How Creative Expression Supports Emotional Wellness

Life seems to feel so hectic these days, doesn’t it? Jumping from one task to another both at work and at home, leaving us feeling depleted and scattered. But what if we could create a soft, reflective space where we can take a little time each day or week to put our streaming thoughts and stresses aside, to connect with a deeper calm within ourselves?

This is where creativity comes in.

As both a creative person and someone who has struggled with emotional wellness at times, I’ve experienced firsthand how creative expression can change our mindset and support long-term emotional well-being.

And let’s be clear here – creativity isn’t a talent that some of us have, and others don’t.

Creativity is a skill that can be developed through practice.

So, the good news is, whether you consider yourself creative or not, it’s something anyone can learn and the benefits are far-reaching!

Creativity can come in many forms too. It’s not just about painting and drawing. It’s about expression, exploration, and emotional connection. Reaching inside ourselves to find a deeper source of understanding and energy that can both calm and motivate us.

So, no matter your experience or interests, by choosing small daily or weekly activities that really resonate with you (we’ll go over the different types so you can find some that really spark your interest!), you can nurture your emotional well-being, particularly during times when you’re extra stressed.

So why is creativity so good for us?

It’s been well-studied that creative activity sparks a complex interplay of both cognitive and emotional processes in multiple regions of the brain and causes the release of “feel-good” neurochemicals, such as dopamine, while at the same time reducing cortisol levels (the stress hormone), providing a sense of relaxation, calm and satisfaction.

The benefits of creative activity on well-being are quite incredible:

1. We enter what’s know as a “flow” state – a state of being where we reach optimal engagement (something between mindfulness and “deep work” – to be discussed in more detail in another blog!) where we lose track of time and feel totally immersed in the task at hand.

2. Our emotional regulation is enhanced – our neural pathways are optimally engaged, helping us process and regulate our emotions so we can better manage feelings of anxiety, sadness and even depression.

3. Our brain becomes more resilient and adaptive – it can better form and reorganize synaptic connections (increasing neuroplasticity), enhancing our cognitive flexibility and our problem-solving skills.

4. We increase our capability for self-expression and empathy, leading to greater understanding of the self and empathy for others, which can lead to enhanced social connections, particularly with loved ones.

Different Types of Creative Activities

Art can be a powerful pathway to self-understanding. It can serve as a non-verbal emotional language by giving us a way to express feelings and ideas that are often difficult to put into words.

Activities like drawing, painting, collage, doodling and dance can allow us to express our inner world through elements like:

• Shapes and symbols (ie: soft curves (safety) vs. jagged lines (anxiety));

• Color (ie: red for passion or anger, green for renewal or calm);

• Structure and composition (a crowded composition could suggest stress or overwhelm while a centred one could express clarity or loneliness);

• Abstract expression, which can serve as a visual metaphor by allowing free-flowing strokes to communicate an emotional state without having to draw or paint realistic details, and;

• Movement, which can be expressed in visual images through sweeping lines or in dance through different types of motions allowing the body to convey a message.

While art as a creative activity for emotional well-being can come more naturally to some, it doesn’t have to involve any kind of artistic skill.

Approaching art from a therapeutic mindset (art therapy), where the emphasis is on process over product, can be a powerful way to let go of perfectionism and access emotions.

Sometimes we’re so focused on the outcome that it can be hard to let go for fear of making mistakes. In a therapeutic approach, artistic merit is separated from the art, allowing you to feel free to experiment, embrace imperfections, and foster self-compassion. The activity can then become a symbolic language expressing internal experiences and hidden truths.

What can we learn from the process of creating art as a journey of expression and self-discovery? Here are some questions you can explore…

• What types of materials do I gravitate towards? How do they feel in my hands?

• What colours or textures call to me? What do they remind me of?

• How do I feel as I’m making something? Do I feel stuck or free? Happy like a child or frustrated and sad? How does my body feel?

• Am I thinking about anything in particular while making something? Do any images pop into my head at any point?

• What do I see in my finished product? Does it remind me of anything?

• How do I feel afterwards? Note any feelings in the body or otherwise.

Asking these questions and using different prompts (to be explored in more detail in another post) to help guide your creative activity can allow you to explore your inner world in a spontaneous way, making it a powerful tool for healing and self-understanding.

Journaling as a Quiet Companion for the Mind

Writing or journaling is an effective way to clear your mind, reflect on the self, and process challenges and emotions. Writing down your thoughts and feelings can help externalize them, taking them from your mind and body to the paper, thus reducing your emotional load.

Journaling can be done in many different styles:

• Freewriting or stream-of-consciousness writing, where there is no plan, no outline, no clear idea, you just write whatever pops into your head. Forget about mistakes, clarity or sentence structure, and just focus on offloading on to the paper.

• Gratitude lists, where you write anything that you feel grateful for in whatever format you like; bullet points, full sentences, or just words all over the paper. These help focus on the positive, which can boost self-esteem and resilience (even leading to a stronger immune system and better sleep!).

• Expressive writing, where you write freely about your deepest thoughts and feelings on a specific topic or event of your choosing, without worrying about grammar, spelling or sentence structure.

• Guided prompts, or specific questions to help guide you through written self-reflections, which can focus on different topics of interest such as self-care, gratitude, managing anxiety, mindfulness, setting intentions, and many more! Using guided prompts provides a structured and encouraging way of exploring the self without having to face a blank page.

How does journaling benefit emotional wellness?

Similar to other artistic activities, journaling actually benefits both emotional and physical wellness by activating both hemispheres of the brain. This synthesis can help us organize thoughts, process emotions, and reduce stress.

What happens when we journal:

• We are naming emotions to tame them – journaling can help us organize and make sense of chaotic thoughts and emotions and it can help break the cycle of obsessively thinking about something negative.

• By putting our thoughts, emotions and stories into words, we reduce our emotional load, and we can create the distance needed to accept feelings and work through them.

• We create narrative coherence – telling the story of your life, even sentence by sentence in your journal, can give you greater perspective about what you’re going through and how you’re feeling. This can help you better understand and even shape the narrative of your life, increasing your adaptability and self-worth.

• Journaling can also help you see how seemingly unrelated events could be tied to one another, giving them deeper meaning.

Double-Whammy: When Different Creative Activities Meet!

A great way to up your creative wellness practice (when you feel comfortable doing so) could be to combine a sketch with a written reflection using visual journaling, art journals, or mixed-media notebooks (more to come on this in a later blog post!).

Multi-modal approaches can include any combination of creative activity (ie: visual art, writing, dance and music) and can allow for a more comprehensive exploration of emotions. Again, you’re activating both sides of the brain, and by picking two means of expression that really spark your interest, you could potentially enhance your practice and your emotional wellness benefits.

Just be sure not to overwhelm yourself – start with what appeals to you most and that you feel encouraged and excited to do on a regular basis. Sticking to that will help you find and maintain creative activities that are the most effective for you!

Creative Expression: Building your Emotional Resilience

A huge benefit of practicing one or more creative activities is that it will help you build your emotional vocabulary by giving you a means to observe and label your own feelings. And having a large vocabulary helps prevent you from overreacting to stressful events.

If you need some help getting started, there are a ton of resources available online for building your emotional vocabulary, and we’ll explore some of these in a later post.

In becoming more self-aware, you are better able to adapt to and recover from stress, and more likely to seek support when needed. You will also enhance your self-compassion and reduce self-criticism, likely increasing your empathy for others as well.

And building a regular creative practice can also increase your sense of agency, as you gain insights that can support your aspirations – as you get to know your inner world, you will be more in tune with your goal setting, progress tracking, and planning your future steps.

K.I.S.S. – Keep It Simple… and give yourself Space

Creativity should be a soft place to land, where you can give yourself the space to reflect. It’s not a performance.

Be kind and curious as you explore your emotions.

Keep your practice low-pressure and use gentle prompts if needed.

Invite yourself to return daily, even just for a few minutes, to reconnect with yourself.

And most of all, have fun!

Stay tuned for a comprehensive list of creative exploration prompts to help build emotional wellness!