Therapy for Artists, Creative People, and Aspiring Creators
“Art is not always about the pretty things. It's about who we are, what happened to us, and how our lives are affected."
- Elizabeth Broun
Artists and creative people possess both an innate sensitivity and a drive to heal that reinforce each other. In our relentless search for a closer look at beauty, the sublime, or simply the truth, we turn life’s intensity up. Colors become brighter, sounds sharper, emotions more powerful. At our best, as we pursue these experiences through art, we find meaning, connection, and self-trust.
At our worst, our passion and sensitivity can wither into obsession, isolation, and deep insecurity. Art, once a spiritual charging station, can become a place of performance pressure, a warped house of mirrors that amplifies our fears and creates a false sense that we’re only as valuable as our last brush stroke.
Sometimes, if we feel wounded by art, or it is incapable of shielding us from a particularly tough wound, we turn away from creativity. Where we once strove to feel, learn, and experience life through the creative process, we shut down. With the end of our practice, it can feel like an important part of us has gone dormant.
Here are some key steps we can take together to (re)establish creativity as a way of being that nourishes you spiritually, interpersonally, and emotionally.
Grounding
We start by orienting in the present. How do you currently relate to creativity? Does it scare you, stress you out, evoke melancholy memories of what once was? These feelings can illuminate a seed – maybe even many seeds – of what you want your life to be. With safety and support, you’ll plant these seeds when you express the core of what you want.
Planning
Expressing what you want takes courage. So does committing to it with a concrete plan. We’ll build a set of tools, practices, community supports, and mental frameworks that you can use to take the life you want from an idea to a way of being in the world. As you learn, you’ll start to develop a hypothesis about what will work for you, and soon it will be time to test it.
Exploring
The fun part, the hard part, the feeling part – living in a new way takes patience, grit, and a sense of humor. As you start to put your plan into practice, challenges you could have never seen coming will emerge. Expect new people, new routines, and discomfort. Here you’ll take note of what works and what doesn’t, and adapt, all the while reminding yourself why you’re doing this.
Integrating
Now we look back at the progress you’ve made. You might have developed a new body of work or way of creating, or brought compassion back into an existing process. You’ll know you’re integrating when you start to ask, “now what?” (Thankfully you don’t have to answer that alone.) It’s time to gear up for a new challenge, refine what you worked on, or simply enjoy your growth.
If this sounds helpful, let’s connect.