Therapy for Creatives
You used to express yourself freely, but you feel stuck.
Perhaps you:
had a critical parent or teacher that shut you down
are stuck in your head and fears of doing it wrong
experienced a failure and are afraid to try again
are preoccupied with the competition
feel blocked when you try to create
are uncomfortable being perceived
experience tension when you perform
have a burnout related health condition
Creativity is your birthright
Creativity isn’t what you do, it is who you are. It is the most natural thing about you. Every choice you make each day, in some small way, is a creative act.
In our culture, we started treating creativity like an isolated talent or gift that only “special” people have. This really fucks us up.
We put too much pressure on the process and guess what happens? We stop “being creative.” But this just means that our nervous system is locking up under threat. It’s developed a new habit and we can gradually reverse it.
You are still creative even if you feel removed from your art. If you’re deciding what to make for dinner and throwing in a random ingredient on a Tuesday — guess what — you are creative. Doodling in your notebook, making your friend laugh with a witty comment once in a blue moon, picking out earrings to match a cute outfit, all count an as extension of your creative self. Even if you feel intimidated by auditioning or drawing or opening up your laptop to write, you’re not REALLY blocked, only currently diverted. Your creative life force, like energy, can neither be created nor destroyed. It’s just lying dormant.
The trick is to make it simple again. Nonchalant, even. Curious, present and low stakes. We can’t start from a place of self-importance and terror and hope to get anywhere.
My goal is to help you trust your creative self, and let the magic happen through you. Creativity is not meant to be controlled, but we can learn to influence it through our breath and our small choices and our permission to be! We can increase our tolerance for risk, rejection and success, so we don’t sabotage this natural magic. Therapy is where we can start to heal and create again.
“The creative adult is the child who survived.” — Ursula K. Le Guin
My approach to working with creatives:
Trauma-sensitive
I am skilled at holding your sensitivity due to my training as a music therapist. We can integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS), EMDR, or Brainspotting to help you recover from performance anxiety, perfectionism, creative blocks or burnout. IFS helps you connect to the creative parts of you that have been impacted by criticism and rejection. EMDR can desensitize traumatic experiences at the root of your creative avoidance. Brainspotting is a mindfulness-based therapy that helps you unwind creative blocks.
Playful
Playfulness helps you to learn creative skills and gives permission for ideas to emerge. I strive to create a space where silliness and fun are welcome. Brainspotting is a therapy that feels a lot like the process of creativity itself. We pick eye positions that heighten your experience of creativity or confidence. You will be able to access flow states and free associate ideas as they come to you. It can help you connect to your intuition and practice improvisation.
Somatic
Technical training puts you in your head. The act of creating isn’t academic, it’s somatic. We’ll use the language of the body to help you connect. I integrate mindfulness, movement, and visualization to help you feel more present in the moment. I am trained in somatic strategies to help you feel calmer and more grounded. It is possible to feel safe while you’re creating.
