Art is cheaper than therapy

The comfort of creativity in tough times

I never thought I’d spend my twentieth wedding anniversary filling out divorce papers, and yet, that’s what happened. Uncoupling is never easy, but it’s made even more difficult by the complexity of the legal system and the expense of attorneys, which make the process demoralizing. In the face of such overwhelming stress I didn’t expect to feel especially creative, but the last couple of months have turned out to be incredibly productive. Shockingly, my work hasn’t been a burden. It’s been a refuge.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

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There are times when creative work feels like a weight strapped to my ankles. Stress and exhaustion makes it hard to find a state of flow. In those moments, I would much rather clean out my closet than draft a new chapter. That’s very much how I felt when I missed a deadline earlier this year: spent, empty, and devoid of creative energy.

But something changed over the summer. Right after I turned in the work for the blown deadline, I printed out calendars for the rest of the year, pinned them to my wall, and charted my goals. I’ve been growing into new areas of creative work this year, and I knew if I could just take the time to plan it all out step by step, it would fit together into one big project. All I needed to do was map out the next six months and stick to the schedule. Which I could do. I’ve been a project manager. I’ve organized a virtual book festival. There is no reason not to use those skills for myself. So I did.

the view from my friend’s lovely home in Maine

The shocking thing about suddenly showing up for yourself the same way that you show up for your boss or your clients or your friends is that it’s free. You can just…show up for yourself. You can plan and strategize and organize and research and manage yourself just as well as you manage anything for anyone else, and that is a tremendous asset. No one is a better teammate to you than yourself.