How discovering your inner creative can help support your mental health
Banana bread, online workouts and overdue organised cupboards are just some of people's activities during lockdown. Social media was our window to the world, and Zoom was the new 'local' for a pub quiz. However, on every media platform and in every conversation, Coronavirus was the central topic which hovered over us like a dark cloud of uncertainty. The news broadcasted the death toll daily, our NHS was overworked (more than usual), and the world outside of our homes seemed like an invisible war zone.
Therefore, it's no wonder that according to a survey by mental health charity, Mind, in June 2020, there was a rise in poor mental health during lockdown between early April and mid-May 2020. Out of the 16,000 people surveyed, more than half (60%) of adults and over two thirds (68%) of young people said their mental health got worse during lockdown, with loneliness being a key contributor.
Of these people who experienced an increase in poor mental health, over half of adults (51%) and young people (55%) say they had no previous experience of mental health problems.
Dance movement psychotherapist, Kimberly Pena-Medhurst, explains there has been a double perspective in terms of a rise in mental health-related problems due to the virus.
"The pandemic has caused people to slow down and for their whole routine to become so much slower and quieter. We are a very rushed society, and that way of living sometimes stops us from noticing when we are struggling," she says. "We were forced into a false sense of stillness, and it was the first time people had a chance to check in with themselves."
On the other hand, those who already suffer from mental health-related issues were cut off from the services they regularly utilise.
"The NHS has been pushed and so a lot of the things people were accessing before the pandemic might have been withdrawn. They were even cut off from a walk in the park with a friend and those social elements help a lot with anxiety," she says.
As we draw into the winter months, the possibility of another national lockdown looms. In some areas of the UK, it is already a reality.
So, how can we manage these feelings of uncertainty if we find ourselves in another lockdown?
According to Harvard Health Publishing by Harvard Medical School, "Studies have shown that expressing themselves through art can help people with depression, anxiety, or cancer."
Additionally, Mind say there is research to suggest art and creative therapies can help with mental health problems.
The reason for this, explains Pena-Medhurst, is that creativity links to adaptability.
"Creativity allows us to feel and enables us to manage when things don't turn out the way we want it," she says. "Artists go to their canvas to paint, but the end product can be very different from what they started with, and that's where the magic is."
When engaging in a creative activity, Pena-Medhurst explains you are in control of the creative process. Still, at the same time, you are out of control of what the final product might be. We are grounded by partaking in an activity we enjoy and that we have control over, but at the same time, it gives us free flow and escapism.
"At the moment where our outside world seems very out of our control, we want something to hold onto," Pena- Medhurst says. "The act of engaging in creativity, whether that be in songwriting, moving in your bedroom to your favourite song, knitting or wherever your creativity leads you, gives you an element of control. As human beings, we need that element of autonomy."
However, the benefits do not depend on the person's talent or even the outcome of the artwork. "It's the process, not the product," says Megan Carleton in Harvard Health Publishing, an art therapist at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
Project Analyst, Callum Boutler from Brighton, says he turned to digital drawing when he started to experience feelings of anxiety. "I'm usually quite a laid-back person, but lockdown hit me. I was starting to feel a lot of feelings I had never felt before," he says.
Boutler was deemed as 'extremely clinically vulnerable' after having a kidney transplant in 2015 and so was advised to shield. This meant additional uncertainty due to the heightened risk COVID-19 could have on his health.
Without having the freedom of the outdoors, Boutler looked for something to keep him distracted and focussed.
"I always knew I was a creative person, but I never knew what. I regularly watch YouTube videos of digital drawing and thought I'd give it a go. I ordered a digital pen from Amazon, and it went from there.
Image by Callum Boulter
"I find digital drawing calming. It helps me escape as I go to that place of what I am drawing," he says.
The 25-year-old started with a portrait of himself as an experiment and now has created artwork of family, friends and images he found online, including those from Black Lives Matter protests. Although he feels a sense of pride and accomplishment when he finishes a drawing, Boutler says it is not about the outcome.
"I would tell anyone to give something creative a try. It's not about the final product it's about engaging with the process, even if you don't think you have a creative talent," he says. "I put my music on, and I can escape for a few hours."
Image by Callum Boulter
Similar to Boutler, makeup artist Megan Green* from Bognor Regis was experiencing overwhelming feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. Lockdown made her feel emotionally drained, but for her, these feelings were not new.
"I struggle with my mental health because I have BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder) and so I found lockdown really hard," she says. I am a very social and creative person, so to be shut off from that was very difficult."
Green learned to draw at university so during lockdown, bought herself an iPad mini and a digital pen to keep herself busy and creative.
"It helped me start to feel better. I just love being creative as it helps me to stay positive, I find it such a big stress reliever," she says. "In particular, I love doing face charts for makeup."
Face charts are where you draw the person's face who is having the makeup applied, and then create a mock-up of the desired make up application.
Although when Green first started drawing face charts at university, she explains that at first, she didn't enjoy it.
"I'm such a perfectionist, so if I can't do something, I get frustrated, and because of my BPD, those feelings become heightened. I had no choice but to do it because it was one of the requirements for the course. However, the more I practised, the better I became, and now I really enjoy it," she says.
As Green's confidence grew, she allowed herself to become lost in the creative process, and now it's not just for her profession that she creates digital drawings. "I now just do it to chill out. In the evenings I sit with the telly on with my iPad and I find it really relaxing," she says. "It gave me some positivity during lockdown amongst all the uncertainty."
When searching for an artistic hobby, Pena-Medhurst explains it's important to engage with something you enjoy and don't allow any pressure on the result affect the process.
"With creativity, you need to allow space. Don't give it an agenda, don't give it a deadline just enter into the process. It can be challenging, but the more you do that, the more things become more natural," she says. "We live in a society where we are led by productivity, and not having an end goal in sight can be very overwhelming sometimes. But the more we make that familiar, the easier it will become."
As a society, we rarely allow ourselves time to be in the moment and just enjoy living. Even though the world seemed like it took a pause, our minds continued to look for productivity and a purpose and some were busier than ever.
In an article with Glamour magazine, expert nurse Emma Selby, clinical lead at health and fitness brand, Results Wellness Lifestyle, explains this is called 'toxic productivity'. "It can be defined as an obsession with radical self-improvement above all else," she says. "Ultimately, it's an unachievable goal; no matter how productive you are, the result you are left with is a feeling of guilt for not having done 'more'.
Social media has always been a dangerous playground for comparison and self-worth, but during lockdown, there was an overwhelming amount of content broadcasting the activities of our family, friends and people we don't even know.
"Sometimes, we can be a slave to social media. We start doing things we think we should be doing because everyone else is doing it," Pena-Medhurst says. "The whole thing over the pandemic was 'what are you going to achieve?' I think just surviving is enough. Getting through it is enough, we don't have to do anything else.
"One of the main ones in the hype of the pandemic was the banana bread scenario. Everyone was making banana bread, but some people find making banana bread stressful. Yet, they thought, everyone's making banana bread, so maybe banana bread will help me."
This was the case for many people including 25-year-old Ella O'Connor* from Berkshire. O'Connor says the stress of seeing what everyone else was doing through social media added unnecessary pressure to her already anxious mind. "I think everyone felt like they should've been doing something, and everyone was comparing themselves to each other," she says. "I know so many people who lost loads of weight and got really healthy, and I was just not doing that. It makes you feel like you're not doing enough, but it's such a weird time there's no right or wrong way to spend your time."
When the pandemic started, O'Connor says her anxiety got astronomically worse. The constant news reports on the rising cases and death toll made her feel out of control, and she felt like she was continuously in a state of anxiety.
"Before lockdown I had many things going on in my personal life and at work. I was stuck in a cycle constantly trying to fix everything whilst neglecting my wellbeing," she says. "When I was furloughed from work, it was a blessing in disguise. It was the break I needed as I was able to take time out for myself because beforehand, I was on the verge of a burnout," she says.
O'Connor would turn her phone to silent, listen to her favourite music and allow herself to escape from the feelings of anxiety. "I felt like no one could get into my bubble," she says. "Art saved my mental health during lockdown. I realised it's not just about looking after others; you also need to look after yourself."
When finding creative escapism, Pena-Medhurst recommends trusting your instincts.
"If you're someone who hates baking, don't bake. If you are someone who finds making art stressful, don't do that. Try another creative element," she says. "I know some people think they are not very creative as they are more of a science mind, or they are more of a tactical person, but I would say that's something that has been taught to you. Everyone is a creative individual."
As most people are aware, the arts are struggling now more than ever with theatres shut and fewer events happening so less demand for creative professions.
However, whether we realise it or not, we have all engaged in some form of creativity during lockdown and in our everyday lives, from watching Netflix to listening to music. Whether just watching or listening, these two things can help evoke emotions and act as a form of R&R.
"The arts, in general, are never seen as vital to our existence. They are always seen as an add-on thing," explains Pena-Medhurst. "At the moment, the government are not helping with prioritising and showing how needed the arts are. The sooner we acknowledge that the arts are part of our day to day living, that's when we place it as something needed in our society.
"Before the pandemic, people may have thought it would be nice to listen to a song, to create music, to dance or to write a poem, but they didn't have time. But actually, this could be really beneficial to your whole health if you allowed yourself the time and acknowledge the worth of the arts in day to day living."
So, if you are anxious that the possibility of another national lockdown may impact your mental wellbeing, why not try to engage in a creative activity? The arts are so powerful. Although they may cure your anxiety, depression or any other negative emotion, they might give you that escapism you so desperately require. Although it is important to remember, try not to fall down the rabbit hole of toxic productivity. If you don't want to try something creative, don't do it!
Please note, the author of this article nor the employees at Natcho Creative are mental health professionals. This article is not arguing that creative exercises will cure any mental health-related problems or act as a form of therapy. If you are struggling, seek professional help from the NHS or any other mental health charity or qualified mental healthcare provider.
*Name changed to protect the source
Natcho would like to thank the many responses from people for this article who had used creativity during lockdown to help calm their day-to-day struggles. As we were not able to mention everyone in the main crux of the article, we have created a small profile to celebrate their creative work.
Charlie Port
Charlie was furloughed in mid-April and was starting to feel heightened emotions of anxiety and loneliness. Due to the lack of routine, she found herself aimlessly scrolling through social media until she came across a new creative hobby, digital drawing. Charlie started with images of friends, family and a beautiful picturesque landscape of St. Ive's. With the encouragement from her boyfriend Liam, she has now set up her own Instagram account @charliecreative_ where she has turned her hobby into a side business.
Charlie says the process of the drawing takes her mind off her anxieties and enables her to be in a happier state of mind. "I feel so much calmer when I am drawing, it balances me out," she says. "I didn't know my Instagram account would take off the way it did. It has given me so much confidence, and I feel so proud."
Image by Charlie Port
Image by Charlie Port
Tariro Madzingira
When Tariro was studying at the University of Nottingham, she realised that alcohol and blurry nights out were the primary modes of socialising. With the already heavy pressure of exams and deadlines, there was a need to encourage wellbeing in a mindful way, without alcohol which can worsen both mental and physical health. She collaborated with artistic friends to sell prints where a portion of the profit went to mental health charity, Mind. She then took it one step further and created art workshops on the university campus, and one in collaboration with John Lewis and Partners, as a form of timeout for the students. The workshops built a sense of community, enabling the students to have a shared interest and way of escapism.
During her third year, she also joined her university's Poetry Society which she says was a creative and inclusive space. To carry on this idea of an artistic community during lockdown, Tariro hosted poetry workshops on Instagram live. She joined with others to express themselves through words and creativity, away from the rising tensions of the Coronavirus.
Take a read of her poetry at her website where you can also find more information about her art projects.
Tracy Pearce
During lockdown, Tracy found it difficult confined to the house. Unable to exercise due to a knee injury, she rediscovered an old hobby to keep her mind off the crazy world around her. Tracy started making dresses 20 years ago and decided in lockdown to start making dresses for her friend's children. "Half the fun was searching the internet for fabric, pretty trims and buttons," she says. "It was great to have something to do that wasn't sitting at a computer, and that got the mind working."
Tracy says she felt so proud after her she finished her item, a blue dress with sailboats for her friend's daughter, Abigail. "The best thing was seeing the smile on Abigail's face," she says. From then on, her hobby had escalated, and Tracy has received many requests including a dinosaur costume and has started a Tuesday night sewing club with a friend. "I'm really enjoying having new things to make and if we do go into another lockdown, I know I will have many projects to complete," she says.
Dress by Tracy Pearce
Dress by Tracy Pearce
For more information on how to access mental health support or if you need to talk to someone, here is a list of charities and services:
Mind
Call: 0300 123 3393
Email: info@mind.org.uk
Text: 86463
For information on art and creative therapies, click here
Call: 116123
Email: jo@samaritans.org
NHS
List of mental health charoites and helplines
NHS Mental Health Services
NHS Mental Health and Wellbeing
For more information on where to get urgent help for mental health services, click here.
Mental Health Foundation
How to look after your mental health during the Coronavirus outbreak