psychology – atelier

CREATING your way to Positive Mental Health

by Elizabeth Rice

I do not have it all figured out. Who does? I do however, believe that sharing one’s journey and opening up the conversation is one of the healthiest things we can do for one another and ourselves.

Personally, I have experienced a range of emotions and all levels of happiness at varying points in my life. That’s humanity, right? One constant in my life, has been the desire to create. I have always enjoyed the problem solving components of a DIY project, art in all mediums, and the pride in creating something.

My company, Concrete Theory, was created out of a weekend project. I found myself in a stressful, yet rewarding day job that took a lot out of me. I set a goal to do something I enjoyed, just for myself, every weekend. A few weekends into this journey, I discovered the medium of concrete and rediscovered how great it felt to create something.

There are two types of “funk” I tend to find myself; a compulsive urge to do a million things within forty-five minutes and the lack of desire to do much of anything. When I am feeling down or defeated it is my instinct to withdraw and isolate. Despite knowing this to be the less than ideal choice, it happens. Having a creative outlet has been a great asset when these feelings arise. Often times, taking that first step of creating something new reminds me why I started in the first place. Similarly, finishing a previously started project gets me going again and allows me to check something off the never-ending list. The sense of accomplishment (usually paired with a cup of coffee) reignites my desire to share in the community again and reminds me what I love.

Art as Meditation

by Hannah Martin

A great number of celebrated artists were known to suffer from various forms of mental illness and while I don’t know if there is a direct link between this, I can somewhat imagine what it might have felt like to create. Anyone who has suffered a mental illness and has practiced art will know that art is almost like escapism. Sitting down to practice some sort of art forces us to think about what we are doing in the current moment; it almost becomes a trance. Meditation also emphasizes the same state of mind, focus on the present moment and let everything else escape you.

I often think about how it feels to create. Meditation seems to be one of the closest ways to describe that feeling. Despite the creative process being different for every individual, there seems to be a unifying factor that brings a sense of escapism. On top of that, creativity is a form of self-expression, which implies that when we create we are reflecting on ourselves and using art as an outlet to organize our reflections.

Whether it’s writing or painting, practicing your creativity is one of the best ways to alter your state of mind, reflect on yourself and bring about positive change towards your mental health.