Healing Is a Creative Act (And So Are You)

Modern medicine has separated us from taking an active role in our healing. As psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk puts it, we have become patients instead of participants.

When I was 12, I was diagnosed with clinical depression. One of the hardest things for me was feeling like I had no control over it. Back then, the science and doctors told us: it is an imbalance of brain chemistry and the solution is antidepressants. I was grateful for such a simple solution, but I felt like I’d been given a life sentence.

Since then, through my own experience, research, and healing I’ve found that:

Depression, anxiety, and trauma affect us biologically, psychologically, and socially. They rewire our brain. They affect our minds and bodies. They change how we relate to the world around us.

Therefore, our strategy must be holistic. We must take into account our biology, our thoughts, our habits, and our environment.

We can create change in our minds, bodies, and lives—but it requires conscious participation. It takes training our minds to work with us and not against us. It takes tuning into our bodies and listening. It takes awareness of our emotions and triggers. It takes practice, curiosity, and patience.

What Is Creative Living and Healing?

Creative living and healing is a way of approaching your healing journey with curiosity, imagination, and courage. It is a mindset, a strategy, and a spiritual path.

Creativity Is Innate

Creativity isn’t reserved for artists. It lives in all of us. It’s how we solve problems, envision possibilities, and connect to intuition. Creativity is the spark of life—it’s the ability to imagine something different.

Unfortunately, many of us have been disconnected from this part of ourselves. Brené Brown’s research shows that 85% of people have experienced shame around learning—and many of those experiences turn into “creativity scars.”

When someone tells me, “I’m not creative at all,” I don’t just hear insecurity—I hear heartbreak. I hear a wound. Shame disconnects us from our innate creative power. And when we disconnect from creativity, we disconnect from agency, possibility, and healing.

Creativity Is an Antidote to Trauma

Trauma robs us of our imagination. It traps our minds in the past. It makes it hard to envision a different future. Creativity is a way out.

When we approach healing as a creative process, we say yes to trying new things. We make space for exploration. We get curious about what might work. We ask better questions. We build new neural pathways.

I approached my healing like I would any creative project: I researched, stayed open-minded, studied my responses, explored modalities, and experimented with tools like yoga, breathwork, and writing. One of the most powerful discoveries I made was expressive meditation like Shaking and Dancing—which helped relieve seven years of chronic pain.

Creativity Reconnects Us to Intuition

Every time we engage in the creative process, we turn inward. We listen. We trust the unknown. That act alone—learning to trust the process—is a profound healing skill.

Our intuition is not separate from our creativity; they are part of the same inner guidance system. And just like creativity, intuition gets louder the more you use it. Every time I create something just because I feel called to, I reinforce the neural connection that says: I trust myself.

The Creative Process Helps Us Befriend Fear

Anxiety, depression, and trauma root us in fear. Creativity asks us to face fear and keep going anyway.

Every creative act brings us face to face with vulnerability. Will it be good enough? Will I fail? Will I be seen? But each time we move forward despite that fear, we build resilience. We learn that we can survive fear—and even use it as fuel.

Elizabeth Gilbert writes in Big Magic that fear always comes along for the ride—but it doesn’t get to drive. That’s how I’ve learned to relate to fear, too.

Healing Comes from Self-Understanding

True healing isn’t about achieving perfection—it’s about understanding yourself deeply. Knowing what you need. Honoring your rhythms. Becoming the person who can meet your own emotions with compassion and presence.

Healing isn’t about waiting for someone else to fix things. Yes, we need support. Yes, external conditions matter. But ultimately, healing is a personal revolution. A reclamation. It’s about you.

Over time, I’ve discovered that trauma doesn’t have to be the main story of my life. What happened to me shaped me—but it doesn’t define me. What defines me now is the path I chose after. The path of healing, creativity, and becoming whole.

The Present Moment Is Where Healing Happens

Trauma pulls us into the past. Anxiety projects us into the future. Creative healing brings us back to the present.

To be alive is to be here, now. That’s why I’ve built simple grounding practices into my daily life—cooking, writing, stretching, creating. These rituals help me come home to myself. They help me listen to my needs and tend to them with love.

Creative Living Is Coming Back to Your Truth

Creative living is about reconnecting with mind, body, and spirit. It’s about developing self-awareness, aligning with your truth, and creating a life you love—one day, one thought, one small act at a time.

I’ve spent the last decade returning to myself. It hasn’t been easy. But it’s been worth it. I’ve gone from disempowered and disconnected to deeply present and self-led.

This is the story I want to share. This blog is here to offer you practical tools, grounded guidance, and soulful support as you reclaim your own creative power.

The day you choose healing is the day you choose yourself. And when you do, everything starts to change.

Healing is hard work. But freedom is worth it. Joy is worth it. You are worth it.