. THAT’S HOW TINY PEOPLE WERE LOOKING FOR THROUGHOUT THE HOSPITAL. AND IT BECAME REALLY A SENSE OF POSITIVITY THROUGH THE WHOLE ENTIRE COMMUNITY. IT’S THIS LITTLE THING THAT CAUSED LEAH TO FIND JOY IN HER LIFE. AND IT ACTUALLY, SHE SAYS, BROUGHT ROUTINE BACK INTO HER LIFE. THE ROUTINE OF MAKING THESE HELPED HER GET BACK INTO THE DAILY ROUTINE, LIKE BRUSHING HER TEETH AND SHOWERING AND GETTING TO A REALLY GOOD PLACE IN LIFE. LIVE I
Finding Joy in Little Things: Lia’s mental health recovery through art in Lebanon County
Lia Landefeld discovered happiness through art after facing mental health challenges, transforming her life with origami and murals at WellSpan Philhaven.
Updated: 7:08 PM EDT Sep 4, 2025
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Lia Landefeld found happiness through art after a challenging period with her mental health, which led her to WellSpan Philhaven in Lebanon County. “I’ve had a lifelong struggle with my mental health and mainly depression. So, I had a pretty bad episode last summer that brought me into the hospital, and then I ended up here at Philhaven,” she said.Marisol Santana, a professional at Philhaven, noted that Landefeld initially entered the program closed off. “She came in, maybe not in the best spirit, to embrace us. So, we spent a lot of time in quietness,” Santana said.Landefeld’s outlook changed when she learned origami from another patient, leading her to create small cranes and hide them for others to find. “It was encouraging to me to know that I was making such a small difference in such an easy way in people’s lives,” Landefeld said.Santana explained the therapeutic value of creative expression. “It’s very challenging sometimes to put words and emotions to how we feel. So, expressing in artwork, expressing in dance, or just expressing the sensations that they feel throughout their body. You know, for a therapist, I can go a long way for us, and that’s really what we try to do here. We try to meet the patient where they’re at,” Santana said.Landefeld found that her art improved her daily routine. “That was something that really helped in my recovery. And then the bigger things that are important in life, like, you know, taking a shower every day or brushing your teeth twice a day, like those things they started to stick to,” she said.Her origami creations evolved into elephants, frogs, dragons, and flowers, and eventually, paper turned to paint as she created murals to leave a lasting impact on those who supported her. “They loved me just for who I was. And just for, you know, what I could bring to the world,” Landefeld said.Santana expressed her happiness in witnessing Landefeld’s progress. “I’m just so happy that Leah allowed me to be that person with her, and I’m happy to see her doing that. So, it makes me very happy,” Santana said.A quote that stuck with Lia is “the people who look for yellow cars find the yellow cars.””Just look for the little things in life that bring you happiness,” she said.
Lia Landefeld found happiness through art after a challenging period with her mental health, which led her to WellSpan Philhaven in Lebanon County.
“I’ve had a lifelong struggle with my mental health and mainly depression. So, I had a pretty bad episode last summer that brought me into the hospital, and then I ended up here at Philhaven,” she said.
Marisol Santana, a professional at Philhaven, noted that Landefeld initially entered the program closed off. “She came in, maybe not in the best spirit, to embrace us. So, we spent a lot of time in quietness,” Santana said.
Landefeld’s outlook changed when she learned origami from another patient, leading her to create small cranes and hide them for others to find. “It was encouraging to me to know that I was making such a small difference in such an easy way in people’s lives,” Landefeld said.
Santana explained the therapeutic value of creative expression. “It’s very challenging sometimes to put words and emotions to how we feel. So, expressing in artwork, expressing in dance, or just expressing the sensations that they feel throughout their body. You know, for a therapist, I can go a long way for us, and that’s really what we try to do here. We try to meet the patient where they’re at,” Santana said.
Landefeld found that her art improved her daily routine. “That was something that really helped in my recovery. And then the bigger things that are important in life, like, you know, taking a shower every day or brushing your teeth twice a day, like those things they started to stick to,” she said.
Her origami creations evolved into elephants, frogs, dragons, and flowers, and eventually, paper turned to paint as she created murals to leave a lasting impact on those who supported her. “They loved me just for who I was. And just for, you know, what I could bring to the world,” Landefeld said.
Santana expressed her happiness in witnessing Landefeld’s progress. “I’m just so happy that Leah allowed me to be that person with her, and I’m happy to see her doing that. So, it makes me very happy,” Santana said.
A quote that stuck with Lia is “the people who look for yellow cars find the yellow cars.”
“Just look for the little things in life that bring you happiness,” she said.
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