Thoughts charging through your head a mile a minute with mania. Metaphors about life and death when you’re depressed. Hallucinations taunting you when you’re psychotic.
Is there a way mental illness is linked to creativity? I believe so.
The links have been discussed before, on other platforms, in various ways. However, it’s important to address here because creativity is a big part of All Behind A Smile.
Looking at the “creative” section and looking at me askance? It is so much more than art or a few sketches or web comics. Creativity is writing, reading, art … we live and breathe imagination here.
In fact, it is a major part of life – especially with a mental illness.
Not only are there huge numbers of creative people that suffer from a mental illness – even famous ones like Vincent van Gogh – but there are numerous research articles on the topic.
A Slightly Different Take:
We’ve heard over and over again how mental illness and creativity are linked – today we are going to look from a slightly different perspective.
How can creativity help with mental illness?
In particular, how can creativity reduce the stress associated with mental illness?
Keep in mind that we aren’t discussing a cure; rather we are considering how it can help alleviate symptoms (A.K.A., reduce stress).
Creativity and Symptom Alleviation:
- Drawing on skin instead of self-harm
- Sketching hallucinations on paper
- Writing about delusions to get them out of your head
- Reading to (temporarily!) escape from the stress of symptoms
- With racing thoughts, writing them as fast as they come
- Dancing when manic (safer way to expend some energy)
- Coloring to help with focus
As you can see, there are many ways (I only listed a few!) that creativity can help alleviate the symptoms of mental illness. Although there is no cure all (yet), we have tools available so we can feel better – and the above tools can be used with items easily found around most homes.
Do you use creativity to help alleviate the symptoms of mental illness? How do you use it?
Christian, wife, “hybrid” mama, I run the site All Behind A Smile to help others like me.
[…] topic is addressed in a broader fashion with Creativity and Mental Illness… not just how they are linked, but how creativity can help alleviate the stress that can make […]