Stress Stifles Creativity - Getting Back on Track

It's been a while since I've blogged, or written anything personal for that matter! And I've been aware of it and yet simultaneously unable to do anything about it. I came across a quote today on the American Psychology Association website that says:

"'Stress is a well-known creativity killer,' says psychologist Robert Epstein, PhD."

Indeed.

I asked my counselor long ago if stress would hurt my ability to write. Her response? Absolutely! She said that being under stress causes things to happen in the brain that actually block the creative process completely. And it's something I've remembered as I've plugged along in life. Yes, stress stifles creativity.

The last few months have been about me being in survival mode. I had to put off finishing my book because I didn't have the financial means to get it edited and I needed to write things that would pay the bills now. I was struggling to make ends meet, to keep my freelance business going, and to tend to my husband and his completely broken ankle. I also got slapped with an expensive bill for two new tires, followed by some maintenance work on my car. And on top of that, both of my cats were sick and some surprise vet bills jumped into the mix.

And if you know me, you know that if my cats ain't happy, I ain't happy.

So I think during this time I became a survivalist instead of a dreamer or a writer or an artist. And that meant I also felt pretty depressed and lost. And I questioned myself and what I was doing, and wondered whether I'd made the wrong choices in life. But as we all know, life presents us with challenges to help us grow or to teach us lessons.

So as I write this blog, I recognize it as my heartfelt attempt to get back on track. To return to being a writer, and a dreamer. To return to sanity! To remember why I do what I do, what I want out of life, and where that "thing" is that I can't seem to find (it's inside of me).

This morning I got up early (like, butt crack of dawn early), I went outside, and I did a yoga practice in the dark on my patio. By the time I was finished the sun was coming up. And I felt calmer, and ready to focus on my work for the morning. I'm hopeful that I can carry the momentum forward as I continue to process stress and life and everything that comes with it. And that I can continue to try to find that happiness that exists within me...that light...the thing that lets me write to begin with.

So here's to getting back on track. Both for me, and for anyone else struggling to find their way through the scribbles and crashes and screams that make up this thing we call life.